In August of 2017, Cory and I went to Salem, Oregon to see the Total Solar Eclipse. While in Oregon, Cory was determined to take me to Astoria, OR which was 4.5 hours north from where our hotel was in Roseburg, OR, and to Cannon Beach, Oregon, another 1.5 hours south of Astoria. This may sound like a lot of driving in one day, it was. It was 11 hours total driving, the day before the eclipse event, following a grueling 13 hour drive from Upland, CA, the previous day and having to get up early to get a good spot for the eclipse the following day. But when Cory has set his mind on something he rarely gives up on the idea, no matter how crazy it is.
I suppose this extra trip was in part my fault. Ever since I was a child I have loved the movie "The Goonies," and I had learned shortly before our trip that Astoria and Cannon Beach is where many of my favorite scenes were filmed. Cory, always trying to spoil me, though with less than perfect plans, decided he would take me.
Once we arrived in Astoria, OR we went directly to the Goonie house. This is the house where Mikey, actor Sean Astin, and his family lived in the movie. We were able to get a picture of the house from afar, the owners/residents of the house are tired of Goonie fanatics such as me trespassing on their property, so no one is really allowed to see it much closer. After this we decided to go get some food. Astoria is a fishing town in north west Oregon at the mouth of the Columbia River as it flows into the Pacific Ocean. Naturally, restaurants in Astoria are predominately seafood oriented. I am starting to enjoy seafood more and more as of this blog, but back then I wasn't too keen. However, Cory and I decided we would try a restaurant called Baked Alaska on Pier 12. This restaurant was amazing. Cory talked me into getting Alaskan King Crab Macaroni and Cheese, which was awesome, and then we had a Brownie/Cookie a la mode, which was set on fire in a cast iron pan right at our table. It was just great and the scenery around the restaurant was spectacular, Pacific Northwest rain forest, the Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean all in one panorama. Unfortunately, since this writing, I have learned that the restaurant, Baked Alaska, has permanently closed. Possibly a victim of the recent pandemic.
Next we went the 1.5 hours or so south along the Pacific Coast to Cannon beach where we were able to see Haystack Rock which is part of the famous coastline filmed in The Goonies movie. Definitely deceiving, the movie makes it seem as though Cannon Beach is just right down the road from Astoria, after all 14 year old kids got there with bikes and via an underground tunnel system, leading to One Eyed Willy's pirate ship and pirate treasure. While gazing at the ocean and Haystack Rock you can almost envision One Eyed Willy's pirate ship sailing along. The beach was stunning and this marked the first time Cory and I had actually gone to a beach on the West Coast. (Note: That is not snow on that rock stack with the birds.) Warning, this water was freezing. East coast beaches enjoy Gulf Stream water flowing north from Florida, while the west coast experiences freezing cold water flowing south from the arctic, until it warms back up again near the equator and flows north along the Japanese coast. Cory and I would understand this even more in California. We thought surely the beaches in California would have warm water, nope, not even close.
We then drove north back toward Astoria, when we came across a National Park sign advertising a stop on the Lewis and Clark Trail. Lewis and Clark, famed explorers of America, commissioned by President Jefferson to explore the land bought from France as part of the Louisiana purchase, had evidently ended their expedition here on the coast of Oregon and at the mouth of the Columbia river. This was just a neat 15 or so minute stop to see the area believed to be the camp site and to marvel at the achievement of several US Army Surveyors and a couple of small wooden boats, with which they navigated thousands of miles of, what was to them uncharted rivers and land.
Finally, we found ourselves back in Astoria where we drove around taking in more sites from the cult classic film. The library, the jail, and the bowling alley. We then made our way back to Roseburg, OR to prepare for the Total Eclipse the next day. It was a whirlwind tour of Astoria and Cannon Beach, but it was awesome, and I am glad I got to see it.
Comments