9-2-2016 Bandon & Port Orford, OR

Don't look down

Driving down the coast highway, 101, can be scenic or heart-attack-material.  Depends who’s driving.  Some of the snaky turns up on the cliffs have no shoulder, drop 1000s of feet into the rocks and surf and warning signs recommend 15 mph.  So let me think, if they are recommending 15 mph for a car, how slow should a 55 foot train move, esp. on a downgrade with a Jeep trying to push you down the hill, hmmm?  Focus, Krauser, focus.  Keep an eye on those lines!  Do NOT look around!

Bandon/Port Orford KOA situated us in the tall trees and even with a blue sky, not much sun comes through to brighten the day nor dry things out. 

B2 parked at the Bandon Port Orford KOA 

But it is strategically located within short drives to points of interest and so midday, we set out, first, to find a fun place to have lunch.  On the dock at Port Orford, the sign says to use caution here as this is a “working port.”  The concrete dock is piled with fishing equipment, crab pots, floats, fenders, cranes, trailers and fishing boats up on blocks.  Gulls fly overhead hoping for treats.  Fishermen in rubber bibs and boots come and go from the cleaning stations and buildings. 

Port Orford "working port"

Griff’s on the Dock is a tiny little restaurant, a diamond in the rough.  To find a little place like this at a working port is a blessing in the first place, knowing that the seafood served here comes straight off the boats.  There were six tables and we chose a tiny one by the big window looking over the bay where, we were told, a family of whales were frolicking.  Mother Whale and Baby Whalette play in the bay and Father Whale hangs out round the corner in the next bay.  Well, we saw no whales but the fish and chips and cioppino were excellent.

Rob at Griff's On The Dock

After lunch, we saw many kinds of fresh fish behind the glass in the deli.  Willy fixed us up with two chunks of ling cod into which he cut pockets.  Willy instructed us to stuff the pocket with butter pats, thin slices of lemon, maybe a little dill and then wrap them in foil, splash in a little white wine and bake on medium coals for 13-16 minutes.  While that is happening, prepare a salad piled with crab meat and toss down a few fresh oysters with your toonie.  The whole dinner experience was so fabulous that, on the way out of town the following morning, we stopped in at Griff’s one more time to reload!  This time, the whales really were frolicking and playing and flipping their tails!  They are huge, even the baby, and it was amazing!

Oh no... not this again!  Shiver me timbers.

There were enough hours left in the afternoon to visit Cape Blanco Lighthouse.  In 1851, gold was discovered in this area and miners and farmers flocked in to gather up their share.  Despite best human efforts to guide mariners, shipwrecks were common and it became imperative that a lighthouse be constructed.  Lt. Col. Robert Williamson was put in charge.  Most of the materials were hauled in but 200,000 bricks were made on site.  The double wall is five feet thick at the base and two feet thick at the top. 

Cape Blanco Light then

Cape Blanco Light now

The total height above sea level is 256 feet including the dirt, but it is not the tallest lighthouse (59’) on the OR coast.  The tallest is the Yaquina Head light (93’) but this one is only 162 feet above sea level including the dirt.  The fresnel lens captures the light waves from a 1,000 watt bulb (originally the lamps used pork fat, then kerosene) and sends it 19.6 statute miles out to sea.  Each light on the coast has a different pattern of flash alternating with darkness which helps mariners determine where they are. 

Rob and the beautiful fresnel lens

The Cape Blanco light has a 1.8 second flash alternated with 18.2 seconds of darkness, a pattern that still stands today, as this light is still functioning.  The USCG controls the light now but it is monitored most often by the local folks who just know what they should see.  When they don’t see it, they report it.  There were many keepers but James Langlois was there the longest, 42 years, followed by James Hughes, 37 years, maintaining the light, polishing the brass, painting, sweeping, shining, undergoing white-glove inspections.  And in their spare time, there were gardens to keep, children and their own food to raise. 

1,000 watt bulb with back up
looking in the bullseye

The second order fresnel crystal lens weighs a ton.  Some young punks broke into the lighthouse a few years ago and took a wrecking bar to the lens, chipping a number of the prisms, then came back to their high school bragging about it.  Hopefully, the little fuckers are still in jail working by the hour to pay for the lens.  A lifetime should do it.