A Windy Au Revoir – Cape Disappointment, WA
There’s something about the PNW coast that has a hold on us, and it seems nature agrees. Last year she didn’t let us go without thrashing us to the biggest storm we’d ever seen (and never hope to see again) at Cape Blanco down in Oregon. This year, just to keep things consistent I guess, she decided to send us off in style the same way.
What makes this goodbye even harder is that we may not be back next year. The forecast of a big El Niño year (= it may be very wet) and the fact that we’ve got an urge to switch things up and do something entirely different might well mean we won’t hit this spot again for a few years. We’re not 100% sure yet, and given how jello RV plans tend to be everything could change between now and then, but we may well be headed to new states (and potentially even out of States) next year. No hints yet though…I’ve got to keep the excitement humming on the blog somehow 🙂
So, here we are at the end of one phase and the beginning of another. It’s much like the dance of life and death, although in a much kinder format, and of course the similarity can’t escape me. This summer has forced many trying changes, especially for me, but as always nature has fed my mind and replenished my soul. I experienced death (my first “big” one this lifetime), but coming home to the PNW coast and its miles of empty, raw gorgeousness refilled me with life and reconfirmed my purpose here on earth.
This last big storm is just natures way of making sure I’ve been listening 🙂
I didn’t plan to get so darn philosophical in this final Cape D post, but there you go. The PNW coast does this kind of stuff to me and I can only write it how I feel it. If you ever meet me you’ll probably find me to be rather more crass than my blog musings, but deep down I’m really just a total sap and you, my blog readers, get to enjoy 100% of that part of me. So, with that very deep thought I say au revoir dear friend…you’ll keep a part of my heart until we meet again.
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Gorgeous pictures – that last one is especially incredible! Best wishes on having the rains douse the fires and allowing you to enjoy Eastern Oregon / Washington.
Yeah, I’m hoping the rains at least dampen some of the many fires. It’s tough going out there for the home owners and fire-fighters who are in the midst of it all.
Nina
We are a couple of dozen miles inland from your by Mt St Helens. Windy here too. I just checked weather.com and they are getting some rain on the WA wildfires at least. So part of those will get tamped down. We have been dogged by smoke for the past month from Lone Pine, CA to Yakima, WA. First year we have had so much problem. Hope you get to stop in the ID-MT area as that is mostly all a beauty spot. You mentioned staying at Gardener just north of Yellowstone. That is a really Amazing area not to be missed if possible. If it would have been me I would have been tempted to stay right on the river about 10-15 miles north of Gardener. And the main Geyser areas are more towards the West Yellowstone entrance. But any time you get to spend any time in this whole area is worth it.
The wildfires have just been terrible this year. I’m really hoping we get to enjoy the many spots we’d planned on our route East, and I’m certainly encouraged by the rains today, but I fear it may not be enough. It’s much worse of course, for the folks (and fire fighters) who are stuck in the middle of it all. Anyway we’ll see how it goes…
Nina
Hi from Idaho. Boise has cleared from some of the smoke, think today we are in yellow considering we were in orange & red. There are some areas around Riggins that have been closed off/on. Not sure how much this website might help you: http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/state/13/
Safe travels!
Liz
Thanks Liz! That’s great info. I’ll keep checking that site as we move east.
Nina
Another Hi from Idaho! We’re up near Coeur d’Alene and yesterday we saw blue sky for the first time in quite a while, it was wonderful!! Skies seem to be clearing up quite a bit.
Great to hear you’re seeing some blue skies. Hope it doesn’t smoke over again these next few days.
Nina
Safe travels to you two. Saturday and the wind be “ahoweling” here in Florence. Will you be going to QZ this year? Again, safe travels to you….
We’ll probably miss Q this year. Have plans to extend our stay in San Diego and maybe (hopefully) get rid of our storage there. Then again, you never know 🙂
Nina
Safe travels! It’s been a tough year in the northwest, trying to stay out of the smoke. In some ways I’m glad we didn’t head that direction this year but we missed visits with family and friends as a result.
Yeah, we’ve been very lucky in our own travels this year. Apart from a few days of haze here and there, we’ve stayed well away from all the smoke. The coast has been the perfect escape. We may not be able to avoid it going East from here though.
Nina
i have been enjoying reading your posts over the years. thank you, nina!!
we just came through idaho and east wa in past two days. the smoke/haze was heavy, eyes and throat were burning when woke up in the morning. i looked up the firemap yesterday, there were 19 fires in wa and or combined. horrible.
we arrived in ocean shores, wa, yesterday evening, thought we’d get fresh air here. yep, air is fresh but it is too strong :). it keeps rock our coach, for which my dw feels pretty cool but i am afraid it could blow the solar panels off the roof, but so far no issues.
happy trails wherever you are heading to, have fun!!
We have buddies who just travelled through WA this past week and reported the same thing. The smoke map was black over much of WA earlier this week. Today looks a tad better, but it can change at any moment depending on winds and conditions. We’re just going to have to play it by ear.
Nina
Wonderful photos and musings. Your experiences have convinced us to make this spot a definite destination for our first summer full timing in 2020
Thanks Sally! But don’t wait until 2020 if you can 🙂
Nina
It’s so strange to read about a fellow full-time RVer leaving the part of the country that we call home, and are working our way back to (slowly but surely – hopefully by next spring or early summer)! Looking on you campsite map, it doesn’t look like you’ve hit the NE part of the country yet. That’s where we’ve been, and it has been great. We’re on a somewhat diagonal trajectory from Maine to Albuquerque for the balloon fest in October, currently just east of Cleveland. Hoping that you continue to find good adventures to reminisce over in your old age, and stay safe!
Indeed we’ve not seen any of the NE, at least not in the RV (we travelled there years ago pre-rig). It’s a part of the country we do want to get to before we finish our RV journey. Good travels to ABQ to you!
Nina
Great post, Nina. I know you’ll miss your beloved PNW coast, but also know you’ll be right at home once you get moving again too. What a great set of parting beach pics, too.
I’ve heard that there are a number of fires in the western parts of Montana too. I’m sure you’ll be looking into that too. You and Paul said you were looking to go thru Glacier National Park on the journey, but look at that first as they’d had a fire there too. I’m not sure if it’s out or still burning.
It’d be some road time but if you just blew thru on I-90 and took the road south to Gardiner and spent some extra time there you’d likely miss a lot of the problem areas. Just an idea.
I’m looking forward to seeing the future posts to reveal what all the big tease is about!
Have fun and travel safe.
We haven’t ruled out a mad dash across one of the big interstates. It’d be our least favorite route, as it adds many more miles to an already time-crammed trip, but we’ll just have to see.
We’re definitely going to miss the coast. It may not even take a week 🙂
Nina
From a recent report from a friend, it sounds like if you still planning the night or two staying near Rimrock you’ll likely be in good shape there. At least at this point.
As for Walla Walla, a frequent poster on an RV forum reported leaving from there (they live there) for the NE USA and glad to finally be leaving the thick smoke. Honestly, everything I’ve heard and seen, eastern WA is gonna be a challenge this year. I hope this storm blows plenty of rain over the Cascades so they get some relief over there. As well as all the travelers, truckers and tourists. Oh yeah, and our favorite RVers too. 🙂
Safe travels!
The smoke around Walla Walla looked pretty bad on the map all last week. It “seems” like it might have cleared a tad today, but I’m not sure. We have 2 days booked there so we’ll just have to see what it’s like when we arrive. We might only stay long enough to drink a few beers and go
Nina
My dear Nina & Paul…. Yes, you wax poetic AND philosophical, but not without good reason when you do! THIS IS WHAT WE LOVE ABOUT YOU! Like good wine you are aging with depth and breadth, which we have come to expect and WE CHEER YOU ON with all that we can to lift you up and further as the wind beneath your wings!
Joy, joy, joy!!!!!!!!
Beautiful!! Thanks so much for the lovely words 🙂
Nina
I am currently in Yellowstone. The weather is great!! No smoke.
Great to know!! Thanks.
Nina
We JUST missed u 2! We rolled into Cape D last night excited to get to experience this big storm. It did not disappoint! We went out to the lighthouse hoping to meet you, we did see your rig!. Coast storms always makes us feel so small to stand there in the midst of that incredible force, something we always feel lucky to get to experience. Safe, wonderful travels you two!!
Sorry about that! The lighthouse never opened due to the winds (they were at their highest just when we were scheduled to open, and we could barely walk around our site at that point). The storm sure was crazy. Lots of branches down everywhere. No damage to our rig, thankfully but whoo whee what gusts we got!
Nina
We r in Helena MT and it is very smoky! No MTB for us, outdoor activities are not recommended. We have to stay here for a few days to pick up packages, but we’ll be heading to north Yellowstone asap where it is supposed to be more clear.
Your lovely photos always captive your descriptive words beautifully. Well, now you really have me guessing as I thought for sure you’d be buying a little slice of PNW land. Safe travels.
We aim to keep you on your toes
Honestly if we’d found the perfect little slice of land up here we’d probably already be part-timing, but it just hasn’t happened (or we haven’t been ready). Our next year could look very different from anything we’ve done before. We’re both pretty excited about it.
Nina
It must be a bit sad to leave the coast. I love your pictures, as usual. We are in eastern Washington – basically straight over from the “N” on your map and almost to the Idaho line. We are having a dust storm today, plus almost constant smoke lately from all of the fires. I hope it clears a bit before your drive. It is usually beautiful this time of year, but the air quality is terrible this year. Have a safe trip across, we will hope for some rain to help tame the fires and clear the air a bit.
For what it’s worth we left Seattle last Monday and took I90 with no issues. Hazy from the smoke, even here in Sheridan, Wyoming, but smooth sailing the whole way. Heading for Wall, SD tomorrow for a few days.
Safe travels!
Bruce & Mary
Sounds like you’ve had another great summer in the PNW. Can’t wait to see what’s in store for you next year! Hope it will include some breweries;-)
Always!! Where we go, breweries always follow (or is that the other way around….hmmmm)
Nina
Wheeling it,
Always enjoy reading your blog. Interesting your comment about the many fires. We were evacuated for second summer from our home in Twisp, Wa. Now in Port Orford getting away from it all. Looking to possibly move to Babdon/Port Orford area.
I think your trip east will be OK , still fires but weather may help the smoke. Understand it rained in Twisp. Rained hard here in Port Orford last night(loved it).
Best of luck in your continued travels.
Super scary that you were evacuated! I hope your house and property are ok?
Port Orford area is lovely, and I just love the cool (and typically smoke free) summers there. I could totally see living around there somewhere, at least part-time. We’ve had great weather and clear skies all summer here on the northern coast.
Nina
Lovely musings, Nina, on the cycles of nature and life. Summer has been gorgeous on Lopez Island (no smoke, no fires) but a few hours ago we had winds that snapped a big pine tree in our site. Grateful that it fell into the forest instead of onto our rig! We’re leaving the island next week and trying to figure out a non-smoky route east, too. Safe travels to you.
Oh it’s scary when those branches fall. We actually had a pretty big branch fall right next to our rig (less than a foot away) during the storm today, but miraculously nothing hit the rig itself. Hope you manage to find a smoke-free route south.
Nina
Thanks for the weather update, Nina. We’re in Theodore Roosevelt Nat Park, got here yesterday and today seems even hazier than yesterday so hoping smoke is disapating as we head west. We’re gonna drop down to Spearfish next week to delay our trip through MT and OR. Looking forward to a nice trek west on the Columbia River to Portland.
We were there last summer and loved it. I am so sad for all the fires and now your storm…hope your travels are safe and you find clean air!
According to the fire/smoke maps (which I’ve been watching for the past week) the smoke has been moving steadily East. As of today, the blackest areas on the map are right around SD/ND so I’m not surprised you’re seeing haze. Hopefully it’ll move steadily away and dissipate over the next few days.
Nina
left Medora, ND yesterday, clear enough to enjoy 5 days in the park. Now in Spearfish, again clear and hot but cooling down by Mon. to 70’s. We’ll kill a week here at Chris’ Camp, nice RV park and they have spaces.
Boy, it will be fascinating to follow your adventures Nina! Both Long-Term (will be educational to hear how RV’ing is in the east side of the States, I’ve heard it’s more prone to narrower roads, low bridges, and other Beast Hazards there?!) and Short-Term – your map seems to show a Line Of Fire pretty much right where you planned to traverse, what luck is that?! Well we can only hope it isn’t so bad in reality: the maps can sometimes be misleading: where we live (near Eureka, north CA) the map is showing many fires also, but – although the poor fire-fighters are still being kept busy – the areas are relatively ‘small’ and inland of the main highway… so you never know… Good Luck guys!
Here at Cape D as well. This storm is sending you off with a huge farewell. Or should I say SWELL! We are in the loop closest to the ocean. We have not seen the surf as close as it was this morning. We were on watch to move the rig. Pretty scary. One of our tire brake wedge wheel clamps loosened from the hurricane style winds. Our hometown is Spokane. I am getting constant updates from our family. They are having a time of it surronded by fires everywhere. Stay safe. Love your blog. My husband Casey enjoyed his chat with you at the lighthouse. Hope to cross paths again.
Wow!! You know I was thinking about everyone in those ocean-side loops and wondering how it was going out there. They typically close those loops in winter because the storms raise the water to dangerous levels…but today was just like a winter storm!! I’m very happy to hear you guys weathered the worst of it without any major damage.
Nina
You made me sad that you were leaving! But your photos will supply lasting memories for you as you move on. Thanks for so many gorgeous photo:) Loved the reflection in the bubbles…so cute:) Safe travels to you three. Hope to see you all real soon:) Yes!!
This is our third summer in a row spending a chunk of it RVng in the Pacific Northwest. We love it up ‘here’ in summer, when our own home base in SoCal is roasting. This year’s wildfire smoke has been something crazy for sure. We got socked in in Ashland, Oregon from three area wildfires (I think I left a comment about that early this month), but have been clear of it since, until yesterday when it came pouring out of the Rogue River and onto the coast in Gold Beach, Oregon. Not until we started doing multi month summer RVing did we really come to understand what ‘wildfire season’ really means. And dry lightening.
So, is it crazy to say that after spending three weeks meandering and hiking down the Oregon coastline, we harbor a secret desire to return and witness one of their famous winter storms? Now that you’ve experienced one?
Nope, it’s not crazy at all. The coastal storms are an experience all their own. I totally get it 🙂
Nina
Last I heard, Hwy 2 that crosses the top of Montana was closed at Essex (Fire). Hwy 200 is open, all two lane. I 90 is of course open. It will take you all the way to SD with no problems. Smoke in Helena last day or two has been awful. Wind and t storms helped clear it out tonight. Safe travels. J M
Thanks for the update. I just heard from another buddy who drove 93 to 90 yesterday and he said parts of the 90 west were closed from the intersection and people were being advised to stay indoors. They’ve probably re-opened 90 by now, but it sure doesn’t look good smoke-wise.
Nina
Just got to the beach today. Hubby drove in windy gusts and we are at Camp Rilea near Astoria. We’ve got two of the slides in because of the way the wind is hitting. It feels like a hammock at times.
Seems like we almost cross paths. Safe journeys as you head away from the beach. We are just beginning our month here.
Can’t believe you drove in that crazy weather! Glad you made it through ok. This AM is looking clear and calm again. I think the worst is over. Enjoy your time here!
Nina
Great post…. Travel safe as I know you will…
I love your writing and enjoy your pictures. Glad you enjoyed it so throughly there on the coast. Save travels as you head on your way to the next stop.
Safe travels my friends, at least I feel like yall are friends, looking forward to living the dream in our RV in a couple of years…learning lots from your adventures! Take care!
Normally I don’t like wind, but yesterday was the first day in weeks we had a blue sky here in Bend. Perhaps you will find similar during your travels. Have fun and safe travels.
Hi sounds like a wild ride on the coast. We are currently in eastern Oregon and had some of the wind yesterday. It was interesting watching the sky change constantly with the clouds and smoke. We will be heading to Boise and then to Montana. We also have been keeping track of the fires. We changed our plans and won’t be going to Glacier NP because of the fires. We have friends camp hosting at Holland Lake near Condon, Montana – Seely Lake is like 20 miles south of them. They said they are dealing with lots of smoke. In a state of preparedness because of a fire about 10 miles from them. Depending on how the situation is with the winds we may pass on a visit to see them. Hopefully Yellowstone and the Tetons will be okay when we get there.
We love the NE. It takes a little bit of changing gears going from the west to the east though. I think the hardest part of it is making sure we don’t get on a route that has low bridges or very narrow streets.
Have a safe journey today.
So, we decided on a completely different route yesterday (I’ll be posting about it soon) mostly because of the smoke and fires. So far so good…we’ve done almost 500 miles and haven’t seen smoke yet. We’ll see if we keep this lucky for the rest of the route.
Nina
Great story and pictures. Check out http://www.airnow.gov for the air quality. That altered our trip plans. However, the worst day on road is better than the best day working. Happy Tales.
Thanks! That’s been one of the many sites we’ve been using to check our route East. We’ve also taken advantage of the daily-updated fire & smoke maps on wunderground.com. Between the two, we’ve been able to get a pretty decent picture of what’s going on. I’ll post about the final route we took soon.
Nina
I can see why you would miss it already. The ocean has such a pull, and what a beautiful area. And FYI, here in the Jackson Hole area. it’s just a little hazy. I don’t know if your travel plan was to come through here on the way to SD, but it’s not bad at all.
Good to know Mary. It seems that once we get through further east we’ll be ok. We may just push through.
Nina
Love the pictures! We are heading out of Bozeman tomorrow for the Oregon coast for about 3 weeks. We are very excited for our first trip to the PNW and also to get out of the smoke. Since we have no reservations and with the upcoming holiday weekend, we are thinking about starting out by heading down to Cape Blanco since they have first come sites and then slowly work our way back up the coast. Most of the northern campgrounds are all reservable sites that are booked up.
Do you think we would have a tough time getting a site at Cape Blanco if arriving on Wednesday or Thursday before the holiday weekend?
Safe travels!
I think that’s a great plan! Cape Blanco usually has sites, and worst case you can typically dry camp in overflow by the horse camp area. By the way, as you go north Carl G.Washborne State Park is also first come first serve. Plus you can typically find dry camping spaces at the Marinas (Winchester Bay, Newport etc.) Enjoy your trip! Sept is the absolute best month to be on the coast!!!
Nina
Thanks Nina. Can’t wait to see the PNW coast for the first time.
BTW, I still keep thinking about Russ and Todd’s Bluebird. I don’t want to give up our Airstream but the Wonderlodge is just so cool.
Paul keeps talking about the Wanderlodge too haha. It’s a super sweet machine. It’ll be interesting to see where she ends up.
Nina
Your photos are the best! Thanks for sharing.
It is amazing what nature has to teach us if we just take the time to listen and learn.
You have had quite a summer! I am all to familiar with your trials. I shared the experience of death with each of my parents in person several years ago. It does change you and, for my husband and me, we realized that we need to be more proactive in our lives and go out and take life head on, rather than waiting for it to magically appear.
As others have stated, your words are eloquent and heart-felt, and your photos are stunning. Be well, be safe, and know that you are loved by all.
I do believe that death helps (or enables) the living to see what they need to do, if we’re open to the message. At least it’s been that way for me. A “wake up” or “confirmation” call if you will. I’m so sorry you had to go through two such difficult events, but I’m glad the result was to push you to take life head on. May you have many adventures ahead of you!
Nina
We spent a month on the ruggedly beautiful coast of Oregon ending up in Port Orford for a week and like you the PNW coast has touched me deeply. My only regret is that we did not get to experience one of those wild storms. Our weather was exquisitely stunning for our time there. It is on our return list.
So glad to hear you enjoyed your time on the coast. It’s going to be hard for us to not come back next year.
Nina
We are in Polson MT currently after having been in Spokane WA earlier this week. It was smoky here Friday and Saturday but rain overnight and wind and rain this PM has cleared the air here. We are going north to Columbia Falls tomorrow. Hoping that Hwy 2 east of there will be open again by Tuesday morning. If not it’s south to Missoula then north-east on Hwy 200 to Great Falls the 87 to Harve.
Generally, fires here are much smaller than central Washington, however the issue here is that there are very few firefighters, so controlling them is taking a lot of time.
Best of luck in your travels.
I do think Eastern Washington is seeing the worst of it at the moment, although there also seem to be many fires just east. Hope you find a smoke-free route!
Nina
Another inspiring post. . . thank you. It’s truly because of you two that we are finally committing to our dream of the RV adventure.
I know we can do it “our way” now and have a blast!
Thanks, again, and safe travels!
Donna
Awesome! So glad to have been part of your inspiration.
Nina
Safe travels my friends may our paths cross some day. We enjoy your blogs keep writing .
john & karla
we so enjoyed sharing your summer with us through your web site. we were sadden by the passing of your mother as my wife had just lost hers about the same time. we are rapping up our first workamping job looking forward to the next ( Amazon ). be safe in your travels and maybe our paths will cross one day.
john & karla coley
So sorry for your loss 🙁 Best of wishes to you on your travels and your next workamping job. Amazing will be interesting for sure.
Nina
We have been in and around Montana for the last month. Some days are smoky (we were in Three Forks when the Eustis Fire started) and other days are completely clear. Today, in Columbus (off 90), is clear. The last week in Buffalo Bill State Park in Wyoming was clear and beautiful (except the thunderstorms). If you are near Dillon, you might check out Clark Canyon Reservoir – beautiful views and free camping. Smoke wasn’t a problem when we were there – too far south, I guess. Over the last month, it seemed to be more smoky north of 90 than south. Best wishes for your drive east!
We probably won’t make it up the 15 this time around, but I sure appreciate the tip. That looks like a wonderful spot to stop! At some point we’ll get to Dillon!
Nina
I know what you mean about the PNW Nina. Lopez Island has completely captivated us. I imagine this will be an area that we will return to again. I believe our wind gusts here on Lopez a couple of days ago topped out at 66 mph. It was quite the interesting storm. Lovely post Nina and those photos of yours always leave me wanting more.
Glad you made it through the wind without harm. I heard from some buddies on Orcas that they had quite the blow there too. I was *sure* you’d love Lopez and I’m so happy you have. It helps to have good buddies with you too. Maybe you’ll be back again next year?
Nina
Incredible photos! We’ve spent some time on the Washington/Oregon coast and it is indeed a magical place. Thank you for sharing. We are in southern Alberta and have been experiencing the smoke from the Washington fires for the past week and it’s supposed to blow this way again tomorrow.
Yup, fire and wind has been the news this year. I just finished a post after being without power for 2+ days and when it wasn’t windy the smoke in the filled our views. I guess we can’t complain too much because it has been a beautiful summer but the loss of forest this year has been terrible.
We head east to Spokane on Friday and are grateful to see rain in the forecast for the next three days. From there we head south on Hwy 395 all the way to SoCal and are hoping for no wind and no smoke 🙂 As you said though, we can always change the route if we need to! Love the bubbles pic, very fun! Spending our first summer on the Pacific Coast has been perfect. Thanks again for your great campground reviews that helped me plan, and ensured we saw some of the most beautiful places ever!!
Hello to PNW lover’s just like me!
I have been following your post here and there for sometime now and so enjoy your love for my resident area. We are fulltime almost’ers as we have been on the road, off the road, then on the road then off it again to sell the household goods and so looking forward again to be out there on that road for a long time to come. As you stated it’s hard to leave this beautiful area but with wheels for a foundation “home” is never to far away! Happy and safe travels!
I am rushing off to work (sigh) but your post reminded me of this poem that I have on my fridge.
You have the earth, the sun, the sky, the grass.
You have yourself, and you can heal your
mind by talking to the earth. Watch
the grass, and you will learn how it grows from
the earth and will be in touch again
with the spirit that guides us.
~Martha St. John
Amazing photos, thanks for sharing especially the bubble photo, may use it to inspire my next art piece. As always thanks. Love reading your blog.
Karen
I love the way nature reminds us to listen! We just spent a few glorious, magical days at your beloved Cape Blanco… And it truly is everything as you describe it. Did not get to stop at Cape D because it was a very crazy, busy weekend in that area. Next time! While at cape blanco the winds were howling but that did not stop us from taking our beverages to the edge and watch the whales as the sun was setting. Great nature talks! Thanks for all your great info about that area!