Rambling Journey: Southern Oregon/Redwood Country in Northwest CA (Part 1)

"Lost on Purpose" has been our guiding force since leaving Southern Alabama back in February when we started our Rambling Journey. The "Lost on Purpose" really came into being as we left Sharon's brothers house just outside of Portland. We began by heading South and rambling down through the middle of the state of Oregon toward the city of Eugene. Not having any idea where we might be going for sure or where we might eventually end up except that we would be going through several National Parks as well as looking for National Monuments as we headed to Palm Springs CA Our plans were to be there around the end of September.

I was especially interested in going through Eugene because I had an Uncle (Art) who had moved there from the Ozark hills of Missouri when I was a young kid. He was a story teller and when he would return for a visit with his family he would tell us about the great city of Eugene. It created enough interest for me that I have always wanted to visit the area. He has long passed on as well as most of his family but I was still interested in going through on the way south.

After spending a short time there we headed south and west toward the Pacific Coast eventually arriving and staying the night at Coos Bay OR. Next morning we headed farther south toward Arcata CA where we had arranged to stay the next night. The next day we would be at a destination we had been hearing about for years and was excited to be getting close to (The land of the big Redwood trees). Mean while along the way a local told us about a little town on the way that was a must to stop and spend a little time. A couple of pictures below will give you some idea where it is and how unique it was..

Bandon Oregon (on Pacific coast in southern OR) I show you this picture to let you know where the pictures below are located. A beautiful little town well worth the stop if going down Hi way 101 on the west coast

Operating light house in Bandon

Pacific Ocean coast in Bandon

Pacific Coast at Bandon OR

From Bandon we headed on down the coast toward Crescent City CA and on south from there to where we would be staying the night (Arcata CA)........ As we usually do when we arrive in a town we don't know much about we ask some of the locals or check on Tripadvisor for unique places to eat and places to visit. That evening Tripadvisor took us down town Aracta to a little restaurant with a high rating but was told we probable have a long wait. Well ratings were right on but the food was worth waiting for. While there we noticed the whole area was bustling with young people. After asking a few locals we found out Arcata was the home of Humboldt State University. I am always interested in small towns that has a progressive high educational establishment. So we set out to tour the campus. It was bustling with student activity. We were told what made Humboldt special was it projected an atmosphere where students with spirit of adventure and a passion for making a difference in the world could grow and prosper. While visiting the campus I got that feeling.

Next day a new adventure we had been waiting to experience for a long time (Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park). My younger brother had visited here over 30 years ago and had told me about how great the forest drive was. WOW was he right on.