Day 2 - The Pacific Coast at last!

Monday, June 12

Woke up in: Seaside, Oregon, Seaside Hostel
Slept in: Seaside, Oregon
Traveled: 101 to and from Cannon Beach
Notable eats: Bistro (no website, alas) – steamers served with a leek-infused nectar; fresh grain bread with a choice of flavored butters (white truffle or honey nutmeg); salad with garlic-caper dressing; Chinook salmon baked perfectly with leeks and morels in a light vermouth sauce; Swedish cream with seedless raspberry sauce. Accompanied by a white Bordeaux, Chateau Thieauley
Miles: 20 (roundtrip)
Total mileage: 98
Photo Evidence

Slept late; woke and met Belinda, who is biking from San Francisco back to her home in Whistler, Canada! Wrong direction, she says, after too many days of being soaked and biking into the wind. We talked about how, when you tell others you’re taking off for a long solo trip, the response is often “Oh, you’re so lucky! I wish I could do something like that!” Well, if we can, you can; it’s a matter of choosing to make it work, which isn’t always the easy path. Belinda told me she'd met a guy who is taking two years to bike from Alaska all the way down the coastline to Chile. Imagine what it must take to put your life in order for that, but how rewarding to find the way to do it!

Had a nice, quiet afternoon catching up on e-mail and walking on the beach in the rain and wind. The Pacific Ocean is not as salty as the Atlantic, but it’s deeper, and that sense of depth comes through to the shoreline. I watched a woman try to rescue a Dungeness crab, but the critter was already not doing well; the extra stress may well have been the final straw. I was tempted to take it home and eat it, but my last experience with off-the-beach seafood did not work out so well. Better to leave it for the seagulls.

Late afternoon I drove down to Cannon Beach to explore; the view of Haystack Rock as I drove through town was breathtaking. Stopped in at Northwest by Northwest Gallery, where I was captivated for the first time by the enormous photos of Christopher Burkett. Months and years go into the timing and creation of his work; it's really something. The gallery also had some amazing hot glass art; foodie owner Joyce gave me a great tip for dinner – so I wandered down to Bistro, where bartender/scuba diver/carpet cleaning business owner Dustin kept me company and fed me well.

I also chatted with Lloyd and Marilyn from Portland, who invited me to join them at their table as they celebrated their 42^nd anniversary! I'm always so excited to meet couples who’ve loved and tolerated each other for so many decades and still find joy in each other. If the good Lord's willin' and the creek don't rise, I have this to look forward to as the Shmoo and I age.