Before leaving Coos Bay, we drove over to Sunset Bay State Park. Another lovely state park with a beautiful beach and lighthouse.
Our drive south along the 101 from Coos Bay to Brookings was a little over two hours. Since we didn’t have Alfred to accompany us, I used another app called Autio. Autio has short 2-3 minute stories about places near you while you’re on a road trip. We used it a lot during our nomadic adventures in 2022. The stories are usually historical and informative. It was fun to learn about the small towns we were driving through. For example Bandon, OR is known for cheese and cranberries. Did someone say cheese? We decided to stop and check out the creamery and the free samples. While we were stopped, we walked through town and found Tony’s Crab Shack. Its very unassuming appearance was a sure sign the crab would be delicious.
After confirming with a local, we decided to have lunch.
After lunch, we were back in the car heading south. Next planned stop was the Prehistoric Gardens. But, wait! I see rocks in the water! Pullover so I can take a picture! The view never gets old. These were taken near Port Orford.
Now, for the Prehistoric Gardens. Even Autio had something to say about this road side attraction. The Prehistoric Gardens was the vision of E.V. Nelson. He moved his family to Oregon in 1953. He decided on using the southern Oregon rainforest as the location to build his dream. The Gardens opened on January 1, 1955. The Prehistoric Gardens is still family owned and there are 23 life-size, cement dinosaurs. The rainforest is the perfect setting for the massive creatures. Here are a few of my favorites.
After returning from our time- travel, we were back in the car searching for more rocks in the water! Easy to find! These pictures were taken at Golds Beach. Perfect spot to stretch our legs.
Our next rock spotting was at Meyers Creek Beach.
We stopped at Arch Rock State Park to view the Arch Rock and others.
Down the road a little further was Natural Bridges.
Before we knew it, we had arrived in Brookings. We checked in early and went to find a cold beverage. Chetco Brewing was the solution.
Dave picked sushi for dinner. What’s not to love?
Our hotel is right on the ocean and our room is on the third floor. We enjoyed another night of sleep with the slider door open and the waves crashing. The beach has so much driftwood. I wish I could bring home a couple big ones for the backyard!
It’s rainy this morning, messing up our hike plans. We’ve had amazing luck with the weather up until this point. We’ve head away from the coast today. Destination Eugene. See you soon! Thanks for reading!
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