Day 15: California and Oregon coasts; first night at Sylvia Beach Hotel in Newport, OR

Miles driven to-date: 4,720
States visited to-date: 17

Because we had over 12 hours of driving ahead of us, we got a very early start and headed out of San Francisco at 6:30am. We were excited to drive over the Golden Gate Bridge but because of the morning fog, we couldn’t see much of it! Another thing to do on a future visit . . . We loved San Francisco and can’t wait to come back to explore some more.

We took Highway 101 North the whole way and saw some amazing scenery. The drive up 101 took us through northern California's wine region, the redwood forests, and the spectacular Oregon coastline. The redwoods were incredible – they were so big that it looked as though the trunks of five or six regular trees had been combined into one. And the Oregon coastline was just stunning. Each twist and turn in the road unveiled a different view of the waves crashing on the rocks below.

Here are just a couple of photos of the views we saw. We kept pulling over to snap pictures, but they really don’t do it justice.

Steve has been doing a great job handling most of the driving, while during our stretches on the highway I have been working on organizing (and backing up!) our many photos on the computer as well as writing updates for this website so that we can upload new information whenever we next have internet access. We have also enjoyed some episodes of “Alias” courtesy of Anna – thanks for lending us season 4!

Check out the tiny person on the right side of the picture! These rocks along the Oregon coast were huge.

You can probably tell, by the way, how much we have loved having our wonderful digital camera on this trip. It was a wedding gift from Steve’s parents and I really don’t know what we would do without it! We have also been taking video clips with it that will be great mementos and will help remind us of what it was like to actually experience these places.

Anyway, Steve had found a bed and breakfast called the Sylvia Beach Hotel in his “1,000 Things to Do Before You Die” book (another great road trip resource). We had decided to splurge and were especially excited because the hotel was right on the beach in Newport, OR. It was a book-themed place and each room was decorated in the style of a different author, complete with volumes of his or her works. The dining area was called Tables of Content and the place was also famous for its great dinners. We were therefore glad to arrive about 15 minutes before the meal was served because we were in for a real treat!

We checked into our amazing room (more on that in a moment) and scurried down to dinner. The host seated us with four other guests and after ordering some locally produced beverages, we learned that guests always play “Two Truths and a Lie” at these meals. I’m not sure how you might have played this game, but the rules were that each person at the table was allowed to ask the other people three questions about their statements. You were supposed to lie about your lie and pretend that it was actually true, so our acting skills were put to the test. We decided that Steve wouldn’t be allowed to play during my turn, and vice versa. I had a hard time listening to everyone else’s tales because I was busy trying to think up a good lie! I decided to go with 1) I used to be a springboard and platform diver, 2) it rained so hard on our wedding day that the roads flooded and the power went out, and 3) I shattered my kneecap in a gymnastics accident (I used my experience with a shattered elbow to give some good details about this, which was of course my lie). Steve chose three contest-related statements and said that he had won a trip to Brazil, had won a trip to Telluride to ski (his lie), and had been brought by a friend to Los Angeles to meet Tom Cruise when that friend won a contest (that, of course, was me and was true!). It was a really fun game and gave us a chance to get to know our fellow guests pretty well in a short amount of time. They were each from very different places around the country and it was nice to hear about what they do and what had brought them to this particular hotel (several had been there many times over the years). By the way, the food was just spectacular and all in all it was an unforgettable evening.

We then retired to our room – the Agatha Christie room.

It was filled with clues from the author’s mysteries and also had a wonderful wood-burning fireplace! Perhaps the best part, though, was the view and private balcony right outside.

Needless to say we spend the evening curled up by the fireplace with our noses in our books, except when I took a quick break to enjoy some hot mulled spiced wine in the library upstairs. I think I may have found the perfect place for my Mom, as well as a few others who might be reading this now!

Tomorrow we are off to the Willamette Valley- Oregon's famous wine region!