ticka1
10-10-2004, 08:46 PM
For you stormwatchers out there - here is the ultimate vacation paradise for you. Check out this link:
http://www.lexus.msn.com/id/2074206/sid/2094485
Ports in a Storm
Luxury hideaways for Oregon coast storm watching.
By Brandy Vaughan
<HR>It's 3 p.m. and the howl of the wind outside sends a shiver through my body. Cold rain pelts the side of the car. As I take a deep breath and jump out, I'm filled with excitement and a sense of adventure. Twenty-foot breakers pound the rocky coastline below with a force so powerful that sea spray splashes across my face at the viewpoint 30 feet above. I'm not lost and I'm not crazy: I'm storm watching.
Two hours from Portland, the Oregon coast is one of the top storm-watching areas in the world. Growing in popularity, storm watching attracts visitors who are drawn to the energy and power of the sea. From late November through March, shifting weather patterns in the Pacific Ocean cause fierce storms. When storms are at their most powerful, 80-mph winds and 40-foot waves drive spectacular walls of water into the rugged bluffs of the coastline.
Some prefer to watch winter storms from the comfort of a beachfront hotel while sipping a local wine. For the more adventurous, several viewpoints just off coastal Highway 101 give the feeling of being right in the middle of the storm but at a safe distance. No matter where it's done, storm watching is an adventure all its own.
When my boyfriend suggested a storm-watching trip, I was hesitant. After years in Southern California, I was a certified sun lover. Voluntarily searching for rain wasn't my idea of fun. But I agreed to try it…once.
Our trip begins in Cannon Beach, where we settle in at the Stephanie Inn (www.stephanie-inn.com), considered by many to be the most romantic inn on the coast. Designed in New England country style, the lobby is decorated with wood beams and a river-rock fireplace. Our room faces the ocean and picturesque Haystack Rock. After enjoying a dinner of Northwest wild salmon in the inn's world-class restaurant, we're lulled into a peaceful sleep by the sound of massive waves crashing on the beach.
After an early breakfast, we head south along the coast, stopping at viewpoints along the road—some at sea level and some high on a bluff. All of them offer exhilarating panoramic views of the ocean at its most intense. At Rocky Creek, the deafening echo of the waves washes away any remaining stress.
"There's just something awesome about watching the power of the ocean," explains veteran storm watcher Rebecah Morris. "It's never the same from storm to storm. It makes you realize just how small you are in the world."
In the afternoon, we stop at the Heceta Head Lighthouse (www.hecatalighthouse.com). Operating since 1894, the lighthouse is home to the brightest light on the Oregon coast. It sits 205 feet above the ocean on a rocky bluff surrounded by the pine trees of Siuslaw National Forest.
Later, we unwind in the La Italia suite at Serenity Bed and Breakfast (541-547-3813), a 10-acre estate nestled in the forest next to the Yachats River. The two-person Jacuzzi tub surrounded by white marble and the four-poster bed provide a perfect end to an exciting day of storm watching.
After a delicious breakfast of cheese blintzes with homemade raspberry sauce, we drive back up the coast. I watch the beauty of the ocean as it crashes violently against the rocks and, strangely, I'm filled with a sense of peace. It's now that I realize I'm a convert: from sun lover to storm watcher.
For more information about storm watching on the Oregon coast, contact Rebecah Morris at the Oregon Coast Visitors Association (888-628-2101) or log on to www.visittheoregoncoast.com (http://www.visittheoregoncoast.com/).
http://www.lexus.msn.com/id/2074206/sid/2094485
Ports in a Storm
Luxury hideaways for Oregon coast storm watching.
By Brandy Vaughan
<HR>It's 3 p.m. and the howl of the wind outside sends a shiver through my body. Cold rain pelts the side of the car. As I take a deep breath and jump out, I'm filled with excitement and a sense of adventure. Twenty-foot breakers pound the rocky coastline below with a force so powerful that sea spray splashes across my face at the viewpoint 30 feet above. I'm not lost and I'm not crazy: I'm storm watching.
Two hours from Portland, the Oregon coast is one of the top storm-watching areas in the world. Growing in popularity, storm watching attracts visitors who are drawn to the energy and power of the sea. From late November through March, shifting weather patterns in the Pacific Ocean cause fierce storms. When storms are at their most powerful, 80-mph winds and 40-foot waves drive spectacular walls of water into the rugged bluffs of the coastline.
Some prefer to watch winter storms from the comfort of a beachfront hotel while sipping a local wine. For the more adventurous, several viewpoints just off coastal Highway 101 give the feeling of being right in the middle of the storm but at a safe distance. No matter where it's done, storm watching is an adventure all its own.
When my boyfriend suggested a storm-watching trip, I was hesitant. After years in Southern California, I was a certified sun lover. Voluntarily searching for rain wasn't my idea of fun. But I agreed to try it…once.
Our trip begins in Cannon Beach, where we settle in at the Stephanie Inn (www.stephanie-inn.com), considered by many to be the most romantic inn on the coast. Designed in New England country style, the lobby is decorated with wood beams and a river-rock fireplace. Our room faces the ocean and picturesque Haystack Rock. After enjoying a dinner of Northwest wild salmon in the inn's world-class restaurant, we're lulled into a peaceful sleep by the sound of massive waves crashing on the beach.
After an early breakfast, we head south along the coast, stopping at viewpoints along the road—some at sea level and some high on a bluff. All of them offer exhilarating panoramic views of the ocean at its most intense. At Rocky Creek, the deafening echo of the waves washes away any remaining stress.
"There's just something awesome about watching the power of the ocean," explains veteran storm watcher Rebecah Morris. "It's never the same from storm to storm. It makes you realize just how small you are in the world."
In the afternoon, we stop at the Heceta Head Lighthouse (www.hecatalighthouse.com). Operating since 1894, the lighthouse is home to the brightest light on the Oregon coast. It sits 205 feet above the ocean on a rocky bluff surrounded by the pine trees of Siuslaw National Forest.
Later, we unwind in the La Italia suite at Serenity Bed and Breakfast (541-547-3813), a 10-acre estate nestled in the forest next to the Yachats River. The two-person Jacuzzi tub surrounded by white marble and the four-poster bed provide a perfect end to an exciting day of storm watching.
After a delicious breakfast of cheese blintzes with homemade raspberry sauce, we drive back up the coast. I watch the beauty of the ocean as it crashes violently against the rocks and, strangely, I'm filled with a sense of peace. It's now that I realize I'm a convert: from sun lover to storm watcher.
For more information about storm watching on the Oregon coast, contact Rebecah Morris at the Oregon Coast Visitors Association (888-628-2101) or log on to www.visittheoregoncoast.com (http://www.visittheoregoncoast.com/).