A Surfer’s Paradise

Paradise alert! The drive here is spectacular, and that’s just the beginning… Indian Beach in Oregon is one of the state’s gems, and that’s saying a lot.

Ecola State Park is absolutely stunning. It’s so lush and green that it almost doesn’t feel real. The road in is a little narrow when you pass cars coming the other way but it’s top notch when it comes to the scenery. I had to pull over a few times to soak in the forest views.

This was the first State Park that I’ve been to that allows you to pay with Credit Card at the Kiosk to get into the park. Woohoo! No longer do you have to worry about carrying cash with you or having it in the vehicle just in case you didn’t get a chance to take out cash. So convenient!

Parking is plenty at the lookout area. It was awesome to see a few “Surfer Vans” that were giving a group of guys a true adventure!

It’s an easy hike down to the beach. The waves were nice and consistent. I had one of those incredible life moments where you are completely in the moment. Surfing in such a beautiful setting with a lighthouse in the background while the sun was setting. This is a special place.

Short Sands Beach

This is a real adventure. When I pulled into the parking lot at Oswald West State Park I was really excited. All my research online pointed to this being one of the best Oregon has to offer.

Short Sands lived up to its reputation and was one of the highlights of the entire west coast.

It’s sheltered in a forested cove with volcanic and sandstone cliffs all around that produces consistent waves that give you a nice long ride.

The hike in is about a half mile on a nice trail through a beautiful forest. It’s a secluded beach but it did have a healthy amount of adventurers enjoying the day.

Talking to some locals it seems like surfers in Portland come here on day trips to enjoy such an incredible place away from the city. Spending the day surfing and hanging with local adventurers was one of those “perfect” days.

The waves were consistent and offered a nice ride. I would have liked to have got a nice video but one of my first waves sent me flying and I landed on my GoPro mount which popped it off. It had a backup tether which held so I didn’t lose my camera.

Years ago I lost a GoPro in the Pacific while I was surfing… Danielle had just ordered me a surfboard mount, I was procrastinating to put it on cause I wouldn’t be able to use it for 24 hours while it solidified the bond. Of course, I said to myself “I’ll do it tomorrow” and headed out surfing. BAM! A big wave sent me flying and my GoPro was attached to my chest. I landed on my board and almost in slow motion it popped off of my chest and went flying through the air. I reached for it as the wave tossed me around underwater and that’s the last time I ever saw that GoPro…

Seaside RV Resort

This was another Thousand Trails RV Resort. Located in yet another great location to be base camp for countless day trip adventures.

Most Thousand Trails Resorts have nice dog areas but this one was unique. It had an entire island as a dog park. You walk across a bridge, shut the gate and let them run around.

Crabbing is really popular up here and quite a few of our neighbors went out, caught crabs and then brought them back to have a cookout.

People often ask us about the social aspect of being full-time RVers. We haven’t found this to be a challenge. If we want to hang out with people, we just put ourselves in an activity or at an event that allows friendships to happen. Great people are everywhere and we enjoy spending time with the people we run into on our travels. So many interesting people.

I was out walking the dog and taking some pics and got into a great conversation with a guy who was walking his dog. We became friends and went out for supper in the town of Seaside. It was a blast. Turns out he’s a retired owner of a Print Shop in the midwest who sold his business and became a millionaire. We talked business for hours! What I found most interesting, is how much he misses work and as an Entrepreneur, he keeps wanting to create businesses. What a great experience.

Another big piece to
the social aspect for us is we visit friends & family while on the road. We’ll pull up at a campground near people and plan out quality time with them. My parents (Eric) even installed RV Hookups on their property in Minnesota.

Over the holidays we often park our RV in storage at the Thousand Trails
Resort for a few weeks or a month while we stay with Danielle’s Parents over the holidays. We can explore the surrounding areas for months and still be within an easy drive of them.

Cannon Beach

The most active beach we saw in Oregon was Cannon Beach. It was bustling with people enjoying themselves in the ways they like most. People were playing catch, walking their dog, relaxing, running, swimming, surfing, talking, sand dune sledding, and riding horses. This has been on my bucket list for years and it was nice to check this box. Haystack Rock is the most notable monolith sticking out of the ocean.

The River City

Astoria is a very hip city. In a very different way, it reminds me of Santa Cruz, CA. It’s located on the Columbia River where it dumps into the Pacific Ocean. There are great places to eat whether you want to eat indoors or outside and watch the massive Chevron boat cruise by.