Notes from the Road - Day 15

2/13/04 11:00pm Seaside, OR

All in all, today’s been lousy. I woke up to the snoring of my bunkmates before sunrise, which wasn’t much of a sunrise since the clouds were rolling in. I drove north along the coast to Astoria, at the mouth of the Columbia River, where a 4-mile bridge connects Washington and Oregon. There’s a lighthouse on the hill that was being renovated, so I couldn’t go in it, but even from the base it had some great views. I drove around town for a little bit, then headed back, and it was only about a 20-minute drive.

At the hostel, I signed in for one more night, this time for a private room. They said they’d clean it while I was out, so I went and ate lunch, but by the time I finished that, it started sprinkling. I went to the beach anyway just to see it, but didn’t even try to rent a 4-wheeler. At Cannon Beach there’s a giant freestanding rock called Haystack Point. It reminded me of the Twelve Apostles in Australia, along Victoria’s coast.

When I got back from that, I lazed about the room for a few hours to finish the book I was reading. I helped the staff cut down on the noise in the room where I’m staying by plugging an unused vent with a folded sheet, and in return the manager of the hostel made me a free gourmet coffee.

I decided to see a movie since I’d finished my book and needed to kill the evening somehow, but there was plenty of time between then and the next showing of Cold Mountain for supper. I went to downtown Seaside and ate at a bar where I was carded and really scrutinized by the waiter, even though I didn’t order alcohol or do any gambling on the place’s slots. ESPN was on the TV, and they were showing the U.S. Poker Championship.