Home Again at Heceta Head Lighthouse

On Thursday, June 28 I finally made it to Carl Washburn State Park where I will be staying for the next couple months. This is my home base while I’m working at the Heceta Head Lighthouse giving tours. My plan was to arrive on Tuesday the 26^th but with my breakdowns, I got here a couple days late, but in the big scheme of things it worked out just fine. Here’s a view of this beautiful lighthouse from Highway 101 as you approach from the south.Once we got settled in at our campsite Maxine couldn’t wait to get down to the beach, she definitely remembered her way and how much fun she had here last year. Here she has patiently waiting for me to throw her a frisbee. (Or maybe not so patiently) And when I didn’t throw the frisbee fast enough she found a stick to play with. It’s always fun to go explore the beach morning and evening, one evening we had a deer come down on the beach to visit us.

I started giving tours on 1 July it was fun to be back sharing the information with the guests. Here are some photos of her standing high and proud on the bluff, looking beautiful as she has for 125 years. 

One thing that they will be doing the month of July is some structural repairs just below the light, in the part of the tower where the role of windows are.

There are some steel I-beams that have developed cracks over the years that they are going to do some repairs to. During that time the lens will be covered, and we will not be able to take guests into the first floor as we normally do. But we will continue giving tours and sharing information outside on the grounds around the lighthouse. One of the first things on the agenda after everybody arrived was to hold a potluck. Most of the volunteers were able to get together and meet for a good time and get to know each other better. Several of the volunteers I had met last year when I was here, shortly before I left for the season. But this year I will be able to work together for the next couple months with them. Here’s some photos of most of the group. In this one starting from the right you have Carl (one of the lighthouse guides) telling the story and using his hands, next to him is Susie one of the campground hosts, then Vivian and Doug also Lighthouse hosts. 

In this photo you have Pat in the far background sitting in the chair, Sue in the center background and her husband Jeff to the left (also lighthouse hosts) and Mike husband to Susie in the first photo and a campground host. 

And in this  photo the two ladies in the background Janna (on the left) wife to Carl, and Keely (wife to Pat in the last photo) also all lighthouse hosts. 

As you can tell by all the smiles, we’ve got a great group of people to work with. There were also a few other hosts missing John, Candee and Pat could not make it that evening. The whole group is a bunch of fun-loving easy to get along with people and we should have a wonderful time together. One other place I visited this week is one of my favorite areas along the coast “Strawberry Hill”, one of the many pull off along Highway 101, where you can get down to the beach. I always like visiting this area at low tide because you can explore the tide pools and see lots of sea creatures, like these beautiful starfish.

Also there’s always an abundance of Sea Anemone and other creatures. 

And the best part of visiting this particular pull off is every time I’ve been here there’s been an abundance of harbor seals sunbathing on the rocks and swimming in the water their always so curious when they see Maxine. One other thing I did this week was took a ride down to Coos Bay, about an hour or so south of here. To visit my friends Red and P am who I have not seen in a couple years. We first met at an RV Dreams rally in 2014 and reconnected several times over the years but the last time I saw them was when we were all together in Quartzsite, AZ in January 2016. We knew our paths were going to come close together this summer, so we made plans to get together for lunch and to catch up on things. It was a great time visiting with them and talking about the things we’ve done over the last few years since we’ve connected last and our plans for the rest of the year. Sorry didn’t get any photos of us were too busy catching up. But it sure was great to visit with them again. I’m sure there will be many other great adventures over the next couple months while I’m staying here and working at the lighthouse. So, stay tuned and I’ll keep you updated as the months go by. That’s it for now safe travels and best wishes to all, Rick

 

Advertisement