Sunset Bay State Park Yurt Camping Trip Day 3

Sunset Bay State Park Yurt Camping Trip Day 3

Again, a bitter cold night at Sunset Bay. The temperature dropped from a 36F high to a 21F low. Burr!

The vinyl covering on the sofa and bed were cold. The yurt walls of vinyl and canvas were cold. I used 3 sleeping bags, and 2 large blankets, and was always fully dressed inside the yurt. The space heater in the yurt was no match for 21F weather. Luckily, the wind never blew on this visit.

I found it uncomfortable to go walking for more than 30 minutes when the weather hovers between 25F-35F.  

Weather reports from Karen and from local fishermen at the Arrago Cafe in Charleston OR, told me snow was expected Thursday morning. Since I needed to drive 75 miles from the coast to Interstate 5 in Roseburg via the Coquille River valley, through many coastal mountains, with the road shaded on both sides by forests; thus, snow and ice would be a serious driving hazard. Therefore, I packed up this morning and drove back to my home in Vancouver. 

Weather reports predict snow and ice in Vancouver on Thursday; and an atmospheric river is hitting California this month.

Lately, I have been working on reading and writing sonnets and longer poems:

    A Gift of Dried Garlic Flowers

    25 Steps and Beyond: Collected Works

Photos from the Internet:

Sunset Bay State Park Yurt Camping Trip Day 1

Sunset Bay State Park, Coastal Oregon, Near Charleston and Coos Bay
Yurt Camping Trip Day 1

Drive from Vancouver south on Interstate 5 through Portland, Salem, and into Eugene. It was foggy this morning in the Valley.

Then, east from Eugene to Florence on the coast, then Reedsport, Sand Dunes, Big Bridge, North Bend, Coos Bay, Charleston, and finally arriving at Sunset Bay State Park. Check in time at the yurt is 4 pm. 

Quite cold here at Sunset Bay. Burr!  Much colder than my other trips to the beach for yurt camping. Difficult to enjoy sitting outside.

By 5 pm, I was quite tired from the long drive and after setting up my yurt. And, 
the cold was not encouraging for me.

So I stayed inside the yurt, bundled up to keep warm, read, wrote, napped, smoked half a MaryJ, sipped chocolate, enjoyed a grapefruit, ate nuts. No 
cell phone service here.

Enjoyed Bastendorff Beach County Park just southwest of Charleston. They
offer yurt cabins, RV access, tent camping. The Beach was spectacular, just south of the north jetty entrance to Coos Bay and Charleston. 

Near Bastendorff is Sun Outdoors Commercial Park had nice cabins and looked interesting.

Drove around Coos Bay city area and North Bend.

Lately, I have been working on reading and writing sonnets and longer poems:

    A Gift of Dried Garlic Flowers

    25 Steps and Beyond: Collected Works

Cape Disappointment Yurt
January 2025

Photos from the Internet:

Coquille River, Oregon

Today, I drive from Bandon to my home in Vancouver.  

I pack up and checkout from my yurt around 8 am.  I enjoy breakfast at the Station Restaurant around 8 am.   

The drive from Bandon to Vancouver is roughly 270 miles, and takes from 5 to 8 hours, depending how much I stop for gawking, leg stretching, bathroom breaks, snacks, photographs, traffic congestion, sightseeing, short walks, eating, rest stops, etc.. 

I drive east from Bandon on Road 42S, then on Road 42 east through Coquille, Myrtle Point, Camas Valley, and then into Roseburg, Oregon.  Then, Interstate 5 north to Vancouver, Washington.  This area is used for farming and timber harvesting.  Small rural towns and lovely green countryside.  The road touches along the Coquille River at many places. 

Heavy flooding of all the low lying pastures and farmlands in the entire Coquille River Valley this January of 2023. Flooding as far as the eyes could see on either one side or both sides of Road 42S.  Fog rising up low over flooded fields ... spooky, lonely country road.  

Coquille River     Images

Coquille - City     Images  

Myrtle Point - City   Images

Camas Valley     Images 

Roseburg - Images

Roseburg - Information

Four Days in Grayland  

Bandon, Oregon

I will be Yurt Camping at Bullard's Beach State Park near Bandon, Oregon.  I will be exploring the smaller areas around Bandon for three nights and four days.  

The drive from Vancouver to Bandon takes 5 to 6 hours.  I drive south on Interstate 5 until I reach Curtin, OR.  Then I take Road 38 west through Drain, Elkton, and into Reedsport.  Road 38 follows the Umpqua River.  Then south on 101 through the Oregon Coastal Sand Dunes, Tugman State Park, North Bend, Coos Bay, and then on to Bandon.  

Drain, Oregon - Images

Elkton, Oregon - Images

Reedsport, Oregon - Images

Reedsport, Oregon - Information

Oregon Coastal Sand Dunes

Tugman State Park

Coos Bay, Oregon - Images

Coos Bay - Information  

Bullards Beach State Park, Bandon

Bandon - Images

Bandon - Information  

Four Days in Grayland

Here is my Yurt campsite for four days.
Since it rained a lot while I was here,
having good dry indoor shelter was important.

Old lighthouse on the north jetty at Bandon.

View from the south jetty at Bandon.

When I go yurt camping on January 13-16 at Bullard's Beach State Park near Bandon, Oregon, I plan to include a number of spiritual practices while on Retreat.  I will read two books:

Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness: Walking the Buddha's Path.  By Bhante Henepola Gunaratana.  Wisdom Pubs., 2001, 268 pages, VSCL.  

Awakening the Buddha Within: Tibetan Wisdom for the Modern World.  By Lama Surya Das.  432 pages, 1997.  VSCL.  

Lama Surya Das

In 2023, I will be studying books by Deng Ming-Dao.

Taoism

Waves of Reflections at the Bandon Jetty

By Michael P. Garofalo
January 2023

Powell's Bookstore Trip

Today, my daughter took me to Powell's Bookstore in downtown Portland.  She drove us in her Honda Pilot SUV.  We also enjoyed lunch together at Chiotle's in Vancouver on 78th and Highway 99W.  

We lived for 18 years in Red Bluff, California, at Kilkenny Lane and 99W.  Now, we live in the Orchards area of northeast Vancouver (98662).  We live about 5 miles east of Interstate 5 and Highway 99W.  Highway 99 goes from San Diego to Canada, through many cities, and was built way back in the 1920's.  In the 1950's and 1960's, Interstate 5 was constructed basically using the Highway 99 route through the mountain passes and hilly areas for north-south travel.  Highway 99 W (West) or Highway 99 E (East) are now two or four lane business routes between cities on either side of Interstate 5. Karen and I have travelled Interstate 5 and Highway 99 many times.  

We went in a group to Powell's Bookstore.  Alicia, Karen, Katelyn, Makenna, Casey, and I. 

Everyone purchased some book or other object at Powell's Bookstore.  They also have a cafe there.  

I purchased books on travel in the Gorge, and a Lewis and Clark history book. 

"Powell’s City of Books is the largest used and new bookstore in the world, occupying an entire city block and housing approximately one million books. Located in downtown Portland’s Pearl District, the City of Books has nine color-coded rooms and over 3,500 different sections, offering something for every interest, including an incredible selection of out-of-print and hard-to-find titles. Dozens of acclaimed writers, artists, and thinkers visit each month to read in the Basil Hallward Gallery (located upstairs in the Pearl Room), and a one-of-a-kind Rare Book Room draws bibliophiles from near and far to browse an impressive collection of autographed first editions and other collectible volumes."