Chapter 59 - St. Patrick's Day

Every good adventurer knows that a little break in the adventuring can be beneficial. And so it was that on this second day of the Quest the agenda was pretty much open for interpretation. 

In other words, besides the planned visit to Foley's Irish Pub to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, there was nothing else on the agenda. The schedule was wide open.

And to start off the celebration I'll just post this ONE cartoon about St. Patrick driving the snakes out of Ireland. (There were plenty, believe me!!)

Hahaha, enough. Too much good humor can spoil the broth.

So for this second morning here is the scene we were treated to when we opened the curtains in the morning.

Wow!! 

Carol said she wished for a rainbow for the next day and I guess she got her wish.

Not too shabby. 

Because it was early and we were exploring, we headed to the Bandon Marsh. Hahaha, it's like a guy's name. "Hello. I'm Bandon Marsh."

Hahaha, I crack myself up.

And we took a moment from shooting birds to get this picture. Although the day would be pleasant, it was cool.

Anyway, at the marsh, we got to see our first Redwing Blackbird of the year. Hey!!

But he was waaaaaaaaaaay out there and I had to really push the camera to get him even a wee bit close. That explains why these are so out of focus.

But not so with these pics.

Some of the flora in the marsh, Bandon Marsh! I know him!! Hahahahahaha...lame.

There is an elegance, a beauty in these small insignificant weeds that few appreciate. That's another gift of this digital photography magic we have now. The ability to capture and see, in detail, those things we otherwise pass by without a second thought or, even, a first look.

But Carol didn't miss this guy. You've no idea of how far away and how incredibly small this Red-Tailed Hawk was sitting in this lonely tree but Ol' Eagle-Eyes Schubert nailed him so I could 'reach' out and get a picture.

Most times we see just a dot and don't know exactly what it is until we can get it on the computer and blow it up a bit.

There she goes...go ahead, sing that Cherrios song again. Y'know, the "Go-Power" one.

Sometimes I have to hustle to keep up with her.

I don't know why but there weren't a lot of birds out. Fortunately, these song sparrows came by for us.

Hahaha, talk about a pot belly.

And this fellow came and posed for us.

Angry Bird.

And then this guy. Carol tells me this little squirt is a Bewick Wren.

Whoda thunk!?!

Handsome lil' critter, pecking away at the wood.

You can tell, we had a good time in the Marsh, Bandon Marsh. Hahahahaha...OK, sorry. I'll stop.

Another Red-Tailed Hawk.

And the flora. This is a small weed and yet, when you really look close, it's quite the thing.

More weeds.

Bandon Marsh is a well-kept National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). You can see the trail here is paved. Mighty fine. 

Hahaha, a double-whammy. A B&W Artsy-Fartsy picture. Morning dew (or rain) on a blade of grass.

But the day was speeding away and Foley's Irish Pub was calling my name, "Hey!! Fatso!! C'Mon, let's knock down a few!!"

And so we headed back to the city. In no particular hurry, after I had parked the KIA a safe distance away from any other car, I walked to the edge of the river to see the CRL from a different angle.

And I did.

Then, of course, I tried shooting it from a different angle. Several times.

We were standing at the public parking lot near the river. Great view of the CRL.

And I even got Carol to pose for me. There's the CRL behind her on the left on that spit of land. You can barely make out the tan and brick red of the CRL.

Bandon must have a lot of extra tax money from all the touristas ricos. They do a good job of keeping the Old Town, AKA Tourist Trap, neat and clean. And then they use the excess for some ugly artwork.

The city has plenty of public art...like this octopus. 

Yech!!

It took a while and some serious study to find the subtle differences between the Coho on the left and the Chinook on the right...besides the obvious difference in their size. Dots on the tail would be a clue were you to want and try finding their differences.

Nicely done on the amphitheater. I could see some nice presentations going on here. Maybe some Scout ceremonies. Who knows. 

But you're looking good, Bandon. All those tourists pesos make quite a difference, eh!?!

And they get a lot of those pesos from little stores like this selling useless but attractive junk to take home with you.

It was getting near lunch time and I was feeling a bit peckish and so we set our sails and our sights for Foley's. And within a minute, we were there.

First order of business was a fresh, cold Smithwick's. Premium Irish Ale.

Hooah!

And, y'know, I thought I would prefer the Harp but this time it was the Smithwick's that won the ribbon.

Mmmmmmmm, just wish I could have had several.

And with the ale we got our lunch. I had promised myself that on St. Patrick's Day we'd have lunch at Foley's and, despite the less than stellar reception the day before, here I was to make good on that promise.

And it was kind of a repeat. When we first came in they offered us a table right at the door. But neither of us stand the cold so well and so I asked for a different table. Ah, there's the rub for even though there was at least one other table free, they told us the only other place would be at the bar. 

And so there we were. At the bar.

But we were there to celebrate and so we did. Carol got her Root Beer and ordered her Fish 'N Chips.

And I had my Smithwick's. And I decided to go off the reservation and order me some special Irish Meatloaf served on a bed of steamed mashed potatoes.

It was good but I regret I didn't go ahead and get the Reuben or the Corned Beef and Cabbage. It was good but, honestly, it was like the meatloaf I had at home. I didn't taste the Irish.

Ratz.

After lunch, Carol and I strolled around a bit to ease things down.

One of Carol's friends had recommended the Minute Cafe for breakfast and so we found it, just around the corner from Foley's, and resolved we'd eat there on our way out of town on Monday.

But I wanted to walk a bit downriver to see how close I could get to the CRL from the opposite bank.

And I wanted to get some pics from a different angle.

And I did. Hahaha, and there's some guy climbing along the rocks like I did yesterday. Searching, I bet, for that picture shot of the Lighthouse.

Walking back towards town, I saw this song sparrow posing and so obliged him by taking his portrait.

The house with the false front and the balcony (all one place) is a historic building you can rent out as a guest house. Cool idea.

Then, just beyond it, is the former Coast Guard Station they built for WWII. Abandoned after the war, the city eventually got the building and now it houses offices.

But you could tell it was a Coast Guard Station before you ever read the sign. They just have a certain look to them.

Ah, the public arts in Bandon. 

And then Carol ran into this wild cat. A woman nearby told us his name was Oriole. 

He was a friendly cat and came right on over for some petting. She said he was one of the feral cats she fed occasionally. 

Now, honestly, I thought Oriole was a funny name for a feral cat until I uploaded this picture and realized, (another 'Duh' moment) that his name was really 'Oreo'. 

Sometimes I amaze myself.

Look familiar? The Useless Junk Store. Of which there are many, many, many in Bandon.

Must have been too early for crab. There wasn't much of a crowd there at the Crab Shack. Or maybe, just maybe, they were all over at Foley's cuz of St. Paddy's Day.

Another restaurant. They have plenty of places to eat there in Bandon. I like the feel of this one...the color and the fish on the wall.

And it sat next to the marina. Which wasn't too busy either. Too early in the season I guess.

Waiting for the fishermen to show up and then they're off for a 3-hour tour...a 3-hour tour.

I saw this and thought of that movie, Captain Jack, with Kurt Russell. He sets off sailing in a small boat much like this one. Good movie, I recommend you see it.

While I'd like to try my hand at sailing on a boat like this, it would have to be exceedingly calm waters for me to feel comfortable.

Not that I get seasick. Never have yet, anyway. But it's small and the waves are large and...you see where I'm going, right? 

They have these signs at every entrance into Old Town Bandon. Course, it's not that old. Every building there can't be older than 1936, right!?! Right!!

And, yeah, Bandon does fancy itself as an art town. And a Portlandia kind of town, too.

Here's Ol' Henry the Fish.

Henry is made entirely of debris that has washed up on the local beaches. 

Every. Last. Bit. Of. Him.

You can see they used a lot of screws and staples putting Ol' Henry the Fish together.

All with litter picked up on the beach.

Lookin' good, Henry!!

And then, to while away the rest of this beautiful day, we set about exploring the coast.

And there was a lot to see. There, in the distance, is the Kon-Tiki rock we saw from the hotel.

And the afternoon was growing older.

Bandon has plenty of that Irish gorse.

Potential fire trap...but ornamental, too.

Up close to some gorse. It does have a certain beauty.

But it's a nasty invader pushing out native plants.

Kon-Tiki.

It was a great day. No rain!!

And the rock formations were amazing.

But neither of us were willing to go down the steps...

...and come back up them.

Carol caught some good pictures with her trusty camera phone.

And I just kept plugging away.

My one advantage over her is my zoom lens.

We moved a bit further up the coast and we could see parts of Bandon and we could see the CRL.

Yet another view of the CRL. This one with the draw bridge in the background.

It was a busy day and a good one. Not quite what I had originally planned but it worked out. 

As they say in the Marines, "Semper Gumby".

Always Flexible.

Just for the halibut, I put in this pic from the Walmart down in Newport. After we'd done the Highway Clean-up we drove down to do our weekly shopping to Newport. Heck we were almost half-way there from where we cleaned The 101.

Anyway, I had on my Taft High School Tiger Cap and Sweatshirt because they're so colorful and when you're waddling along on The 101, you want to make sure EVERYONE can see you.

And I got a playful shot of me with the Easter Bunny. See, some things like me!!

The second day was as good as the first. Foley's was a bit of a bust but the rest of the Bandon area wasn't. The Oregon Coast is well worth the effort to see it. 

Life is good. Hooah!!

                                                                                                                                                               Helen Keller