Real Chick Hiking: 10/9/11

       A while back, I took advantage of one of those Living Social getaway deals and purchased a 2 night stay at an Inn on the Oregon coast. The pacific northwest is one of my favorite places and I can never get enough of the dramatic coastline of Oregon. As soon as the purchase was made, I called up my best friend and requested that she accompany me on this mini-vacation. With my move west two years ago and her expanding family (in numbers, not waistlines), we haven't had many opportunities to spend quality time together. Don't get me wrong, I'd chase her daughter around any day of the week but its also nice to get a little one-on-one time together every now and then.
       Last weekend, we were finally bound for the Pacific. I had a bit of a harrowing drive to the airport as my 2 hour commute over Berthoud Pass involved several inches of heavily falling snow, an apparently shot snow tire and a lot of sliding. I just barely made it to my gate and am already annoyed with winter driving (I had another snow storm to contend with on my drive home). We had opted to add a day on to the purchased deal to spend some time in Portland. All of the friends we were hoping to visit came down with some horrible flu-like bug, which sent us fleeing from their company (bummer) but it did open up some extra time to sit with my BFF and have long conversations without worrying about planning around other schedules.
We had planned on several things that just didn't pan out. It was stormy on the coast, which thwarted our dreams of kayaking and whale-watching. We're just not tough enough to battle 12-17 foot swells. The illnesses. The rain. But, if I may say so myself, we handled it like champs and it was fun to roll with the punches, laughing ourselves to tears along the way.
       We staying one day/night in Portland and ate what might have been the best vacation food I've ever had. Shout out to Jade, Por Que No and Tasty 'n Sons. I would consider a move further west just to eat that these two restaurants consistently, especially Tasty (ahhhmazing). We hung out at Hip Chicks Do Wine (I mean, the name was TOO perfect. 6 for $7), Powell's Bookstore and just walked around a few cute neighborhoods. We got a GPS with our rental car and thank goodness we did. It was so nice to just plug places in and get the chance to go wherever we wanted. Portland is a very walk/bike-able city but with less than 24 hours to explore it, it was nice not to worry about getting lost or missing things we wanted to do because of distance or the need for direction.
     Sunday morning, we took our time getting to the coast. We drove south along Highway 101, which is one of the most beautiful drives in the country, and stopped for some cheese and ice cream at the Tillamook Factory and anywhere else that looked like great areas for pictures. Finally, we arrived at Depoe Bay, OR and the Harbor Lights Inn. Depoe Bay is the smallest harbor in the world and is also one of the whale watching capitals of the US. I was pretty disappointed that the waters were too choppy for us to experience that but I guess we'll just have to go back. We spent the next two days walking around Depoe Bay, hiking, jumping on the beach, exploring the Newport and Lincoln City areas and eating to our hearts content (apparently our hearts need a lot of food to be content). I don't know what it is about vacations that make them all about food. Seriously, I felt like we never stopped eating. I am a vegetarian but when traveling the world, I would rather explore a culture wholly than limit my diet. I ate a lot of seafood in Depoe Bay (fish/chips, clam chowder, salmon) and although my pants are stretched a little further this week, I do not regret exploring the culinary world of the Oregon seaside.
A few places we visited and liked:
Gracie's Sea Hag: Dinner and Lounge-act entertainment
Blue Heron Cheese and Winery: BEST wine tasting of the trip and BRIE (S and I could eat Brie for days). Wine tasting was 5 for $5 and well worth it. They also have a petting zoo and lots of sauces to sample. A much more quaint feeling experience than Tillamook which is definitely a tourist destination.
The Flying Dutchman Winery: Right on the coastline. Decent wine and nice backyard area for sitting and relaxing. I'm not sure what the deal was with bottles of wine around here ($25-$40/bottle! $10 jsut for tasting- those are Napa prices). Must be a tourist trap thing. Their sea-spray fermentation was cool though.
Depoe Bay Winery: Getting a theme here? This was literally a hole in the wall ("the cave" as it names itself) and is on the main drag in Depoe. Again, decent wine. FREE tasting here.
Tidal Raves: Must have reservation. Pretty good food but the most expensive meal of the trip. Get a reservation for daylight hours-the view is the whole point, which we missed with our 7:45 meal.
       Our trip was just the perfect amount of time. Long enough to feel as if we got away (4 days) but short enough that Sarah wasn't gone too long from her family. I don't know exactly how long Sarah and I could spend together before we start to get sick of each other but I do know that I never got there in 4 days. It was so amazing to connect with someone who's known me so long, create some new memories, hear about her life and family and to share about mine. We hope that next time, we can bring her little girl, B, and make it a tradition for our families. She's the closest thing I'll ever have to a sister and I am so grateful to have her. There's more to say about this trip but that's enough for now. Enjoy a few photos of the part of our country that has captured my heart.