Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: ocean

(+6 insets) We're So Glad We Didn't Miss This Roadside Stop! How do you feel about those sight-seeing spots that are just off the road? We usually avoid easy stops like the plague because they tend to be a very bad experience. Invariably we are forced to rub elbows with milling crowds of Covid-deniers and families headed by Neanderthals with a passel of screaming monsters devoid of manners or sense. As well, people are often so selfish they don't consider that others may want to take pictures too and refuse to move from the prime spot for ages, if at all. Maddening! Since we've been travelling in our RV up and down the Oregon Coast, we've seen the sign for "Devil's Punchbowl" many times. The pictures online were enticing. So finally, since Beverly Beach was so close, we decided to stop there one day when we drove out to Agate Beach for a stroll. WOW!! The pictures do not do this place justice. Steve and I were just stunned at this amazing formation at the edge of the sea. We stood and watched, mesmerized, as the waves blasted in and out of the opening to the sea on one side of the "punchbowl." Looking out, an enormous slab of rock the size of a small island rose up and braced itself against the pounding surf. In another spot, a line of rocks just broke the surface and we watched waves lap at them and wash over their tops. Sea birds wheeled and called, landing on nesting grounds out on the huge island rock. Yes, there were stupid people a-plenty but this place was definitely worth the visit! Today's Picture This view shows the whole area--the Devil's Punchbowl and the magnificent view out to sea. What a sight! What a place! What good fortune to be here! Isn't it just amazing?! It's places like this that make a person happy to be alive to see such things! Today's Insets Inset #1: A view of the punchbowl with its wonderful textures and colors, showing the hole out to the sea with water swelling in and out. A few people climbed down to walk around in the "bowl," something we found tempting but we had a walk on Agate Beach ahead of us and didn't want to take the time for this extra adventure. Inset #2: A view up the coast shows a beach that also has a wide band of healthy tidal area that is not accessible to people. What a unique spot! We didn't go over to the beach but would have loved to visit--the views and adventures to be had must be very nice. Inset #3: A view of the rocks which were washed by the waves. It would be interesting to see how the exposure changed depending on the tide--we had no idea if it was high or low when we were there. Inset #4: The massive island of rock which served as a nesting place and refuge to a variety of sea birds--perhaps seals as well. Inset #5: Our walk that day on Agate Beach was a wonderful memory for us. It turned out to be a good thing we didn't spend more time at the Punchbowl because we were able to spend a long time walking on the expansive beach. This view shows the lovely, deep beach which is tucked away in a nearly protected cove. To the left of the high cliff that we walked to is Yaquina Lighthouse, which sits at the tip of a narrow, basalt peninsula. Inset #6: Another view of one of the creeks emptying out at the ocean at Agate Beach. The water was spread out widely enough that walking across didn't soak our shoes and I was able to take pictures like this one! Notice the fishing boat passing by! Thanks for Stopping By! I appreciate all of your visits and comments more than I can say. Big virtual hugs to you all! I'm hoping that your week is a nice one, bringing more promises of a lovely spring! Explored on 2/17/22; highest placement #7.

(+5 insets) (very nice at full size!) (Please scroll down to "Today's Image" for photo info) Moving on From Harris Beach Steve and I spent a full two weeks here at Harris Beach State Park and while we were here, I got an endless variety of pictures, most of which I simply don't have time to post. I hope that at some point I can dip into this well of beautiful images to share some more but for now, it's time for me to step forward to our next stop! If you can believe it, these past 13 posts (since 11/01), brimming with insets and stories, are from exactly ONE of our campground stops. We were out for an astonishing six MONTHS and visited 20 campgrounds in that time! Every spot was like this in the number of adventures and never-ending photo opportunities. It really is completely staggering to think about. Grateful? OH MY YES. I count my lucky stars every time I think about our good fortune! And in the middle of a pandemic, no less. We are incredibly blessed and I am so glad that I can show you all some of the things I saw and experienced. Today is my last post from Harris Beach for now, but don't worry! This jaw-dropping place was also the very last stop for us before we came home in the middle of October…and once again, I filled folders with a totally different variety of incredible sights on that short, yet bountiful, five days. Today's Picture Another stunning look at a natural masterpiece, when I saw this I had to stop and just stare. It was captured at the upper edge of the tide pool area and shows the sculpted rocks with colorful algae adhered here and there. The contrast of light and shadow, shine and darkness, straight and round lines, dry and wet…really took my breath away. I tried many angles and different depths of field to capture the view and this was my favorite. Truly, a single picture cannot convey what I saw, but you will get the main idea: AWESOME! :) Today's Insets One of the fun things that happens on Harris Beach is the non-stop building of driftwood forts! There is a huge collection of logs and branches that wash up on the shore, and they collect at the tops of the beaches. People--especially kids, but adults play too!--will create a variety of lean-tos and elaborate log houses, some complete with driftwood roofs. Most will wash away during high-tide, but some stay to be admired or worked on. One picture shows a driftwood fort, another picture shows a pretty group of colorful logs. I also have another picture which shows part of the tidepool area and gives an idea of the huge place I got to explore. If you consider the investigation through a macro lens, what you see is the equivalent of countless miles to discover! Finally, a pair of images to show some more tide pool life: a still-life of black turban shells with sucked-in anemones, and a rocky crevice where a group of anemones waits for the waves to return so they might extend their tentacles again for a passing feast. Thank You So Much Wow, I am so glad that my last post was such fun for everyone. I sometimes wonder if I bore you all to death with my reports. I try to make it easy for people just passing by to look at the pictures and understand what's going on with my shorter photo descriptions. I get it! We don't all have time to read War & Peace! :D However, it's extremely gratifying and joyful to see that some of you do have the time and better still, you really like what I have to say! It's the very best feeling to me, bringing happiness when I can! So THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. You folks--all of you--make my life so much happier and fulfilled! Hope your week is going well--let's all be extra careful these days…it's getting really scary again!! Explored on 11/30/21; highest placement #2.

(+7 insets) (seeing larger shows some fun fence detail!) (Please scroll down to "Today's Image" for photo info) Notes Written on the Road: You Never Know What You'll Find when Hiking! One day I was riding my bike around the campground loops when I saw what appeared to be a pet cat walking across the road. Couldn't be, I thought. I'd seen cats taken along on camping trips but they always had a harness and leash attached to a carefully attentive owner. And, anyone who's put a harness on a cat knows that such contraptions are mostly there for show…if a cat wants to escape, it can almost always contort its way easily out of a harness faster than Houdini! The reality of a missing cat on a road trip would be a total nightmare…just thinking about it makes me shudder. And yet, as I rode by, I confirmed what I saw: a lovely grey tabby strolling along with its tail held high over its back. I was amazed! Could there be a long-term host who had their cat with them? Something to ponder about. Later, Steve and I were walking around the loops with Pumpkin when we saw the cat again. Steve had seen it previously as well, and we both talked to it as we went by. The kitty was friendly enough that it didn't run away but couldn't be bothered to come over and visit. Fine by us, we had Pumpkin with us and didn't want it to approach anyway. The next morning I was on my walk, heading down the trail leading to North Harris Beach when I saw a couple of ladies with their dogs enjoying the view. Suddenly I saw a flash of movement--the cat! What was this?!! Was this their cat? A CAT going on a WALK?!! NO WAY!! I exclaimed in excitement, "I can't believe my eyes! Never in my life have I seen a CAT going on a WALK!" The two of them turned and laughed, nodding their heads. One said, "This is Whiskey! She really is amazing! Seriously--the first time we opened the door to let her out we thought, 'That's the last time we'll see the cat, she'll take off and never come back.' But she was fine!" I whooped my surprise as she continued, "She goes out and comes right back when we call! And when we go on walks, she comes with us! People are so surprised that they've been taking pictures of her and post them online--she's actually got her own Instagram account!" With another amazed, "WOW!!", I shook my head and stared in wonder as Whisky came running over when I knelt down to say hi. Running my hands over her soft, luxurious coat, I rubbed her ears and skritched under her chin as she rubbed up against me. I was in love--what a sweetheart! I learned that the ladies were sisters, traveling in their RV to Washington-one lived there, the other had joined her for this adventure from her home in California. "I always wanted to go on one of my sister's RV trips, and it's such fun that I'm going to figure out how to do it myself, full-time!" I told them about our adventures and plans, agreeing wholeheartedly that RV life is wonderful. Finally it was time to continue my walk, but before I did I asked them if I could take a picture of Whiskey and they couldn't be happier to say yes! :) What a wonderful encounter. :) Today's Picture We've been lucky enough to stay at a bunch of coastal campgrounds but Harris Beach is one of the best for dramatic, huge rocks. This battalion of boulders leading out to the sea also features unique and interesting shapes along with lovely coloring. And…what's that? There is a fence there, meant to keep curious kids off this sensitive and dangerous area. (The fence is at the beach-side of the park's day use parking area and includes a sign that asks people not to climb there.) Do you see the OTHER fence? This aerie's nest location marks the top of Harris Beach's little butte. It includes a jaw-dropping view of the coastline for all who make their way up the energizing trail to the top! (see inset!) Today's Insets The first inset shows the amazing view from the top of Harris Butte, featuring Goat Island, the largest island off the Oregon Coast and an important bird sanctuary. Other insets from my adventures here include: • A picture of Whisky for you to see--such a beautiful, dear cat! • An inviting beach driftwood fire on its way out (though the people left and should have doused it completely!) • South Harris Beach at low tide (that triangular rock is surrounded by waves at high tide!) • A picture of Steve enjoying photography on North Harris Beach • Extreme wind one day blew the tops of waves into a mist, shown here against a boulder off the coast • I saw a number of beautiful Yellow Spotted Millipedes on the beach and couldn't help getting this view, with my phone, no less! Thank You For Stopping By! It's sure been wonderful to get your blush-worthy comments and happy remarks--this never fails to make me feel very honored and lucky to be part of such a warm community of friends. When Steve and I are away in our RV, our internet is so inconsistent that trying to visit everyone is a trial in frustration, so I gave up. That being said, it's hard to be away and so now that we're home I've really enjoyed catching up with everyone! Here's hoping you guys have a lovely weekend! Explored on 11/20/21; highest placement #8.

(+1 inset!) (please view large for the best impression!) :D What a day! Finally I have a moment to sit down and it's after 8pm! Sheesh! So much to write though, so let me get this new novel written! :D The excitement of today began last night, actually. Every evening we watch an hour of a movie or an episode brought to us via Netflix. Night before last we'd finished watching the first season of what turned out to be a fantastic sci-fi show called "The Expanse." We'd need to start something new except...I had a plan. We're leaving on our next RV adventure in a few days and I'd been dropping hints about fishing but Steve apparently wasn't tuning in. Fact is, for all but the past couple of months of our relationship, Steve has been totally uninterested in fishing. He had an issue with it, but primarily with folks who catch and release because he thinks it's horribly cruel (I agree). Those who fish and actually eat the fish or catch to sell the fish are fine but because he loves fish (as divers and self-appointed ambassadors to the sea, we both love and respect marine life), the idea of catching, killing, cleaning and eating a fish was totally out of the question. I respected his feelings on the subject and didn't try to change his mind. We both feel that it's a person's right to choose not to do something they don't like. However, that being said...I love fishing! What fun it is! Throughout my teen years until I was about 16 or so, I went fishing almost every weekend up at our summer cabin. The resort community where our family's cabin resided put on a couple of fishing contests every year, and every single year I'd invariably with first or second place in several categories—Biggest Bluegill, Most Bluegill Caught, Biggest Catfish, Most Catfish Caught, and sometimes I'd get lucky and catch a winning Carp too. My brothers also fished (except my oldest brother, he couldn't care less about fishing!) and both Brian and Scott vied for the top place in the Bass and Trout categories. Once we stopped going up to the cabin, I stopped fishing and life went on. I never thought about it. When I met Steve, it was fun telling him about my fishing history and it was ok to me that he didn't like the idea. I'd had my day in the sun with angling and was content without it. But a funny thing happened. We got an RV. We began going on camping trips. And everywhere we went, we saw folks fishing and going out in boats. I didn't say anything about it...but one day out of the blue, Steve said to me, "You know, I think I might want to change my mind about fishing." We talked about our feelings regarding fish and he thought that maybe he could handle killing a fish and ultimately eating it. I was amazed because it's a big step to get to that point. In fact, even though we love eating poultry, beef and pork, we absolutely could not raise these animals, have them killed and then eat them. We are very cognizant of the origin of every bite we eat but we love these animals too much to kill and eat livestock that we actually know. It's too close. Fish are different. They are different enough that even though they do have a variable amount of intelligence, it's not a hard task to distance yourself from feeling destroyed over the thought. I have killed plenty of fish in my young days of fishing and even though it's not fun, it can be done quickly and humanely and then you have a meal to eat! Which brings me to an admission: when I fished as a teen, I never ever ate my catches! (My parents did!) At that age, the only fish I'd eat was tuna from a can, mixed with plenty of mayonnaise and made into a sandwich or casserole. We all know that canned tuna really isn't like a normal "fishy" fish, and that's the only reason I'd eat it. Other than a bit of catfish sometimes in my 30's, I wouldn't eat fish for years until I met Steve. My ex tried to get me to eat raw fish in sushi but his attempts to shame me into it weren't exactly a technique that would have a chance of working. Then I met Steve. Soon after we met he took me to his favorite sushi restaurant and had me try hamachi. To my utter disbelief, I *LOVED* it. Sushi soon became my favorite food and at the same time, Steve took me to seafood restaurants and introduced me to different kinds of fish that I almost always loved. These days we have sushi on special occasions and we will pick up a lovely steelhead trout about once a month. We adore fish and are hopeless trout junkies. Bass is lovely too but too pricey usually, as are most of our favorites. Which brings us back to camping in our RV and our next adventure. We'll be staying at several lakes for up to 5 days each and I couldn't stop thinking about fishing and what Steve had said. However, I wasn't making a big enough noise apparently. So last night, instead of watching Netflix, I suggested we watch a series of videos made by the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife. They explained everything you'd need to know about how to catch trout, including what to buy, how to get set up and even exact techniques. Steve loved the idea so much that we not only watched the entire series last night, we got up early this morning and went all over the place to look at fishing gear! We are now the proud owners of two new poles, really nice reels and everything we need to go trout fishing on our trip!! HOORAY!!! We are so excited! The idea of catching our yummy trout dinners has us bouncing up and down! I am so happy that Steve is excited too. We can't wait to try out this new fun activity together! :) Ok, today's photo is another view of the amazing sunset that Steve and I photographed when we were in Coo's Bay. It was the first picture I took as we arrived on the beach and I loved the way the sun was shining through the trees. I am also including an inset, which is an archive picture I posted years ago when I had my older camera. Steve and I went to Ashland, about 40 miles south of us, to photograph the splendor of autumn at Lithia Park. I found this amazing mosaic artwork as we entered the park and just loved the detail. It's a trout! How perfect to share for today! :) Pam, do you like to go fishing? It really is such fun and so exciting. I can't wait to catch and cook our own fish...what about you? Is that something you've ever tried? Anyway, my thoughts are on you right now...and I'm hoping you'd doing well today! *BIG HUGS*!!! Explored on 6/8/19; highest placement, #1.

(+3 insets!) (oops...I accidentally wrote an entire book! Heh...sorry...I needed to tell you about yesterday too! Hmmm...might I suggest an entire pot of coffee?! :D) Here in the United States, the observance of Memorial Day happens on the last Monday of May. The weekend preceding Monday is also the official beginning of summer vacation season and in some places, the end of the school year. This translates to being one of the busiest travel periods of the year. When Steve and I organized this trip we're on, it didn't even occur to us that we'd be sharing some days with the crazy Memorial weekend throngs. We only realized when we couldn't find anywhere to stay on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. It finally dawned on us that there had to be something going on and then it hit us. "OH NO!!! What are we going to do?" We spent hours looking for an affordable place to stay without any luck. Steve kept looking and then, to our total amazement, we found one night available at Bullard's Beach, which just happens to be one of the most popular campgrounds in the area. We were so happy. We were going to just drive home from there because we weren't finding anywhere to stay but with some more persistence, Steve found us two more nights on Saturday and Sunday night at a place that wasn't too expensive and was also just a short walk to the beach. SCORE! Even though it was too bad that we couldn't stay longer at Bullard's Beach, it turned out to be just fine because we got a fabulous adventure while we were there. What a great surprise that was! We are most definitely going to come back and spend at least four days there next time around, what a nice place it was. :) Another bonus to our Bullard's Beach site was that we were able to leave our truck hitched to the trailer and since there was no sewer hookup, we didn't have that time-sink either. That meant that leaving would be really fast the next morning, woot! :) To top things off, check-out time to leave our campsite today was 1pm which was great. Some places are 11am and it can be a bit stressful to get out the door and driving at that time unless we have done some of the work the night before. We loved being able to sleep in along with the luxury of a nice and relaxed morning. It also gave me the chance to fix a situation that happened yesterday. When we pulled into our campsite, I couldn't help seeing the beautiful yellow flowers all over the bushes everywhere. Naturally I wanted to take pictures and once we got set up, I popped out the door with my Canon and macro lens and spent about 15 minutes taking pictures of the flowers which were literally 10 feet from our rig! :) There was also rattlesnake grass which I adore. Last night when I went to copy my pictures over I was horrified to see that I managed to NOT have an SD card in the camera. Apparently we didn't change the settings to alert us when there's no card in the camera. ARGH!!! I was so annoyed. Steve quickly diffused the situation by saying that we'd have tons of time in the morning and I could spend all the time I wanted to retake my pictures. He also reminded me of how wonderful it was that my subjects were literally right outside the rig. I relaxed and looked forward to the morning with a happy smile on my face! So, this morning I popped outside as soon as I was able…mind you, it began pouring when we got up but then…it stopped! There was a constant drizzle when I went out but it was manageable, as were the breezy conditions. Sometimes I wonder if someone/something is making sure that all goes well for us because workable conditions keeps happening for us just when it's really important to us. I went out and there were droplets and dew all over everything…it was so much prettier than when I took pictures last night! :D I retook pictures of the pretty yellow flowers and the red-tinged ones I'd never seen before…and the pea pods…and the rattlesnake grass too. JOY!!! It only took about 15 minutes and while I was outside, Steve was making breakfast for us! I climbed back into the RV just as breakfast was ready, how's that for timing?! :D He was so happy I had a successful shoot and loved the few pictures I showed him on the camera. :) Yay for fabulous husbands! :) I haven't looked at my pictures on the computer yet but I saw a few on the camera and there are certainly some winners so I'm totally overjoyed!! (NOTE: I've peeked at a few...lots of keepers!!) Once breakfast was done, we merely did about 20 minutes of final prep and we left our site! What a wonderful experience. :) We had a very nice time heading back south as the rain came down periodically. I pointed out the Facerock Creamery in Bandon which we'd hoped to visit on the way back--Steve was delighted that I spotted it! This company makes fabulous cheese and curds which we adore and we hoped that we might find some specialty items only sold there. YES! They DID! Steve and I were the happiest of chubby-cheeked mouses (intentionally misspelled!) as we sampled all of their many offerings and left with way too much cheese and curds for the normal and sane person, but heh…we are all about keto and cheese is one of our yummiest staples! YAY CHEESE! How much cheese do we want? ALL OF IT! :D MORE CHEESE IS MORE! :D Along the two-hour drive we enjoyed the lovely views of the rugged coastline. There was a grocery store stop to get some more dog food for Molly and later we pulled off to take pictures at a place called Meyer's Beach because the views were just too lovely to resist! Stepping out of the truck was almost shocking--the raging wind and freezing temperatures were truly something else! I grabbed my Sony and got a bunch of pictures while the wind literally knocked me off-balance many times. I had to be careful, it was THAT windy! We were happy to get back into the truck, yikes! Worth it to stop though! :) Finally we pulled into our last two-nights stay of our trip, what they call an "RV Park" but what we call an "RV Parking Lot"…lol…we knew it would be like this and honestly it's better than most that we put in this classification but truly it's just a bunch of parking spots that you jam your rig into. Not special or pretty at all. In the case here, the property edges are nice with pretty flower-covered bushes but that's about it. Not what we'd accept normally but it's Memorial Day weekend so we were happy that these were available. :) Plus, the beach is very close! The weather is, let's just say, NOT macro weather. Heh. The wind is enough to rock the trailer and the rain is peppering the trailer sideways, lol. It's not raining constantly but enough. It's very cold out there too. However, Steve and I are very happy to be in our comfy little home and the internet connection here is super. Folks next to us are so nice and actually moved into their spot a month ago as a full-time living arrangement. We had a lovely dinner and I'm all snuggled into my nest, content as can be. :) How nice it's been to have some time to just write and work on my pictures! :) Today's pictures are all from Meyer's Beach, the incredible place we stopped at on the way down here. You just have to see this place, it's amazing! The main image is pointed south. The first inset is directly out to sea. The third is pointed north. And then a fun picture of our rig with the view south. Wow. The whole Oregon coastline is covered with views like this. How fortunate we are to be able to visit this place. And to think, it's actually just a three-hour drive from our house. We will be back and if we can, we'll be able to camp nearby so we can go on a long and wonderful day's walk and photo adventure here. For now, just to see it is a fabulous gift. I hope you guys enjoy the pictures! :D I braved ridiculous wind for all of you and I survived without turning into a Janet Kite! :D Thinking of you, PAM!!! *BIG HUGS*!!! :) Explored on 5/26/19; highest placement, #4.

(+3 insets) I began my Pictures for Pam project allllllll the way back on November 8, 2018. It seems like a million years ago. At the time I was in a very low place. Unhappy, confused about my life and my direction. I'd stopped taking pictures a long time before and had absolutely no creative energy whatsoever. One day I was stumbling around on the web and thought I'd glance at ipernity. Even that place depressed me deeply because it was failing badly and plans seemed eminent that it would be shut down, leaving me with no place at all for my photos online. Not that it mattered. I really didn't care about much of anything at that point. Noticing I had mail, I found a message from Peggy C, letting me know that my dear friend, Pam Johnson, had an stroke in September and was on a very slow mend. I just about fell over...WHAT?!!! NOOO!!! PAM???!!! It couldn't be! But alas, as I read and visited different pages, these terrible fears were confirmed. I was in total shock. Last time I was on ipernity, all was well with Pam's world. How instantly things can change. That day was a mess of emotions and sadness as I tried to make sense of it all. What could I do to share my compassion and express my sorrow for what had happened to my friend? The next morning I was doing my usual hourly trek up and down my driveway and all I could do was think about Pam and how to express my feelings adequately. I thought, "What if I send her a picture and a note?" That sounded good but the problem was that I didn't WANT to take pictures. I didn't want to do ANYTHING. My creative pool wasn't even ZERO. It was NEGATIVE. I walked up and down, grumbling. The fact of the matter was that it would do me good to pick up my camera. The best thing to do in a deep depression is ANYTHING POSITIVE to get the gears grinding forward, if even just a bit. What better reason could there be than to take a picture for a friend who was ailing? It would be good for both of us. If only I could kick my *** into gear. Just thinking about photography got my hibernating creative eye slowly opening. I couldn't help but notice the light shining through the grass and empty seed pods here and there. By the end of my walk, I'd managed to convince myself to try. I went into the house, dusted off my camera, put in a fresh battery, checked for a memory card and stepped outside. I went over to the dead plants I'd seen earlier and stared at the way the light shone through the remains of the seed cases...gee that was pretty, wasn't it? I took pictures. It was so weird to be doing this again. For the first time in a while, something felt right. Maybe this WAS a good idea after all. Posting my picture that day, I added a message to say that I would be working on a new project, "Pictures for Pam", where I would post a picture every day to give Pam some love and support. It was so nice to learn that Pam was touched by my gesture and at the same time, the ipernity community welcomed me back with open arms. I had forgotten how much I loved ipernity and all of the wonderful people who I knew there. It was wonderful to feel so cared-about, even though my intent was to express my affection and support for my friend Pam. Soon it was suggested that I create a public group so that everyone could contribute their support for Pam through pictures. Within a week of beginning my project, the ipernity group, "Pictures for Pam" was born. As I type today, there are 77 members and just under 3700 pictures there now, all aimed at making our dear friend know that she is loved, cared about, and in our thoughts. It's amazing. I really didn't think about this project seriously at the time, but the fact is that I'd begun another 365 Project, and it's been a really cool experience. Sometimes I post pictures taken that day, sometimes they are from my archives. It's all good. And every one has something just for Pam to read and enjoy. Additionally, it's so wonderful to visit contacts and find that they've dedicated that day's picture to Pam. How awesome to be part of a group of people who are so warm and caring. Over the days, weeks and months of working on this project, I have totally changed, thanks to Pam. From an extremely depressed person, I quickly turned around and woke up again. Everything in my life got better and better. Today I am an improved version of myself when I was at my best. Full of excitement and creativity bubbling over from every pore. Life is good...no...GREAT! As I sit typing, Steve and I are realizing a dream we've had for many years...travelling in a RV trailer! It's been amazing and we've only just begun our adventures. The bummer is that Pam is still ailing. However, our support means the world to her. Our daily contributions to the group that's dedicated to her means so much to her. And of course she and I exchange notes every day, mostly in our photo comments, but sometimes in letters too. After returning from our last trip, Pam asked where we would be headed next and when I told her we'd be at the Oregon coast, she asked me to do something for her. She asked me to write in the sand with a stick, "PAM WILL BE BACK". I told her we would make that happen for her the moment we found ourselves on a beach. Yesterday we walked out onto the beach in Crescent City and the first thing I thought of was the promise I made to Pam. Steve grabbed a stick and carefully scrawled out her message in the sand and we took pictures with the Battery Point Lighthouse in the background. Perfect. Pam, I hope that you get to visit the ocean again sometime soon...we sure do hope this message gets to the right entities out there and it helps speed things along because we know how much you love the sea. For now, we're sending our virtual hugs too and you are in our thoughts of course! (I am also including two flowers picture I captured in the meadow next to our RV yesterday morning and also a picture of our truck and trailer at our campsite!) :) Explored on 5/18/19; highest placement #4.

How's this for breathtaking?!!! Steve and I wanted to see a gorgeous, picturesque coastline with rock formations and lovely waves rolling up on the boulders...and we got exactly what we hoped for!! What a day! What sights! It was amazing!! Brookings, Oregon, is a little town about three hours west of Medford where we live. It's the southern-most town on the Oregon coast, and being just north of the California border, many of the residents work at the Pelican Bay State Prison across the border in California's most northern large coastal down, Crecent City! Brookings has a harbor, a lighthouse, and has a thriving artist community and is a popular place for retirement. By the way, I've uploaded two other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :)

This picture is worth a thousand words. Steve and Molly are in love and it's a joy to see their relationship. Molly is our Border Collie rescue, and as you can see, she only has three legs. That doesn't stop her though and she gets around just fine. She loves the water, so Steve made a wish come true by taking her for a walk on the beach when we went to Brookings, Oregon. It was such a wonderful thing to see them so happy together! :) (If you would like to read about Molly's story, here's a link to another picture and more information. ) By the way, I've uploaded 2 other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :) Explored on October 9, 2012, highest position #247.

A few miles north of Brookings, Oregon is a beautiful coastal park called Samuel H. Boardman State Park. We spent most of our day enjoying the sights here, walking on the beach and taking pictures of everything! By the way, I've uploaded two other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :)

It's hard for me to believe that I lived in Oregon for SEVEN YEARS before Steve and I finally got out to the coast, but we sure did soak up the sights for the 5 hours we got to spend here. About five miles north of Brookings is where we found this beautiful beach, with only a handful of happy families and sun worshippers. What a blissful, perfect day! By the way, I've uploaded 2 other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :)

Here's a view of one of the beaches we visited, complete with a sun flare! You can see the fog burning off in the distance. When we arrived, the whole area was socked in with fog but quickly melted away within an hour, and the day was simply perfect with very little wind and a wonderful temperature! It was pure heaven, and exactly what I hoped for! :) By the way, I've uploaded 2 other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :) Explored on October 8, 2012, highest position #286.

At the edge of one beach we visted near Brookings, Oregon, we found that we could climb over rocks and continue further. There were so many pretty ocean views along the way, including this one! What a lovely day! Thank you for your comments, favorites and friendship! I apologize for not being able to comment for the most part until I'm done with my current project, but it will be done in about 5 days now! :) I look forward to visiting all of your photostreams and miss you all! Explored on October 14th, 2012, highest position #204.

The first beach picture I posted for Brookings, Oregon showed a very different view of this log! Isn't it fun to find interesting angles for a cool subject?! It was a perfect day to relax and soak up the sun, breathe in the fresh sea breeze, smell the salty air, and be revitalized by this magical place! We specifically planned our visit so we could spend hours enjoying the beaches we visited, and it was glorious!! :) By the way, I've uploaded two other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :) Explored on October 16, 2012. Highest position: #51.

I got a picture of the fog rolling in from the ocean and thought this image was a good choice for black & white! It conveys the moodiness of the fog and just a bit of sinister...the waves here sometimes sneak up on you and I was careful to pay attention at all times. A person unlucky enough to be knocked down and dragged back into the water could easily be sucked below and held by undertow currents, which is a posted danger at all the beaches we went to. I have lived along the Pacific coast for most of my life and am very respectful of the dangerous currents lurking just off the beaches which take many lives every year. (If you'd like to see what happens if a wave catches you, take a look at this series of images taken by my very lucky friend, Donald Tedrow and read the description of each of the 5 pictures...truly chilling!!! Donald Tedrow: The Wave ) Explored on October 17, 2012. Highest placement: #331.

Strolling along the beach near Brookings, Oregon, I found lots of kelp and seaweed, along with a few mussel shells scattered on the shore. Few things are as relaxing as beach-combing!

I found many pretty things laying on the beach when we went to Brookings, Oregon. Here are several pictures to share! :)