The day before was hard, but it was all worth it when we woke up at Gold Bluffs Beach Campground to this...
Despite the frigid temperatures we stood outside and watched these magnificent creatures graze for almost an hour. Then we made oatmeal on our camp stove and went for a walk on the beach.
After our walk we packed up the car and took off for a relatively short drive. We had lunch at a little turnoff that ended up being one of my favorite parts of the day. We made peanut butter sandwiches, ate carrots, and watched this view while sitting outside enjoying the warm ocean breeze.
The rest of our drive was just as scenic as our lunch spot
and we got to Florence, OR right at dinner. Our tent went up in a hurry
at Heceta Beach RV Park because we knew exactly what our dinner entailed.
This is the second time Brad and I have been to Florence.
The first time was with my parents and we ate at the Bridgewater Restaurant then too. It was so good that we just had to go back and we were not disappointed!
On our way to dinner we noticed an exceptional number of motorcycles in this teeny town. When we inquired about it we were told it was the yearly Rhododendron Festival. People rode their bikes from all over to attend. It was pretty neat getting to see this normally sleepy town so alive with people. They even had a large fair with rides and a street market set-up.
Now for dinner:
We started with steamed mussels and clams, served with buttery toasted bread
This was the best seafood marinara I have ever eaten. There were large pieces of smoked salmon, huge shrimp, and tender scallops all mixed in a fresh, garlicky, and basil laden homemade sauce. My favorite part: it was served over whole wheat linguine.
Brad had seafood Alfredo over whole wheat linguine. It too, was delicious.
