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Old 03-26-2012, 05:56 PM
 
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Will arrive in Eugene 4/04/2012 , to visit UO. Will be in Eugene 5 days. Plan to see campus, also like to visit coast one day and mountain area one day. suggestions? We are from east coast, first trip to west coast. Have motel reservations 5 nights in Eugene plus rental car.
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Old 03-26-2012, 06:56 PM
 
Location: Myrtle Creek, Oregon
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It's an easy drive to the coast from Eugene. Highway 126 drops you at Florence, which has lots of sand dunes. Frank Herbert got the idea for the novel Dune while doing a story on the dune stabilization research there. You can rent dune buggies or take tours, if that's your thing. Either north or south of Florence there are some very scenic areas. Cape Perpetua, just south of Yachats, is one of my favorite tide pool areas. Dress for rain and wind. You can always take clothes off if you don't need them.

The mountains from Eugene are also an easy drive, if the weather cooperates. Otherwise, you may need tire chains on your rental car. Go through Springfield and take 126 to the Santiam Pass, east to hwy 97, south to Hwy 138 and east to I-5, then back to Eugene. That is a good day's drive on bare pavement, and you will get to see some spectacular mountain scenery. If there is a snow storm in the passes, you will need to shorten that up a lot to make the drive in a day.

Alternatively, you can make it to Crater Lake and back to Eugene in one day. The rim drive and the north entrance off of 138 will be closed for the winter, but you can get to the Rim Village through the south entrance. If you're feeling adventurous you can take 227 from Canyonville to hwy 62, which puts you through some very interesting back country before hitting the main highway. Otherwise, you can pick up 62 in Medford, about 2.5 hours south of Eugene.

Wherever you go, pack plenty of warm clothes and some emergency rations. April in Oregon can be chilly, and you always chance getting stuck in a snow bank or mud slide. If you are prepared, no big deal, just an interesting story to tell back home. If you are not prepared, it can get ugly.

You don't say where you are from, but the abbreviated line is: stay away from the ocean during storms, don't turn your back on the ocean, stay away from logs in the surf, don't climb on wet rocks, stay back from cliff edges, respect all warning signs.
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Old 03-26-2012, 09:39 PM
 
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Larry's plan is fine, but I would suggest something different.

Drive north to just of south of Salem and take 22 west to 101. Then south on 101 to Florence for some of the best scenery on the OR coast. Florence east back to Eugene on 126. Fantastic scenery without a lot of miles. An easy 6 hour drive.
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Old 03-27-2012, 08:35 AM
 
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Anywhere on the coast is fun! A lot of people really love Old Town Florence, which is an easy hour drive from Eugene straight west on hwy 126. Turn left once you hit Florence at hwy 101. You'll see signs that will point you into the Old Town area.

From Florence, head north up hwy 101/Pacific Coast hwy and there are tons of little state parks and day use areas you can pull into, park, and explore. Bring warm clothes, rain jackets, hats, gloves, warm clothes, dress in layers, I wear boots. (bog boots/rain boots with sturdy bottoms that prevent you from slipping and keep your feet and lower legs dry and warm)...

At the state parks, drive around the campgrounds and check out a yurt. A camp host might let you inside to take a peek. It's an Oregon thing... that's spreading to other states now as well.

Be careful heading towards the mountains this time of year, though. Check tripcheck. Pack water, food, blankets.

If you can, I'd recommend the two-hour drive to Crater Lake while you're here... but check road conditions and you might need chains... Crater Lake is unbelievable. When you take photos of it and show your photos to other people, they accuse you of photoshopping them! It's that beautiful. The blue of that lake is unreal.

TripCheck - Road Cams, Road & Weather Conditions in Oregon - ODOT

Crater Lake National Park (U.S. National Park Service)

If you don't want to risk the roads to head to the mountains... just take the Spencer's Butte hike in Eugene. Nice views and it gives you an interesting look at Eugene and the surrounding areas.

You could also drive north up I-5 and check out the tulip festival... the fields are pretty cool to see!

http://www.woodenshoe.com/tulip-fest/

Good luck!
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Old 03-27-2012, 01:30 PM
 
Location: Dallas, Oregon & Sunsites Arizona
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And don't depend on a GPS. People from out of state die here by doing that.
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Old 03-27-2012, 04:46 PM
 
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Thank you so much. We are from Savannah, Ga. The temperature today was 84F. The mountain area sounds a bit frightening! More suggestions would be welcome.
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Old 03-27-2012, 04:58 PM
 
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The mountain areas are really not frightening. Yes, two lane highways, but well maintained and easy to navigate. Along the coast just keep your eyes on the road not the scenery! There are plenty of turnouts, viewpoints, parks to enjoy the view.
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Old 03-27-2012, 10:49 PM
 
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It's just that we've had a lot of snow and rain, and more rain is expected, and at the higher elevations there's still snow... so... we're just giving you fair warning.

Believe me... I'm from Texas. Where lakes are warm enough to swim in during the summertime. When we moved to Oregon I was blown away by what I discovered here. I am still continually blown away. The first time we visited Crater Lake it was in AUGUST. It was HOT in Eugene. You know - summertime. So bippity-boppity off we go to see Crater Lake and presto - there's several feet of snow on the ground, and we're wearing shorts and tanktops, shocked to see ICE on the surface of the lake.

The coast is the same - dress warm, dress in layers, be prepared for wet/cold weather. It's not a working on your tan bikini weather sort of coast. August and September it can get pretty warm, but springtime is still pretty cold.
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Old 03-28-2012, 04:29 PM
 
Location: Dallas, Oregon & Sunsites Arizona
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We do have some roads that show on the GPS that are not passable in the winter. Some are marked with warnings, others are not.
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Old 03-28-2012, 10:52 PM
 
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We took a big trip Northeast of Eugene to Hwy. 242 to Sisters, South on Hwy. 97 to West Hwy. 138 to Crater Lake & South Hwy. 62 to Rogue River Valley & continue on Hwy. 62 to Hwy. 234 follow to Hwy. 199 right into Crescent City, California, to see the "baby redwoods" in Jedediah Smith Park - link here: Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, Crescent City, California
It's a wonderful park & you may find it a bit warmer there, this time of year. Then we took the coastal hwy. 101 North back towards Eugene. Maybe you could continue North until you reach Florence, then return to Eugene on Hwy 126.

You could shortn the tirp & travel South on the Coastal Hwy. 101 from Florence to see the Redwoods, it's a lovely scenic/historical drive with stops along the way. Cape Sebastian park is a nice little stop-over with trails. The evergreens are awesomely fragrant!! (This stop is in Oregon) We spent 1 night in Crescent City only because we'd done so many things day 1 we had to rest before seeing the Redwoods & traveling back up Hwy. 101 with the stops along Cape Sebastian, taking pictures of the cliffs, birds, evergreens, pathways & flowers. Link here: Oregon State Parks and Recreation: Rates

Also, just North of Florence is a little gem, Heceta Head Lighthouse. Link to see images:
https://www.google.com/search?q=hece...w=1280&bih=560
It was amazing to see that Lighthouse up on the rocks, it was like something from a movie! Enjoy. I've only visited once & would love to go back. Coming from the East Coast though is quite expensive to do often. Let us know how your trip went!
Safe Traveling....
P.S. Double-check my routes, but I'm fairly sure they are correct.
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