Rhododendrons and azaleas add splashes of color to the Oregon Coast in Spring. These beauties are found at Shore Acres State Park near Coos Bay, Oregon.
Peggy and I just returned from a five-day trip to the coast. One of our goals as new residents here in Oregon is to explore the state. We’ve gotten off to a slow start. Little things like trips to Europe, Mexico, Burning Man, Las Vegas and Hawaii, not to mention settling into our new home, have gotten in the way. (Grin)
We bit the bullet on Wednesday, packed up Quivera, and hit the road. Quivera, BTW, is the 22-foot van we wandered in for three years. The name derives from a lost Indian city that never stays in the same place. I think it is somewhere out in Kansas now with Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz. (We named our first van Xanadu. Peg and I like exotic.)
Our 22-foot van, Quivera, waits patiently for us at Cape Arago, just south of Sunset Bay, Oregon.
Our destination for this trip was Sunset Bay State Park near Coos Bay, Oregon. Our objective was to see whales, the massive Grays that make their way north along the Pacific Coast each spring. We weren’t disappointed. Likewise, as always, we enjoyed the scenic beauty of the Northwest’s famous rugged coastline. I’ll blog about both on Friday. (Next week I will return to Florence and Barcelona.)
For today and Wednesday, I want to write about two surprises. The first is some drop-dead gorgeous flowers. The second is tree roots. Be prepared to enter a fantasy world on the latter. Heck, be prepared to enter a fantasy world with both.
We can thank a lumber baron for the blossoms. Louis Simpson built a mansion on the bluffs south of Sunset Bay. Then he built a flower garden. He lost his fortune during the Great Depression and Oregon had the foresight to acquire both. Eventually, the mansion had to be torn down, but the flower garden still stands as part of Shore Acres State Park. Some 5000 annuals/perennials bloom between May and September.
We arrived at the height of rhododendron-azalea season. (The Internet informs me that all azaleas are rhododendrons but not all rhododendrons are azaleas.) Enjoy!
A small section of the flowers at Shore Acres State Park Botanical Garden on the Oregon Coast. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)
Rhododendron at Shore Acres State Park.
The rhododendrons and azaleas were in full bloom at Shore Acres State Park on the Oregon Coast.
These azaleas displayed one of many colors and shapes on display at Shore Acres State Park.
Azaleas at Shore Acres State Park in Oregon.
Peggy caught the riotous colors of the rhododendrons in this photo. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson.)
I loved the delicate colors and blushing pink of these rhododendrons.
Rhododendrons in mass at Shore Acres State Park.
A bouquet of red. (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)
Violet rhododendrons at Shore Acres State Park in Oregon.
A touch of blue.
Almost white… (Photo by Peggy Mekemson)
Flowers were also in abundance outside of the Shore Acres’ gardens. I found this bright yellow monkey flower at Sunset Bay State Park.
And these pink beauties with their sprightly green leaves were living in our campsite.
NEXT BLOG: Some absolutely wild tree roots on the Oregon coast. Meet the Dragon!
Wandering through Time and Place 