JUNE 6th - NEWPORT, OR
This is the beginning of a week of travel and photography along the Oregon Coast. I
flew into Portland where I had about a 90 minute layover before I would meet
the others in our group. Our tour leader and coordinator, Mark, had rented three vehicles
for the ten of us. You must remember that we all had rubber boots for wading,
tripods, camera gear, and of course our personal belongings. Yes, we lug a lot
of gear around.
Once we were assembled we headed off to Newport which is located on the coast Southwest of Portland. Once in Newport we made a supply stop for snacks, and then headed for our accommodations which were in two beach houses located just South of town, and within walking distance of the beach.
Once we were assembled we headed off to Newport which is located on the coast Southwest of Portland. Once in Newport we made a supply stop for snacks, and then headed for our accommodations which were in two beach houses located just South of town, and within walking distance of the beach.
After
quickly stashing our gear in our house and getting out boots, tripods, etc. we
headed for an early dinner at Clearwater Restaurant which was right on the
water. There was a small colony of sea lions lounging below the restaurant. We
had a delicious dinner before heading off to Seal Rock Beach for some photography.
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| Sea Stack Row |
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| Surf and Stacks |
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| Surf Explosion |
Regrettably
there was a good layer of overcast skies which did not make for any really
memorable photography. We headed back to our houses about 2130.
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| Surf Falls |
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| Smooth Surf |
JUNE 7TH – NEWPORT, OR
As
sunrise was about 0530 it was an early departure time. We want to be at the
location of choice by 0500 at the latest, getting up and out started for me
about 0400. This is how it would be for the whole trip: early mornings, late
nights, and a little sleep.
We
returned to the same general area as last night. The skies had not changed much
so we spent time trying to find good beach detail to photograph under cloudy
skies.
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| Barnacles and Rocks |
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| Barnacle Covered Rocks |
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| Small Stream heading to the Ocean |
After
breakfast at the Pig and Pancake,
where Lin and I enjoyed an excellent Crab Eggs Benedict, we headed off to Yaquina Head Lighthouse.
The
lighthouse has a clear and commanding view out to sea. We enjoyed the docent
tour where we were able to go up to the floor where the lens is located.
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| Yaquina Head Light |
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| Spiral Staircase to the Light |
 | |
| Light Reflection |
After the tour we walked a short distance to a
Northern overlook from which we could see a
large colony of common murres and some cormorants. What we really got
interested in were a couple of bald eagles who were “buzzing” the area. There
was some serious hunting going on. We watched and also photographed an eagle
fly over the colony, and then return on the hunt for a meal. I got a good series of images which are
probably AOK for a slide show. The Eagle captured a murre and proceeded to make a
meal out of it. The activity was at quite a distance, but it was certainly a
great experience, Following is a series from the eagle hunt and feasting. As you can see there were a couple of ravens who were very attentive, and looking for a meal as well.
As
the afternoon gray returned, we returned to Newport. A couple of us went off to
Walmart to get some boots for wading in the surf. I found a suitable pair to
replace my water sandal/wetsuit sock combination which was not working well.
There
was not going to be any sunset to speak of so we were soon off to dinner and an
early end of the day.
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| Sparrow (Fox, Song, or Hybrid?) |
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