By Narelle Atkins
Last month I talked about my family vacation in Hawaii. We enjoyed spending the second half of our overseas holiday in Oregon with my husband’s uncle, aunt and cousins.
Lincoln City Beach, Oregon, USA
I spent two days in Oregon in September 2013 on my way home from the ACFW conference. In 2013 I visited Mt. Hood, Multnomah Falls, Seaside, Cannon Beach, and the Tillamook Cheese Factory. I fell in love with Oregon and was thrilled to have the opportunity to return with my husband and children in March this year.
We stayed in a cottage at Glen Eden Beach on the Central Oregon Coast. A gorgeous location, and we were there during Spring Break before Easter. The spring coastal weather was interesting. We had a couple of cool, drizzly days and a few warmer, sunny days. Not too different to the early spring September weather we experience back home in Canberra.
Glen Eden Beach, Central Oregon Coast.
The ocean was wild and the big surf, with thirty foot waves, reminded me of the southern Australian coastline. A few brave (and possibly crazy) people swam in the ocean despite strong rips and cold water temperatures. I’m not used to wearing shoes and layers of warm clothing when I visit the beach. We witnessed ‘sneaker waves’ at Lincoln City Beach as the tide rolled in. Sirens blared from emergency vehicles within minutes of the waves crashing against the ocean wall further south and swallowing up all of the dry sand. We relocated from the sand to the promenade and watched driftwood being tossed around in the surf as if it weighed nothing.
Kite flying at Lincoln City Beach.
In nearby Newport we visited the Hatfield Marine Science Center and were delighted to see sea lions lounging on a barge.
Sea lions at Newport, Oregon.
We learned that Depoe Bay is the world’s smallest harbor. We visited the Whale Watching Centre and spotted whales in the Pacific Ocean. We crossed under the harbor bridge and discovered a seal resting on a rock. My children enjoyed the locally made salt water taffy, a type of candy that we don’t have in Australia.
Depoe Bay, Oregon.
We were in Oregon for Easter and realized that Easter is a much bigger deal in Australia from a cultural perspective. In Australia everything closes on Good Friday and church services are held in the morning. We celebrate Easter with a four day long weekend that includes Good Friday and Easter Monday public holidays. The Royal Easter Show in Sydney is one of our biggest annual events and Easter Saturday is one of our busiest shopping days outside of the Christmas period. Chocolate Easter egg displays are prominent in our Aussie stores and freshly baked hot cross buns are consumed in large quantities during Easter. My kids discovered Peeps in the Easter in-store displays. We don’t have Peeps in Australia.
Store display of Peeps.
We visited Salem, the capital of Oregon, and did a tour of the Capitol Building. We learned about the history of Oregon and the famous Oregon Trail that I’d read about in historical romance novels. I will confess that a large portion of my knowledge of US history has been gleaned from reading romance novels.
My kids at Gilbert House in Salem, Oregon.
We enjoyed exploring the Gilbert House Children’s Museum in Salem. I was delighted to see a squirrel up close in the outdoor play area.
Squirrel at Gilbert House.
My son, in particular, was excited to visit the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville. A dream come true for him to see real rockets and learn more about NASA and the history of space exploration and aviation. Our trip in Hawaii and Oregon included many science, history and geography lessons for our children.
Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum.
Have you visited Oregon or lived there? Do you have a favorite place in Oregon to visit? I’d love to go back and visit the family, plus explore more of Oregon and mainland USA.
A fun loving Aussie girl at heart, Narelle Atkins was born and raised on the beautiful northern beaches in Sydney, Australia. She has settled in Canberra with her husband and children. A lifelong romance reader, she found the perfect genre to write when she discovered inspirational romance. Narelle's contemporary stories of faith and romance are set in Australia and international locations.
I enjoyed your account. I love peeps as you know. but you can keep the salt water taffy. tried it in Hawaii and for me I have to say yuck. Love the squirrel I love them and its one thing I love seeing when I go to the states. Haven’t been to Oregon.
Great post, Narelle. Loved your photos and so thrilled for you to be able to share that beautiful area with your family.
Thanks for sharing your trip, Narelle. Your photos are gorgeous! I’ve never visited Oregon, but I’ve traveled to California. The West Coast waters are stunning and so different from the East Coast.
Hi Narelle,
I live in Oregon. You hit all the fun spots. I love Multnomah Falls. My daughters like to hike around the gorge at all the falls.
We love the fact that we can go to the beach one day and then the mountains the next. Oregon is so great because we have all four seasons. Now I’m not trying to sell Oregon…..we don’t really need more people here, but it is a great place to live.
It sounds like you had an exciting trip. I love beach and it sounds like Oregon is one of the places I should go, though I certainly feel much more in love with Hawaii from you post last month.
Oregon sounds wonderful, Narelle. I have never been to the US so much of my knowledge is also gleaned from novels. I go to Canberra a few times a year however!
I have never visited Oregon. Thank you for sharing about your trip and for sharing the lovely photos. Oregon sounds like a place that my husband and I would love to visit.
I have an uncle that lives in Medford Oregon. I’ve never had the pleasure of traveling any further west than New Orleans. (I live in Alabama).
I envy your country’s celebration of Easter. Here it’s swept aside in the form of political correctness and commercialism.
My daughter loves peeps. She likes to open them and leave them sitting for a few days until they get “stale” and chewy.
My husband and I lived in Oregon for 3 years while we attended seminary. The thing that was hardest for us native Californians to adjust to was the fact that any time we planned an outing, we had to assume that it probably would rain… It does rain in California, but just during the winter. In Oregon, it can rain any day all year long :-)
I live in western Canada and love the Pacific coast! On one of our trips to Oregon, we saw the kite festival at Lincoln City! Fun to think you saw something similar in the same place. Canadians also have a statutory holiday on Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
I have an aunt and uncle who live just over the border in Washington state. Usually when I go to visit them I fly into the Portland airport. Haven’t spent time any where else in Oregon except for Portland. And only a brief afternoon there.
Oh my goodness, you were in my backyard! Did you get to golf while you were here?
So much fun! I’d like to get to Oregon–I’ve been to Washington State and California, but somehow always missed Oregon. :)
What great memories! It’s interesting to see the things we take for granted through a foreigner’s perspective. One question, do you have squirrels in Australia? I’ve been to Sydney, but don’t remember if I saw any or not.
Ahh, Narelle, you visited all the places and did all the things I love to also!!!!!! I live on the Oregon coast and seeing it from your eyes as a “new comer” is pretty exciting :-)
My favorite spot when we lived in Lincoln City (we are in Seaside now), was taking the kids to the Newport aquarium & the Hatfield Marine Science Center. No trip is complete until you see the sea lions along the dock on the waterfront! I think you hit all the highlights while you were in my neck of the woods. Of course there’s so much more to explore, but perhaps that may be for another time? :-)
Glad you enjoyed your time here, this is the reason I love the coast!
I have not visited Oregon. Loved your pics though. I had no idea Easter was that much bigger of a deal in Australia than here. Kind of makes me wish I could go there for Easter one year. Thanks for sharing about your trip!
Narelle, thanks for sharing one of the US states. I’ve been to Oregon, but I haven’t done all the fun stuff that you have.
Hi Jenny, It was great to see the squirrel in Salem. A cute but camera-shy squirrel lived in a tree outside the kitchen window at the beach cottage. I have a savory rather than a sweet tooth, and I really liked the salty tang in the taffy. Peeps, on the other hand, are pure sweetness :)
Hi Mary, We loved having the opportunity to visit with family and see Oregon. Our long awaited family vacation :)
Hi Jill, I’d love to visit the East Coast one day. On my travel wish list :)
Hi Marylin, We were in Portland on Easter Sunday and decided not to visit Multnomah Falls due to the rain. I was fortunate in 2013 to visit the falls on a sunny day. In many ways the Oregon coast reminds me of the South Coast of NSW (a few hours drive from my home in Canberra) with mountains near the coast. What we don’t have in south-eastern mainland Australia is gorgeous snow capped mountain views from the coast :)
Hi Priscila, If you like swimming at the beach all year round, you can’t beat Hawaii :) I hope you’ll have a chance to visit the Oregon Coast.
Hi Narelle, I really enjoy visiting book settings in real life, and reading books set in familiar real life locations. Canberra is a great place to visit, especially in Spring for Floriade :) I love tulips, and seeing all the spring flowers starting to bloom in Oregon was a treat.
Hi Melissa, I enjoyed the diverse scenery in Oregon. Mountains, beaches, farmland, forests – a very green landscape. I hope you’ll have an opportunity to visit with your husband :)
Hi Gail, The peeps didn’t last long once the packet was opened, lol. I was surprised by the low key Easter celebrations. I grew up in Sydney and loved going to the Royal Easter Show. Unfortunately we didn’t have time to travel as far south as Medford. My son plays golf and Bandon is one place we’d love to visit.
Hi Margaret, yes, we planned for rain, too. March is known as a wet month, but the rain didn’t stop us from sight seeing :)
Hi Valerie, The kite flying was fun and popular with beach goers. My kids brought ‘Red Scarlet’ (the kite in the photo) home with us :) It’s great that you have Good Friday and Easter Sunday statutory holidays in Canada. The UK has the 4 day Easter holiday weekend like Australia. The subtle cultural differences between our countries are interesting.
Hi Patty, I enjoyed visiting Washington State in 2013. The southern part of the state near Portland and Vancouver is very pretty :)
Hi Kimberly, Yes, my son did have a chance to play golf. He played 9 holes on a short course in McMinnville on a beautiful and warm sunny morning :) I’m late in replying to comments today because we spent a rainy morning at a Mother’s Day golf tournament before visiting with my parents. The rain doesn’t keep the golfers away, lol.
Hi Elizabeth, You’ll have to squeeze in a visit to Oregon next time you visit the west coast :)
Hi Sara, No, we don’t have squirrels in Australia, hence the Aussie fascination with them :) We have possums but they’re not as cute as squirrels, imho.
Hi Trixi, I’m glad to hear that we saw the best places. My husband’s family were brilliant tour guides, and their local knowledge was super-helpful. We ran out of time to visit the Northern Oregon Coast. One day I hope to visit there again. Seaside is very pretty :)
Hi Julie, Easter is a nice time to visit Australia and our hot cross buns are delicious :) We don’t have Thanksgiving In Australia. Easter and Christmas are our two biggest annual holidays.
Hi Merrillee, You’re very welcome :) I hope you’ll have a chance to return to Oregon and do the fun stuff.
Good. I’m glad he was able to play. If that is the course I’m thinking of, it often floods from the rain in the winter. You picked a good year to visit.:)