Day 9 and 10: Moving camp to Beverly Beach State Park, Newport OR and an Unfortunate Turn of Events

We left Crater Lake National Park happy to say good-bye to the mosquitoes. Five hours later, we were at our next destination: Beverly State Park, just north of Newport, Oregon. Apparently, we have been spoiled by the last few campsites with magnificent views from very private sites and quiet neighbors. This state park was huge, with our site parked right between two bushes and less than 15 feet from two other camping parties. We can literally hear every word of their conversations and feel like we’re sitting at their dinner tables at night. The plus side is that the area is known for its rocky coast line, and therefore the tide pools that appear during the two low tides every day. After we set up our tent (close enough to fall into our neighbors tent during a midnight bathroom trip), the fog was already settled in, so we set up camp and headed down to the ocean in hopes of catching a glimpse of a sunset. It was so cold, we could hardly believe it. The tide pools in this area where not very exciting like we had hoped, but the Newport Emergency Response Squad performing a practice water rescue entertained us all the same. We watched as 5 men in bright orange hauled in two “drowning” swimmers, in 40-degree water, on a surfboard, with a ¼ of a mile long rope. Indeed, we caught 5 minutes of fleeting sun and a pinkish-purple beginning of sunset before the clouds set in again







Wanting to catch the 9:02am low tide the Tuesday morning at a better tide pool location, our heads hit our pillows much earlier than previous nights. It was still chilly, but we slept soundly and woke up in time for a hearty breakfast and VIP parking at the tide pools of another local state park. We’re very happy with the “Golden Eagle Pass” we purchased for $80 at Arches National Park. It grants you access to all federal parks and recreation areas along with some state-run parks for 11 months. If you’re traveling a lot with family, and staying outdoors, we highly recommend the pass! It’s a lot like being on the VIP list at the local club, but cooler. We were overjoyed that the sun was out and there were not many encroaching clouds on the horizon. The tide pools here were teaming with life, filled with sea urchins, sea stars, crabs, sea anemones, sponges, clams and chitons. There were tall rocks covered with nesting sea birds and the outcropping barrier rocks held sunning harbor seals. There was also a giant dead seal that had met his untimely death on the cobblestone beach. The park ranger told us he had been there for about five weeks, and this was very obvious.













We wanted to check out the small strip of local fish markets, sea shops and art galleries, so we bid farewell to our unfortunately bloated friend, and headed off to this part of town. There were lots of interesting pieces of artwork and knick-knack galleries, and we took our time strolling down the strip. We enjoyed a fresh seafood lunch on the water serenaded from below by a rotting dock full of fat sea lions. They were unbelievably obnoxious and their barks sounded like a combination of hyena cackling and a cat coughing up a hairball. We found it entertaining at first, but soon wished a killer whale would come take care of this nuisance.



At this point, the amount of postcards we had acquired was staggering and we went in search of a quiet place to lie in the sun and write them.

This is where our luck ran out and our day turned into a nightmare for us.

We chose a beach called Agate Beach in Newport; it had been recommended many times because of its unusual sand beach and big waves. The parking lot was filled with about 12 other cars and we made sure to lock our doors and stash away our purses under towels and clothes in the backseat (this has become a regular routine). Sometime while we were sitting on the beach writing our postcards, the front passenger window of the Jetta was smashed in. Martina’s iPOD, camera, radar detector and cash from her wallet was stolen and I had a significant amount of cash stolen, meant to pay for the majority of our trip. A part of it was birthday money (Martina’s birthday is coming up on July 8th and mine was the 25th). Luckily, the thieves didn’t see Martina’s laptop we had stashed down in the depths of the backseat. We immediately called 911 and a policeman was dispatched to take down our information and assign us a case number. It was disheartening for us, because we knew there was absolutely nothing that could be done. The policeman hurried through the motions getting our names and list of valuables stolen but was in a huge hurry to get to his next call. He ripped out of the parking lot in such a hurry we thought for sure he was escaping a lava flow. We were left sitting in piles of the broken safety glass wondering what in the world the next step was; Wal-Mart was down the street so we bought plastic and tape to cover the window and drove a very noisy seven miles back to our camp. The insurance company was called and we now have an appointment with a glass company up in Astoria, Oregon to replace the window. Unfortunately though, it won’t be until Friday that they can do it, so we have to find lodging somewhere for an additional night. We’re weary about parking the car anywhere public because anyone could rip through the plastic.



We both felt like throwing in the towels and just returning home, but with 2 weeks left in our trip and almost 4,000 total trip miles, we knew it would be silly to let our spirits be dampened. We’ve been planning this trip for a long time and are trying to look on the bright side; we’re both healthy and nobody was hurt. Money is replaceable in the long run, regardless the amount. (I’m repeating this to myself over and over again, hoping that I’ll believe it). It’s one of those things where you just don’t understand why it happens to you, but you just have to trust the process.

We’re not looking forward for the two hours or more to drive up to Astoria, with a plastic window flapping in the wind, but we had to keep moving! We’re hoping for a better day tomorrow as we head up to Fort Stevens State Park at the very top point of Oregon.