Prelude
A long way for a short trip? Well, yes and no. We had to be in Vancouver (the city in Canada not the town of the same name just over the northern border of Oregon in the neighbouring state of Washington) for a private event. The west coast of the American continent is a long way, even for our six nights in the Canadian city, so when we were casting around for a way to relax for a few days afterwards, Oregon came to mind. Prompted, initially, by thoughts of indulging our shared love of pinot noir Oregon’s Willamette Valley, the grape’s spiritual home in North America, beckoned (https://www.willamettevalley.org/wine). However, an American friend rhapsodised about the Oregon coast and further discussions with potential wine guides made us realise that, as slow travellers, it would be better to focus on coast or grape. We chose coast. And, it has to be admitted, the coastal scenery warranted the trip. What struck me was its variety: from high forested capes to low-lying swamp-like lakes; vertiginous cliffs and sheltered coves; expansive dunes and wide estuarial rivers – all with the continuous backdrop of the Pacific Ocean and the noise of the surf clawing at the shore.
The towns along the coast are cosily small scale, with many areas of those clapboard buildings, home to either families or small, local businesses and eating places that have both a pleasing simplicity and an oddly temporary feel. Is it the wood construction that creates this impression in me, a person living in country that favours brick for vernacular architecture? We went out of season but my sense is that generally it has a more relaxed vibe than parts of its more famous Californian counterpart. Part of this was an open friendliness amongst the people we met and part a sort of vaguely hippie-esque throwback and rural feel to people and place.
Structure of the Trip
I have said before that, generally, I feel I have sufficient knowledge of where to look and how to establish which accommodation to use when travelling in North America, so this trip was self-organised (flights, car rental, accommodation). A flight to Vancouver was coupled with a flight down to Oregon’s largest city, Portland, to pick up the rental car. From there it is a drive of a couple of hours to the coast. Our four nights on the coast was taken in one hotel in Depoe Bay and then we reversed our journey through Portland and Vancouver back to London. This was conceived as a driving trip and, this being the United States a car is a near necessity, the availability of public transport being what it is – or rather isn’t.
Weather
Even though we did not end up taking a wine tour, our potential wine guide had given us some useful tips for Oregon in the autumn. ‘Wet and blustery’ was his succinct summary and, whilst we had some rain and damp weather, the wind let us be. In that respect we were lucky and were told so by a number of locals. We only had one full-on day of rain with grey cloud and mist clamped on the landscape – atmospheric in its own way and prompting us to use it as a day for reading, writing and relaxing in the warmth between ventures out for shopping and to eat. However, we then had two full days of mixed sunshine and piled cumulus cloud. Temperatures wandered between 10° to 15°C (50°-59°F) through the day with a warm enough feel in the direct sun. The greyer weather returned on our final day’s drive back to Portland. My sense is that, rather like travelling to Britain’s west coast at this time of year, go expecting the wet and the blustery and anything else will be a bonus.
Flights
Because of being at the private event in Vancouver this piece looks at the position at Vancouver Airport (VYR to locals) and at the connecting flight between that airport and Portland. Both are large modern airports, Portland having recently been expanded. So this means long walks through terminal buildings to reach the different parts of the airport. BA took us from Heathrow’s Terminal 5 to Vancouver and, having recently used them on a flight to Kenya, there is nothing more to be added to what I said about their reassuring service. The travel time is a jet-lag inducing nine hours plus (with tailwinds, only eight hours coming home). The 1 hour 15 minute flight from Vancouver to Portland was by Air Canada Express. It is a local commuter route which means economy only, a relatively small plane (two plus two seats per row) and overhead lockers crammed with carry-on luggage. However, the legroom for a tall passenger was actually better than many others.
Arrival at VYR was a tale of two times. A mid-evening arrival (with six other international flights) was not an enjoyable experience. The mid-afternoon arrival from Portland was a breeze. The immigration, baggage hall and customs at Vancouver are separate areas in a huge single space. Quiet, it is light, airy and peaceful; busy, it seems none of those things. Quiet, there was no sniff of a queue. Busy, the queues at immigration were managed but long and the queues to get out of the baggage reclaim hall unmanaged and long.
Mobility Access (Vancouver)
The experience was affected by this difference. The airport used buggies to move people requiring assistance through the inbound process. Fine in its own way but you are deposited in the baggage reclaim hall, so you may still have to manage the long, slow moving queue to exit the hall, which can be especially difficult as you now have luggage in tow. There was also some miscommunication when we reported at check-in for our flight back to London. We were directed to the assistance desk near to check-in where we were asked if we could manage security on our feet. Our previous experience at other airports was that this meant that you are able to get out of the wheelchair and walk unaided through the metal detector. Here it meant a buggy took us to the access point for security and the attendant queues, standing and walking slowly in those queues and then a short walk at the other side to the airside assistance desk. Not what we intended, so do take care to be clear about your mobility needs at the first assistance desk. From the airside assistance, we had a buggy to a location only a few steps from our gate. It appears from the VYR website that self-push wheelchairs are an option, one that it would have been helpful to have been offered – https://www.yvr.ca/en/passengers/accessibility-at-yvr/moving-through-the-terminal.
Mobility Access (Portland)
Portland was a different experience. The Air Canada Express deposits at the gate which deals with the airport’s more local flights in smaller aircraft. This means a walk across the apron of about 50 metres and up the steps (only seven here) to board the plane. A wheelchair is available to or from the bottom of the plane steps. They will, within reason, take you wherever you need – through the long corridors of the terminal (the commuter gate is at the very end of the terminal building), into and beyond baggage claim and all the way through to the Car Rental Center and your chosen rental desk. On our return flight the process was repeated with the car rental attendant able to call direct for wheelchair assistance. Very impressive (but see also the enhanced service on our return to Heathrow – Air Travel from London).
Some Local Topics
The American ‘City’: What’s in a Name?
There is, to me, a slightly unsettling difference between the British and the American interpretation of what constitutes a city. Apart from the two Welsh outliers of St David’s and St Asaph’s and the separate oddity of the City of London, the smallest British city has a population of 12,000 (Wells) and there are many British towns that are very substantially larger (Huddersfield and Northampton are both not far short of a population of half-a-million). In Oregon, the coastal cities of Pacific City and the City of Newport (not unusual urban areas for this part of the country) are centres of just about 10,000 each and I saw a garbage-collecting pick-up truck marked ‘City of Depoe Bay’, a place whose 1,500 population is smaller than some villages in Britain. There are many differing explanations to be found on searching the internet as to where the nomenclature line is drawn. Suffice it to say that Britons need to recalibrate their concept of ‘city’ in the United States and their expectations as to what culture, facilities and services may be found there.
Foam and Moss
To me, there were two particular elements of the Oregon coast sea and land scapes that struck me during our stay. First there is the presence of a brown, scummy sea foam carpeting parts of the sea near the shoreline and, secondly, the light green moss garlanding many trees. The former adds what seems an unsightly, polluted feel to the coastal scene. Then, with a little reading, I discovered that the foam is an entirely natural consequence of the life cycle of the oceans (https://seagrant.oregonstate.edu/visitor-center/found-beach/sea-foam).
So it is, in short, the organic matter of dead microscopic plants (phytoplankton) which, as any follower of David Attenborough’s BBC series Blue Planet knows, are a key element in the food chain of the oceans. Thus their presence is part of the reason for the prevalence of so many whales off the Oregon coast. Viewing the seascape armed with that knowledge gives a very different sense to your engagement.
The moss is, of course, not a moss. It has just become over-familiar as the plant called Spanish Moss, a plant I had embedded in my memory from visits to the arboreal avenues leading up to the houses of former plantations in the Deep South of the United States where it hangs from heavily from every tree. I was brought up short by seeing the same plant draped in profusion across the trees of the Oregon shore as I was not expecting to find it in a temperate climate, no matter how damp. In this linked piece is the explanation that the plant is an epiphyte, ergo a non-parasitic one, not a moss at all – https://www.friendsofsilverfalls.net/stories/2021/1/14/mrr9t2xye78lj1guccv92fl1cmqxov. It added another visual dimension to the crowded, dark woods that rise along so many parts of this coast.
Activities
Driving the Oregon Coast
In summary this was a short driving trip where time was taken stop-starting up and down the coast to take in the scenery and sample the small-town life – and I am using the word ‘town’ in a British, not an American sense here. On one day we travelled south from Depoe Bay, ending up at the seemingly endless and empty beach of Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area around 150 km (100 miles) south of our hotel. With the profusion of other stopping points along the way, the return trip made for a full day that, early on, encompassed Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area. Here we were introduced to the Oregon Pacific Coast Passport (https://theoregoncoast.info/OregonPacificCoastPassport.html) by the helpful ranger at the entry station. This pass gives you access to sixteen parks and scenic areas (State and National) up and down the coast without payment for five days. It is a $10 bargain (priced at our time of travel) when you consider that on the first day alone we would otherwise have to have paid $24 in entry and parking fees. So even for two days wandering up and down the coast it was a good investment.
I have done my dues by trying to give an overall impression of the variety of landscape in the Prelude so no recitation here of the several individual places we stopped. Suffice it to say that we simply switched direction on our third day and, using the self-same pass, wandered in and out of sites and viewpoints northwards. That day we only rambled 100 km (62 miles) up the coast to Cape Meares. Many of the coastal parks and sights are quite small, either little more than turn off areas beside the road or only a short drive up to capes and lighthouses or down to beachside car parks. Ideal for the slow wanderer with camera.
And the towns provide a different take on the coastal scenery with those clapboard buildings spreading out either around harbours or up cliff-like slopes above white sand beaches. The former can be big, like the one at Newport with its fishing fleet moored at, and barking seals on, the jetties tucked on the north side of the wide Yaquina River, or small, like Depoe Bay’s self-proclaimed ‘smallest harbour in the world’ looking like an old Cornish fishing port below the road above. Newport is big enough to be a beachside town as well, its beach bumped up against the Nye Beach Historic District. More obviously the appropriately named beach front town of Oceanside is smaller and feels like a town at the end of the road, climbing up the steep hillside and with the Three Arch Rocks sitting just offshore. Whatever their other differences all have cosy, slightly rustic, independent restaurant-cum-cafes that are ideal for that coffee break for those who prefer not to frequent the outposts of the Starbucks empire.
Mobility Access
But care is needed. My green designation holds unless you want to venture much beyond the tarmac parking areas and paths around them at the viewpoints, parks and scenic areas. Thus all the locations offer something by way of a spectacular sea view without the need to walk far and, often, there are short walks away from the parking areas along relatively flat and smooth tarmac paths. Accessing the many beaches can be a little more difficult, usually involving a short scramble down to beach level over rough paths or soft sand (the latter a nightmare for those walkers with fragile leg joints) but you are rewarded with hard, flat sand surfaces for walking beyond that.
Mobility Access
Only access to the sea at Oregon Dunes is a non-starter for those with mobility constraints as a wall of sand dunes (I estimate around 25 metres or 80+ feet high) sits between the car parks to the east and the ocean on the far side and it is a slog up and down over very soft sand that drags at limbs. It is purely incidental to this practical information that the high, stable dune wall is the fault of the introduction of European beachgrass in the 1920s (https://geotripper.blogspot.com/2018/07/the-carpeted-dunes-of-oregons-central.html). You are able to catch glimpses of pure, open sand of the high dunes within the Area as you drive along US Highway 101. Turn off into one of the small parking areas on the west side of the highway and you may find yourself at the foot of dunes rising to 150 metres (450 feet) in places.
Taking the Scenic Byways
The Americans are big on these designated touring routes and Oregon is no exception. Their Tourism Commission, Travel Oregon (https://traveloregon.com) publishes free travel guides which you can download as PDFs from their website and one, Oregon Scenic Byways Driving Guide, was duly downloaded and parts printed at home to accompany us on our travels (https://issuu.com/traveloregon2019/docs/scenicbywaysguide_english). Oregon’s most prominent is the Pacific Coast Scenic Byway that tracks the main US Highway 101 down the whole coast including the sections that we travelled. Our time in Oregon being limited, the only other one we followed was the Trees to Sea Scenic Byway, simply because it provided an alternative (and more interesting) route to follow from Portland International Airport to US Highway 101 than the more direct route offered by Google Maps. It is very much what it says on the tin, a gentle drive on State Highway 6 from Banks through farmland and then following the Wilson River through Tillamook State Forest before hitting US Highway 101 at Tillamook. The fall colours of the shorter deciduous trees and the Spanish moss provided a contrast to the tall, dark conifers, the woods opening up occasionally to give glimpses of the river. The Byway extends beyond Tillamook to loop around the Cape Meares peninsula giving a dramatic “Sea’ coda to the byway. That part we covered on our ramble up the coast two days later.
As you will see from the Guide there are 29 different routes within the state, some long (584 km or 363 miles for the Pacific Coast Scenic Byway), some short (the 32 km or 20 miles of the Cottage Grove Covered Bridge Tour Route), all of which whetted the appetite for being able to spend longer just noodling around the state. The trick, for the slow traveller, is not to bite off more than is practicable to chew. The tug of the covered bridges or of Crater Lake National Park was tempting but any drive eastwards involves negotiating the heights of the Coast Range along narrow river valleys and over high passes. Sights that look disarmingly close on the map can sometimes make for an overlong day’s drive from a base on the coast.
Mobility Access
I am assuming the car is being used in making this designation. Just take the byways slowly, and stop often to enjoy scenery and place, if the weather permits.
Hotel
Whale Cove Inn, Depoe Bay (https://www.whalecoveinn.com)
When looking at hotels in the United States (outside the National Parks) we favour two websites. One, Select Registry (https://selectregistry.com) covers smaller, independent, ‘craft lodging’ (their phrase), which takes in B&Bs, inns and boutique hotels, which we have always found to provide good quality. The other is Historic Hotels of America (https://www.historichotels.org/us/?redirect=false) whose properties tend to be slightly larger (definitely hotels rather than inns or B&Bs) but, in this case, are all recognised as National Historic Landmarks or otherwise are historically significant. Many more of them are larger city centre hotels. We back up those searches by rootling through the online guidebooks such as Fodors (https://www.fodors.com/world/north-america/usa). In Oregon these searches brought us to Whale Cove Inn, an offering from Select Registry.
A modern structure built into the side of the cliff above the small bay it provides all-suite accommodation. This means no more than that the rooms are huge with a sitting area looking out through the picture windows across a balcony (complete with bathtub) to the cove beyond, a bedroom area with king-size bed, an en-suite with shower and separate toilet cubicle, plenty of cupboard space, a sink and fridge with glasses, corkscrew, kettle but, oddly, no cutlery. The décor is straightforward and plain (in a good way). The Inn has no facilities to speak of other than two lounge areas and neat, lawned grounds that tumble down the hillside towards the sea via a series of robust wooden steps. Foodwise there is no breakfast but on site is the ‘destination’ Restaurant Beck run as a separate operation, of which more below. The reception is staffed from 09.00 to 17.00 or thereabouts, after which time the place is quiet and all yours. It worked well for us as the room was big enough for relaxing, writing and reading and allowed us to indulge in a supermarket-bought in-room picnic one evening. And the view across Whale Cove was a joy to behold even living up to its name as, one morning, I watched spouting humpback whales moving slowly northwards in the ocean just beyond the cove. The room even came with its own pair of binoculars the more easily to see the beasts.
Heating is effected centrally by radiant heat and there is a gas stove if extra warmth is needed. Cooler air is secured by opening the balcony doors (which have flyscreens if needed – we didn’t) and there is a portable fan unit in one of the cupboards.
Mobility Access
Unless you want to take the steps outside down the hill to the fence line above the bay, all is straightforward. All floors are flat and smooth and a lift serves all floors. The rooms are spacious enough that there are few hazards to be negotiated as you fumble your way to the bathroom in the night (there is even a portable, battery-operated night light that we used to good purpose). The parking spaces are immediately outside the main door to the Inn and there are no steps to be negotiated.
Food and Drink
Tidal Raves – (https://www.tidalraves.com)
With Restaurant Beck in the Inn closed on Mondays, our first night was a foray to this seafood restaurant in one of the ubiquitous clapboard buildings just a short 3.5km (2miles) down the road in Depoe Bay. Perched on the small cliff, it presumably has a glorious view across the ocean from all the tables out through the picture windows but (1) the rain was coming down and (2) it was pitch black, so that was a bit lost on us. All that was coming back from the picture windows was a reflection of the bustling interior. It was busy and we were seated what seemed to be the last places at a low bar looking out at ourselves reflected in the windows. The menu is strongly orientated to seafood and has that love of length that characterises so many menus of restaurants in the mid-market in the United States. But the food was of reasonable quality and, as always over here, filling. The food menu is supplemented by a good selection of Oregon beers and regional wines by the glass (they pride themselves on both). Service could be a bit slow (the busy time, no doubt) but it was friendly and not the least affected.
Mobility Access
No material concerns here with only a few steps up to the entrance door and, inside, a similar few steps between the two levels of the restaurant
Restaurant Beck – (https://restaurantbeck.com/)
Although within the Inn and open to the lounge/reception area, this restaurant is run as a separate business by a spousal team who provide chef and front of house duties. It is described in some places as a ’destination’ restaurant which seems to mean that both menu and food have a culinary aspiration – and here it is right that they do. The food was excellent, so we ate there twice. A choice selection of regional and international wines by the glass sit alongside a manageable list of wines by the bottle, including (miracle of miracles) a few half-bottles. It was pretty quiet (mid-week) with only a few other diners, which suited us, and the team were efficient and, when appropriate, friendly and knowledgeable.
Mobility Access
No problem. The restaurant is not large and is on the same level as the ground floor of the rest of the Inn.
The Great American Breakfast
If you have eaten breakfast in any local places in the States, you know the score. Long menus with some local variations on the themes of eggs and omelettes, waffles, pancakes and French toast, eggs Benedict, corned beef hash, biscuits (scones to us Limeys) and gravy with a range of accompaniments and toast as an inevitable addition. There may be the odd nod to vegetarians but vegans may find life a little more difficult – choose carefully from the menu and make full use of the American fixation with sides and with making variations to the written menu. Then there is the refillable cup of filter coffee, although the coffee shop variations are starting to put in an appearance in some places. Tea, in many variants, is always available. The décor is functional so tables can be turned over quickly and made ready for incomers. If this makes for a ubiquity that seems dull that would be wrong, for there is often a reassuring charm to them in the particular quirks of staff, guests, menu and ambience.
On the Oregon coast the menu variations are led by the importance of seafood and by a certain Hispanic influence bleeding north from California. Our examination of the Great American Breakfast took place early on each day out, as we made it part of our drive out from the hotel. All four restaurant/cafes we tried shared those basic characteristics, but each had their own character which made them an entertaining part of the start of the day.
Café Stefanie in Nye Beach Historic District of Newport is just up from the ocean. A small place, its functional interior belied a friendly atmosphere. We came to try Oatmeal and Granola (only occasionally seen on the fringes of those lengthy menus). Not knowing what oatmeal would be, we were hoping for porridge. It turns out to be oats and water heated in the microwave, thus not quite what we had hoped it might be. No website but a Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/nyebeachcafestephanie/.
Mobility Access
A street-front clapboard place (with a few outdoor tables on the sidewalk) means no difficulty for the mobility constrained. No separate parking so on-street parking may be an issue in the busier summer months, although there is a shorefront car park area 50 metres down an adjacent street.
Gracie’s Sea Hag (https://www.theseahag.com) on the main street of Depoe Bay has a view to the ocean (across US Highway 101). Set in a row of single-storey clapboard storefronts, the interior has a more traditional feel: dark wood abounds with booths down one side. An ebullient host (“My wife comes from Sheffield”) full of suggestions for visitors and gossip for locals.
Mobility Access
Again a sidewalk frontage and the single level means no difficulties. Again no car park but echelon parking in the street outside.
Grateful Bread Bakery (https://www.gratefulbreadpc.com) sits in a detached single-storey clapboard building in the quieter reaches of the semi-rural and definitely alternative-feeling fringes of Pacific City. The name is a pastiche of the famous San Francisco band but, apart from riffing on the band’s design motifs for T-shirts, a few pictures of Jerry Garcia on the walls, giving their dishes Grateful Dead song titles as names and having the lyrics of ‘Sugar Magnolia’ painted on the wall as part of a mural in the men’s washroom (https://www.dead.net/song/sugar-magnolia) the reality is more a straightforward example of the GAB breed. Quite large and light of interior it was very busy when we were there, as locals seem to be drawn to the place in numbers. This meant that our initial service was sluggish at best. There seemed to be plenty of staff but the delineation of roles seemed to mean only a certain person was allowed to take orders.
Mobility Access
The place has its own asphalt-gravel car-parking area and a wheelchair slope up to the raised front entrance, otherwise all is straightforward inside.
McMenamins Pub at the Hotel Oregon (https://www.mcmenamins.com/hotel-oregon/mcmenamins-pub-at-hotel-oregon) in McMInnville (in ‘the heart of Oregon’s wine country’ to quote the city’s tourist website) is actually one of a chain of hotels and restaurants spread across Oregon, so still local – sort of. We had actually tried two other places more in the style of town centre café/breakfast places but both were packed and pointed us at waiting lists. We were heading to Portland for our flight so no time to wait and this was across the street. It is a pub and small hotel so there was a sense that you were eating in a bar on the morning after the night before. However the food was fine, the staff friendly and competent and the interior very pub-like in décor with dark wood, booths and a long bar.
Mobility Access
Because it is on a street corner in downtown McMinnville access is straight from the sidewalk with no concerns. Again there is only on-street parking.
Practicalities
Time Zone
There is little that can be done about the fact that the west coast is eight hours behind London time so, for UK travellers, your personal susceptibility to jet-lag has to be factored in to your activities on arrival.
Money and Cards
As is so often the case these days, cards achieve most things in most places. Because tipping is an embedded part of the culture in the United States, you will need some dollars for that occasionally, although now many eating places simply incorporate tipping as part of the card payment process.
Phones and Wi-Fi
The usual issue with travel outside Europe for UK-based mobile ‘phone users of expensive daily rates for data roaming. Wi-Fi seemed fairly prevalent in some eating places and the hotel, but we found we had to revert to data roaming on our drives – so pay we did.
Car Rental
I have remarked before on my preference for using the larger car rental companies for a peace of mind. We booked direct for this sojourn using Sixt. They did not have the cheapest rate per day but a quirk of the way they structure their timings meant that a pick-up time and drop-off time that ran to just a few hours over four full days was cheaper overall than some other companies who charged a full day’s rate for those few hours. It is worth checking this aspect out if your rental has to run only an hour or so into another full day’s rental.
Mobility Access
This is a comment on the new Car Rental Center at Portland Airport. Readily accessible from the terminal building (under cover and only a few steps from the access doors to the terminal) all the car rental companies are gathered in this one location. It is a large modern hall that is part of the multi-level car park where the rental companies have their car collection and return locations, so no faffing around with shuttle buses to distant car parks. Washrooms are built into the hall and there are plenty of seats available. There can be a bit of a walk to the car rental location within the car park but, because there is an undercover drop-off and pick-up loop road immediately outside the Car Rental Center, the driver can collect the car and pick-up anyone with mobility constraints and the luggage from that loop road.
Driving
To a person used to driving on the narrow and traffic-infested roads of the southern reaches of England, for the most part the traffic felt light outside the busy parts of the main highways around Portland. Although the non-urban state speed limits of 55 mph/88 kph on most non-dualled roads and 65 mph/104 kph on interstate highways can feel reasonably sedate, the locals seem to take them with a pinch of salt, often bowling along up to 10 mph/16 kph above those figures. This can mean that a line of traffic builds up behind you, if you are footling along at or below the speed limit. With passing places limited, it is often easier to find somewhere to pull over (and look at the scenery) to let the line past. Thankfully the average Oregonian driver seems to have a greater respect for stopping distances than their British counterpart and so you rarely feel pressed aggressively in these situations.
As those who have read some other posts will know I am a devotee of paper maps. With a bit of diligence you can often find much more interesting minor sights and driving roads than emerge from using any GPS-based system. And in the United States I am a huge fan of the beautifully detailed DeLorme atlases of the individual states ever since we used them to navigate our way through a circumnavigation of Lake Michigan over a decade ago. On this occasion the travel and map bookshop, Stanfords, came up with the goods online (https://www.stanfords.co.uk/oregon-recreational-atlas-gazetteer-9781946494061?queryID=e3ffe041ea53e535302fd78b6fd2e788&objectID=56636&index).