Pictures of the Week 2010-13
Hello All,
Following a good night’s sleep in Eugene we took off for the Oregon coast. We followed OR-126 west to Florence and then turned north on US-101. One of our first planned stops along the coast was at Sea Lion Cave.
On a summer day in 1880, an inquisitive Captain William Cox piloted his boat through the cave’s western entrance and found himself in one of the largest sea caves in the world. With daylight penetrating the north, west, and south entrances, Cox must have gazed in wonder at the flooded two-acre floor of the cave up to the rock dome more than 12 stories above. This is the only known cave hauling area and rookery for wild sea lions on the American mainland.
We have been up and down the Oregon coast many times but had never taken the time to visit the Sea Lion Cave. So, we were anxious for a new adventure. However, when we arrived we were told the elevator was “out of service!” They don’t allow people into the cave unless the elevator is operational. It goes down through 300 feet of solid rock before getting to the cave floor. You could walk out on a harrowing steep path in the event of an emergency--but we are too old for that sort of malarkey! The good news was the elevator serviceman had just arrived and thought he would have it back in service in about 30 minutes. We cooled our heels and took advantage of the time to shoot a few photos from the cliff top. That’s Heceta Head Lighthouse in the distance.
Following a good night’s sleep in Eugene we took off for the Oregon coast. We followed OR-126 west to Florence and then turned north on US-101. One of our first planned stops along the coast was at Sea Lion Cave.
On a summer day in 1880, an inquisitive Captain William Cox piloted his boat through the cave’s western entrance and found himself in one of the largest sea caves in the world. With daylight penetrating the north, west, and south entrances, Cox must have gazed in wonder at the flooded two-acre floor of the cave up to the rock dome more than 12 stories above. This is the only known cave hauling area and rookery for wild sea lions on the American mainland.
We have been up and down the Oregon coast many times but had never taken the time to visit the Sea Lion Cave. So, we were anxious for a new adventure. However, when we arrived we were told the elevator was “out of service!” They don’t allow people into the cave unless the elevator is operational. It goes down through 300 feet of solid rock before getting to the cave floor. You could walk out on a harrowing steep path in the event of an emergency--but we are too old for that sort of malarkey! The good news was the elevator serviceman had just arrived and thought he would have it back in service in about 30 minutes. We cooled our heels and took advantage of the time to shoot a few photos from the cliff top. That’s Heceta Head Lighthouse in the distance.
There were a couple of large
groups of sea lions swimming in the water below. A pinniped (fin-footed
mammal), the Steller sea lion is the largest species of the eared seal family.
Its range is from San Francisco, California to the Bering Strait of Alaska.
These huge mammals have a yellowish-brown color and the loud roar of lions.
Finally the elevator
serviceman gave the “all clear” and we were allowed to proceed to the cave. It
was a relatively quick ride to the bottom which Dave was thankful for. The ole
boy is a bit claustrophobic and the thought of being entombed in solid rock
gives him pause. Surprisingly there was a lot of space to walk around within
the cave along with a number of exhibits. They have built decks to walk on with
stairs going from deck to deck. No reason to worry about having to walk on
slippery jagged rocks. The following photo is of the south entrance with the
larger west entrance to the right in the photo. Note the high water mark inside
the cave.
There were no sea lions inside
the cave. Guess they were all out frolicking in the water or basking in the
midday sun. This is looking out the north entrance of the cave towards Heceta
Head. One thing we decided for sure is that we would not want to be in the cave
during a storm!
Continuing north on US-101 we
made another stop at a scenic viewpoint where we could get a couple of
close-ups of Heceta Head Lighthouse.
Our next stop was Heceta
Beach. It was a lovely serine location. It was here that Barb found a cell
phone on a log. Evidently someone sat on the log and laid their phone down
beside them. When they left they forgot to gather it. We could see they had
AT&T service so we dropped the phone off at an AT&T store. They traced
the phone to its owner and assured us they would see that the owner got it back.
Further up the coast we
stopped at “The Devils Churn” and found it quite interesting. The churn began
as a small fracture--a weak area in the ancient volcanic rock. Thunderous waves
have gnawed at the rock for eons, eroding it away grain by grain, enlarging the
crack into a chasm.
In the photo below you can see
an “Ocean Geyser.” It is a playful
coastal anomaly known as a “Spouting Horn.”
The edge of the chasm was undercut creating a cave. Finally, a hole or
crack formed in the roof of the cave, setting the stage for a spouting horn. It
puts on its most dramatic show during high tide and storms. Incoming waves
funnel air and water into the cave, building pressure till it explodes out the
hole in a geyser like spray. It’s a bit of a chore in timing to get a good
photo of the actual spouting water but we managed to get a few.
We continued winding our way
up the beautiful Oregon coast, making an overnight stop in Newport and then
picking up OR-18 at Lincoln City which we followed into Portland.
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns
Until next time,
Dave & Barb
The Traveling Browns