Driving The Great Northwest - Let's Go Crabbing!

It is absolutely beautiful in Coos Bay Oregon this morning!  The sun is shining and there isn't a cloud in the sky.  This is very unusual for this time of the year on the coast of Oregon and we are going to take advantage of it by doing a little crabbing before we continue on our road trip today to Vancouver Washington.

A great place to crab in this area is at the Charleston Marina.  So after a little breakfast we head on over to Charleston to get our 3 day crabbing license, a couple of crab rings and two pieces of frozen chicken for our bait.  Yes crabs love chicken!

As we make our way down to the docks to pick our spot for some morning crabbing we are forced to pick another spot because there are some sea lions sunning themselves right where we want to crab.  They seemed very disinterested in us but I'm sure once we started pulling crab up they would have quickly become our new best friends.

Stijn has never crabbed before so a little lesson from me based on the limited knowledge that I have, Stijn is ready to throw in the first crab ring of the day.

Well the first thing we discovered was that my instructions for leaving the ring in for only about 5 minutes was incorrect.  As Stijn brings up the first ring, we see we have no crabs.

The day wasn't a total loss however.  We did get some crabs........................

........and even some starfish!

Well 4 hours has gone by and we must get on the road.  It's another 200 miles before we reach Vancouver Washington. 

We do make a few quick stops along the way however, it's just too pretty not to.  At "Cape Perpetua" we stopped and took a look at the "Devil's Churn" 

and then in Newport we had some dinner at "The Chowder Bowl" in  "Historic Nye Beach".

Well it's just about 9pm and we have arrived in Vancouver Washington!  Our home for the next 2 weeks.

If you would like to see more pictures of our day just click here "Where's Debbie" and then click on the album "Let's Go Crabbing!"

Oregon on Dwellable

Driving The Great Northwest - From the Redwoods to the Oregon Coast

It's 8:30am and it's a beautiful morning as we start our day from McKinleyville up the US101.  There is a nice light rain falling with the ocean on our left and nothing but green up ahead.

I've choosen the US101 as our route to Vancouver Washington because the scenery that you can see while driving is absolutely breathtaking!  Besides that, there are so many points of interest along the way.  And within 30 minutes we see Roosevelt Elk right along the highway just outside of Orick!

Soon we were in the Redwood National Forest and here we decide to take the more scenic route and exit at the Newton B Drury/Scenic Pkwy.  This takes you through these magnificent trees on a very narrow winding road with some spectacular views of the ocean.  There are several stops that you can take along the way and follow a trail.  We took advantage of this at "Big Tree".

We spent a lot of time exploring this area but it was time to continue up the coast.  And of course once we arrived in "Crescent City" it was time to take another break.  Why? We had only driven about 30 miles.  Because there is a lighthouse here people!   And you know me and my lighthouses.    I've been to the "Battery Point Lighthouse"  before, but I've only been able to enjoy it from a distance.  You can only visit the lighthouse when the tide is out, and lucky for us....it was!

After about another 30 minutes of driving we finally hit the Oregon State line!

Your probably wondering by now, do we ever eat?  Well we did have a nice breakfast that was included at the Holiday Inn Express back in McKinleyville this morning.  So 40 minutes into the State of Oregon we stop in "Gold Beach" and get ourselves a Blizzard from Dairy Queen.  We then found ourselves a spot on the mouth of the Rogue River and enjoyed not only our blizzard's but the spectacular views and the barking of some sea lions sunning themselves on the docks and shoreline.

After driving about another hour we make one last stop in "Bandon-by-the Sea", before reaching our destination today of Coos Bay Oregon.  No we didn't stop here to have a decent meal, we stopped because the "Coquille River Lighthouse" is here and I must have pictures!

 

What a great day and about 30 minutes later we are checking into our room at "The Mill Casino" at 5:30pm.  As comfy and cozy as our room looks we are now officially hungry! 

We decide to have dinner at "The Plankhouse"  whick is located right here at The Mill.  This was the perfect choice with a little table for two and a view of the sun setting over Coos Bay while enjoying our seafood Paella and a nice bottle of Oregon wine.

There are so many more pictures of our day here "Where's Debbie". Just click on the album "Redwoods to Oregon Coast"

Oregon on Dwellable

Driving The Great Northwest - Snow, Sun and Rain, Can't Keep Us Away!

It's time to hit the road, and nothing was going to stop us from making our destination today!  Not even snow!

We woke up bright and early in Reno and discovered that it had snowed overnight.  This of course didn't bother me at all. I lived in central Nevada for 30 years and you just don't let snow get in your way of going where you want to go.

So we filled up with gas and made our way up US395 to Susanville for some breakfast at the "Black Bear Diner".  This is a great place to have breakfast at a moderate cost, but boy you better be hungry.  The servings are huge!

The sun is shining now and after our hearty breakfast we headed out of Susanville on CA36 towards Red Bluff.  But along the way the snow started to fall again and since we didn't have chains (which were required to continue) we are forced to alter our route at the CA32 and detour to Chico.  This turned our 106 mile drive to Red Bluff from Susanville to 141 miles.

The rest of our drive was certainly alot less stressful with only some light and heavy rain showers as we continued west from Red Bluff on CA299 through the Trinity National Forest.

It was a long day!  And about 10 hours later we arrived on the coast of California and stayed the night in McKinleyville.  Our room at the "Holiday Inn Express and Suites" was a welcomed retreat.  With a recommendation from the hotel reception, we decided to take a little drive up the US101 to "Trinidad" and have dinner at the Seascape Restaurant.

What a perfect place to have dinner.  On a pier overlooking the ocean, eating seafood and having a glass of wine while reflecting on our day and all the elements we had to endure to get here.

There are a few more pictures of our day.  If you would like to see them click here "Where's Debbie" and then click on the album "Making it to the Coast"

Driving The Great Northwest - A Taste of the Old West

It's April 1st and our route takes us north on US95 out of Las Vegas and our first two nights are spent in Tonopah Nevada.  I'm sure you're asking yourself "What the heck for?" Even though Tonopah has alot of history as the "Queen of the Silver Camps", we were actually staying because my youngest grandson was turning two and we had a birthday party to attend on Saturday.  After a nice Easter breakfast and watching Ryan hunt for some eggs, we continued north to Reno.

Because we arrived in Reno in the early afternoon I thought it would be great for Stijn to experience some more of the "Old West".  And what better place to see it then in "Virgina City".

Virginia City is only 23 miles from Reno and is a town of relics and memories and ghosts of the past.  So when we arrived it seemed fitting to head straight to "The Delta Saloon" to see the "Suicide Table".

It seemed really fitting to head into one of the bars and saddle up on a stool and have a drink.  And what better place to go and feel like you have stepped back in time to the old Comstock days then in the "Bucket of Blood Saloon"

After a little souvenir shopping we headed off the other side of the mountain into Carson City and made the loop back to Reno to stay the night with my dear friends Veronica and Rigo.

We are anxious to get an early start the next morning.....heading to the coast of California!

If you would like to see more pictures of our day just click here "Where's Debbie" and then click on the album "Reno and Virginia City"

Driving The Great Northwest - A Home Exchange in Vancouver Washington

It was so exciting for Stijn and I to plan a driving trip through the Northwest part of the United States and decide on some of the key places we wanted to visit and the things that we would want to do while on our trip.  During our planning we thought that it would be a great idea to see if we could do a home exchange somewhere in the area of Portland Oregon and stay awhile.  There is just so much to see and do in this area that it made sense to stay longer than just a few days.

I began searching on Home Exchange.com to see if I could find a place that would suit our needs and our dates.  After reading a few profiles I wrote an email to someone in Vancouver Washington and proposed a possible home exchange for April.

A couple of emails back and forth and April 8 through April 22 are the dates that we agreed upon for our exchange to Vancouver Washington.  Lucky for us, Terri was happy to do the exchange!  Vancouver is perfectly located just across the Columbia River from Portland Oregon.  Within just minutes or a few hours we can be in downtown Portland, on the Columbia Gorge hiking to waterfalls, shopping at Pikes Place Market in Seattle, or maybe doing a little snow skiing on Mt. Hood.  So many options!

So on April 1 we packed up the car, loaded our bikes on the back and started our trek north!

Washington State on Dwellable

   

Driving The Great Northwest

I've been back from a 2 month trip to Europe since February 27th 2010.  And if you've been following this blog you can see that I'm still trying to catch up with writing about what a wonderful time I had, from enjoying everyday life in Brussels to a home exchange in Ferragudo Portugal.

But as of this moment I am on another trip.  This time a whole lot closer to home too!

Stijn returned to America with me and he will be here for 6 months.  So of course we need to see some of the beautiful places in America while he's here.

Some of my favorite places to visit are the Northwestern States.  From the unmatched beauty of the Oregon Coast to Pike Place Market in Seattle and the Big Sky country of Montana to the majestic Teton Mountains of Wyoming.  The georgous National Parks like the California Redwoods, Montana Glacier Park and of course Yellowstone.  What better places to visit to show off what a beautiful Country America is.

So I'm anxious to start sharing with you our road trip and what we will be seeing and doing along the way while "Driving the Great Northwest"!

Living the Belgian Way of Life

The Christmas Market is over and the first few days of the New Year have past.

I was in Europe for 2 months so I needed to settle in and start getting accustomed to a Belgian way of life!  I've learned that it really isn't that much different then living in the United States.  Well except for maybe a few things. Like when you go to the grocery store to buy eggs, you are assured that what you are getting is unmistakably fresh! I'm pretty sure the chicken feather is not for looks.

Or that you could just walk up to a bike, pay 1.50 euro, ride it all day long, and then not even have to take it back to the place where you picked it up!  Pick another spot, they're all over the city! Alot of people use these to ride back and forth to work but if your a tourist it's a great way to see Brussels.

I know we have recycling in the States, but it is an absolute requirement here.  And you must separate the clear glass from the colored glass.  I love how there are recycle bins placed stratigicly throughout the city.

And in Belgium, everything is recyclable.  Are you remodeling, cleaning out the attic, doing some landscaping?  Pick your container and toss it in.

There is one thing that is universal......SHOPPING! Belgians love a good sale and when the first shopping day starts, which by the way is the first Saturday after New Years and lasts the whole month of January, you better get to the shopping streets early.  Oh yes, I said shopping streets.  This is where the only traffic you will see is pedestrian traffic....no vehicles allowed!

But what I am going to miss the most is the smell of a fresh hot waffle in the air that leads you straight to one of those great waffle vendors selling them right from the street.

 

I could get used to this!

Happy New Year From Brussels!

Okay, I know it's already the end of March 2010. But I just wanted to share with you how once again we spent our New Year's Eve together in Brussels.

The previous New Year's (2008) Stijn introduced me to a way of grilling that I have never experienced before and what I think is the most romantic way to bring in the New Year!

Our New Year's Eve day was not spent deciding where we would go to celebrate the New Year, it was spent making a list and shopping for meats, seafood and vegetables. And how will we prepare our choices? On an electric "Stone Raclette Grill" . This is the coolest thing! A piece of granite that you cover in olive oil and then heat it up. This sits perfectly on your table and you can grill what ever your little heart desires while sipping on a glass of wine. No one is in the kitchen!

There are even little trays below the granite where you can melt some cheese to put on your veggie's.

So once again, we celebrated bringing in the New Year in Brussels with a nice romantic dinner....Just the two of us!

Click here if you would like to read more about how we spent our 2008 New Year's Eve.

Starting The New Year Right, In Belgium

After returning home to Las Vegas after being in Europe for 3 weeks this past Oct/Nov 2009 for my birthday, I had only about 6 weeks to get myself ready to leave again!

And boy did December 28th come fast! This would be my longest trip ever as I was not coming home until February 27, 2010.

The minute I landed in Brussels, I knew my New Year was off to a great start. Even after a two hour delay in Las Vegas, there was Stijn standing there waiting patiently for me. Stijn always knows how to put a smile on my face and this time was no exception. Knowing how much I loved the Christmas Market last year during my visit, we headed straight to the heart of Brussels to get a glimpse before it closed for the night.

The Christmas Market has about 240 wooden chalets scattered throughout The Grand Place, The Bourse, Place Sainte Catherine and Marche aux Poissons. The exhibitors come from all over Europe to sell their crafts, food and drinks.

It's a bit chilly in December in Brussels so the first stop is at one of the MANY chalet's where they sell Gluhwein! That's hot wine people! And oooohhh that shot of Amaretto was perfect!

There are sooooo many chalets selling all types of food, that it makes it nearly impossible to decide what to eat. Since I am a big fan of eating dessert first, Stijn introduced me to these great little dough balls that are served hot in a paper cone and liberally sprinkled with powered sugar. Now these little gems go by three names, "Oliebollen" (Dutch), "Smoutebollen" (Flemmish) "Croustillons" (French).

Okay, now it was time to find something warm! I do love snails, but I was hoping for something a bit more hearty.

Tartiflette Savoyarde is just what I was looking for to keep the chill off. This is a great dish made in a creamy base with potatoes, onion and bacon.

Stijn had a little something different in mind for his meal. So we left the "Bourse" and walked through "Place Sainte Catherine" making our way to "Marche aux Poissons" (Fish Market) to a chalet where they grill up some great "Boudin Blanc".

There is so much to see..... and eat at the Christmas Market in Brussels. Since we had all that our stomachs could handle, we decided to end our evening by watching the light show back at the Grand Place.

And all this within just my first few hours in Belgium. It's going to be a great year!

To see more pictures just click here...."Where's Debbie" and then click on the album Brussels Christmas Market.