Harris Beach State Park, Southern Coast Oregon - 7/9/07

We pulled out of Klamath Falls and headed over to Ashland this morning. The drive on Highway 66 completely surprised us. We were expecting typical Southern Oregon conditions (rolling hills, farm country), but instead we were in mountainous terrain heading over several passes. We had a great view crossing the Klamath River, it was mirror flat and glassy. When we reached Ashland, we decided to do a bike ride checking out Lithia Park and the surrounding area. It turned out that none of the plays are going on Monday night so we decided to blow this town and return later on our trip back. We did stop at a cute walk-up coffee bar and have time for a mid-morning muffin and coffee break – nice! Ned mentioned how beautiful the Applegate Valley area was so we decided to check it out and eventually catch up with Highway 199. We had a great drive thru Jacksonville, Applegate and Williams – and this is where the adventure began. Years ago Ned stayed with some friends near Williams and he wanted to see if we could find the place. In the process we ended up on road that appeared to be a shortcut toward the Oregon Caves National Monument. Mmm – we wandered around the Siskiyou Mountains on a curvy, scenic asphalt road, expecting it to turn to gravel at any moment. We stopped at a beautiful creek that was pristine and completely idyllic. We only saw two cars the whole trip – one of which was a logging truck parked on the side of the road. We ended up near a place called Lake Selmac – near highway 199, about 8 miles north of where we had hoped to come out. The Lake looked so inviting after our afternoon drive that Ned and I decided to put on the swimsuits and take a dip. (See picture above). We swam out to the dock and hung around this swimming hole for a refreshing afternoon respite. We then took Highway 199 back to California, hung a right at Crescent City and headed up 101 to the Oregon Coast. We pulled in at 5:15 at Harris Beach State Park. Eureka – we made it to the Coast! We got a great campsite on the Oceanside and within 5 minutes of pulling into the campsite, we popped a good bottle of red wine (7Deadly Zins for those who want to know), and brought out the cheese, grapes and French bread. Turns out this campsite has hot showers, flush toilets and wifi. Oh be still my beating heart. (Sorry Josh, not exactly roughing it in the backcountry, but boy is this living). After dinner we took a bike ride around the campsite and down to the ocean. The fog is beginning to roll in – we plan to return in the morning when the view is a little better. For now – we got a fire going, french-press coffee brewing and are ready to settle down for a cozy night. Tomorrow – exploring the Southern Coast.