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Old 08-18-2005, 02:05 PM   #1
8.1al
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Advice on Oregon?

We will be leaving Michigan next week for Seattle via US 2 and will be traveling down the Oregon coast in mid September on our way to the ralley. All thoughts on what to stop and see and where to stay are appreciated. We don't mind dry camping so if there are any neat spots that we can fit in let us know

Charlie & Nila
 
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Old 08-19-2005, 06:19 AM   #2
PERetired
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Hi Charlie and Nila,
We traveled to the Oregon coast in Oct. three years ago. It was one of my favorite destinations. The state parks in Oregon are wonderful and in September the crowds should be gone. Most parks have W and E -- and some have full hookups. Our favorite stays were:
Newport- We stayed at the Marina. It is just a parking lot, but has the most beautiful view.
Florence- We stayed in town at Happy..... {Can't remember the name and our rig is in the shop.) Jessie M. Honeyman park is also good.
Coos Bay-Sunset Bay State Park, a little off the 101 but worth it. Great place to see sea lions.
Cape Blanco State Park-Windy because you are out on the point, but campsites are protected by trees and shrubs. Good hiking trails and lighthouse.
Brookings-Harris Beach State Park, also great.

Pick up a guide to the State Parks and you can't go wrong. I hope their prices haven't gone up like Calif did. At the time they were around $20

See you at the Rally in Oct. Have a great time.

Mary Kay and Dennis Hill
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Old 08-19-2005, 09:56 AM   #3
Virgil
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Hi Charley and Nila:
You will be 3 miles from my place. Tioga is 3 miles off US2 at milemarker 64. There is some minor road construction on US 2 from Palermo to Ray. (mile marker 105 - mm 53 or so).It really won't affect you other than there will likely be a few short 45 MPH areas. They are expanding all of US 2 in ND to 4 lane. If you get an incling to, pull north to Tioga on ND Hwy 40 and look me up at work. About a mile south of Tioga, there will be a bunch of green buildings on the west side of Hwy 40. Pull in and ask for Virg.
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Old 08-19-2005, 09:58 AM   #4
HamRad
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Hello Charlie and Nila,
Where will you be hooking up on US 2? It goes right thru Glacier NP. Do you plan on spending any time in that area?

Once you've done the Oregon coast what are your plans? You'll be fairly near some of the Coastal Redwoods in California. Do you plan on hitting that area? And have you given any thought to your crossover route from the coast toward the Reno area?

We are happy to share some of our experiences in some of these areas.... And I believe Dick and Patty have taken US 2 from MI over to their property in MT. They can probably give you some good info on that leg. You'll be covering a lot of territory! It sounds like a very exciting trip. Enjoy.

Dennis and Mary Kay
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Old 08-19-2005, 11:11 AM   #5
Searchers
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Charlie & Nila,

It sounds like you have a great trip planned. Below is a link to Oregon State Park info that may help. If you end up cutting back east to I-5 from the southern Oregon coast you can take Hwy 89 to the Reno area at Mt. Shasta. Let us know if your in our area and we can provide futher information.

http://www.oregon.gov/OPRD/PARKS/index.shtml
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Old 08-20-2005, 04:03 AM   #6
adelmoll
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Charlie & Nina,

We just returned to Minnesota on Hwy 2 last week. If you want to click on our blog in our signature you can see some of the things we did. It was really a relaxing route all the way from Glacier.

Helen
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Old 08-20-2005, 07:49 AM   #7
melnjoy
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Charlie & Nina,

The Ore. coast is beautiful anytime of year. I was going to make pretty much the same recommendations that Mary Kay & Dennis did, so I won't repeat it all. We live in Marysville (Seattle Area) so have had opportunity to visit Ore a few times, and the coast is the best place to be. Have fun, we'll see you at the rally.

Joy
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Old 08-20-2005, 08:26 AM   #8
sreigle
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US 2 skirts the edge of Glacier National Park in Montana. That's an absolutely gorgeous place to visit. We stayed at Mountain Meadow RV Park at Hungry Horse, MT, about 10 miles west of the National Park, on US 2. There are several nice parks along that route near the NP. We just left there last Sunday.
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Old 08-20-2005, 02:20 PM   #9
jrgwdenner
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Charlie and Nila, we will be coming the same route in September once we leave Alaska in about ten days or so. We have reservation around Sept. 27th at Cape Lookout. Maybe our paths will cross. Either way, I'll be watching this thread with interest.

Dennis, where should we cross over to Reno? We do plan to visit the Redwoods just before going to Reno for the Rally. Any of your expert advice will be appreciated.
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Old 08-20-2005, 04:46 PM   #10
HamRad
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Hi Judy,
The cross over question really depends on what you want to see and of course type of road. At Eureka, which is just north of the Redwoods, you could take SR 299. That comes out at Redding. From there you could go south on I-5 to Sacramento and take I-80 over to Reno. An alternate from Redding would be to simply keep going east. Then about 80 miles east of Redding you can take SR 89. That will take you into Susanville. Just keep going east and south and you hit US 395. That will take you right into Reno. This would be a very scenic route.

If you don't want to do the above routes then I'd suggest simply staying on US 1 / 101. Take the SR 29 across to Clear Lake and hook up with I-5 at Williams. SR 20 is much less mountainous than the other route. SR 20 is a two lane road and sort of narrow in a few places near Clear Lake but otherwise is a nice route.

I just realized that if you're in Cape Lookout, OR on the 27th you don't have a lot of time to visit the OR coast. Also which redwoods area are you thinking of visiting? The most impressive area for us is the Humbolt Redwoods south of Eureka, CA. But there are redwoods north of there. Some are near Crescent City, CA..

I know you are used to big distances since you'll be coming out of Alaska ... but you have a lot of stuff to see and a lot of miles to travel between Cape Lookout and Reno... in a relatively short time.

Dennis
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Old 08-20-2005, 05:51 PM   #11
HamRad
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I did a route comparison and the results are:

From Eureka area to Redding to Reno is about 400 miles.

Going south on 1/101 to SR 20 across to Williams and then on to Reno is about 830 miles.

I didn't realize there was that much difference.

Dennis
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Old 08-21-2005, 01:20 PM   #12
jrgwdenner
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We will certainly look at the shorter route. We planned on our only stop being the Redwoods. We'll have to explore California at another time. We'll have about four days at Camp Lookout and four or five days to get to Reno so it will be a quick look at the Redwoods. Thanks so much for your help.
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Old 08-23-2005, 05:16 AM   #13
8.1al
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Mary Kay & Dennis Hill,
Thanks for the info, we will definitely try some of these

Dennis (Hamrad)
We plan on stopping at Glacier but the redwoods will have to wait till another trip. We will probably only go as far south as Coos Bay before we cut over to I-5

Don & Dennis
What kind of road is 89 down to Susanville from Mt. Shasta? steep grades, high passes? Should this road be avoided if the weather is iffy? I was thinking about taking I-5 down to and then 50 across to Minden where the rally is. Would this work? I know 50 is pretty decent around Tahoe but have no idea what it is like to the west.

Once again thanks to all for the help

Charlie & Nila
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Old 08-23-2005, 06:39 AM   #14
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Charlie & Nila,

Mt. Shasta - Minden via Hwy 89, 44, & 395 is about 250 miles. Two lane from I-5 to near the NV border. A beautiful drive at least to Susanville. A few grades, not too long and nothing you can't handle or haven't seen on your trip this far, I'm sure. About 5,000' maximum elevation.

Mt. Shasta - Minden via I-5 to Sacramento and Hwy 50 is about 350 miles. A lot more traffic on 50 and an uphill pull all the way to Ehco Summit which I believe is about 7,800' before dropping into Tahoe. I believe someone posted that the tunnel out of Tahoe towards Hwy 395 might be a clearance problem.

Mt. Shasta - Minden via I-5 to Williams, Hwy 20 (two lane) through Nevada City to I-80 at Emigrant Gap (5,250'), Truckee to Hwy 395 at Reno. About 382 Miles.

Hope this helps in your route decision, and keep us posted on when you'll be through our area.

Don
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Old 08-23-2005, 09:51 AM   #15
8.1al
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Thanks Don, I think hwy 89 is the way to go, saves a lot of miles. Gas too
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Old 08-23-2005, 06:47 PM   #16
mike johnson
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hello there,i just caught the last post on crossing over from the coast and i would definatly find a different way than hi-299.we took that way last year with a smaller 5th wheel and it almost killed my power stroke.there is no doubt it is a beutiful ride ,but it's also a brutal ride.there are probably 5 different summits you have to cross and pulling the 5th wheel will be hard on your truck.just thought i would put my 2cents in.you should probaly stay on 1 or 101 or and see the redwoods or turn around and go back to grants pass and cross over .whatever you do good luck
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Old 08-24-2005, 04:57 AM   #17
toolmanroy
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Going across to Grants Pass is not easy for those who have not done it before! You do, however, get to see some of the redwoods through that area and it is quite beautiful, though very windy roads.

It is a shame you won't have time to stop in the Charleston/Coos Bay/North Bend area. Cape Arago Highway is interesting with the Shore Acres botanical gardens and 2 good parks to stay, one state and one private.

You will like Cape Lookout. We have fond memories of our visit there. It was one of the best beaches we ever walked for finding shells intact. Tillamook is fairly close for a tour of the cheese factory.

The Oregon coast in September. That is a great time to travel there.
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Old 08-24-2005, 06:06 AM   #18
FireTruckerWife
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We've had confirmation that the tunnels out of Tahoe and down 50 are plenty high for our 5er. Hug the center line at the highest point to be sure, but it states that it is 17' at center.
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Old 08-24-2005, 08:32 AM   #19
HamRad
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For those of you coming down the Oregon coast..... There are many crossover roads but only a couple that are relatively easy on someone pulling a trailer. At Newport Hwy 20 is a relatively short route. It is mostly a two lane road but well designed. Lot's of turnouts and short 3 lane passing spots. Brings you out on I-5 near Corvallis.

If you go south past Newport then it is probably best to go all the way into California and hit 199. This road is a nice two lane road that takes you back northeast to Grant's Pass, OR. It is a scenic hwy as ToolManRoy indicated. The grades on it are are not too steep but it is a road that will demand you pay close attention to your driving. It is well worth the trip if you have the time.

Of course you will have several passes to go over on your way south on I-5 but they are nothing too severe. At the south end of Mt. Shasta City take the hwy 89 exit. It is an excellent drive. Good wide road with a lot of beautiful scenery. Some excellent views of Mt. Shasta. If you get a chance stop in the little town of McCloud. Visit the world famous candy store they have. If you are looking for boondocking spots there are lots of them all along this route. There are a few ups and downs but nothing too bad. Also not a lot of traffic.

Burney Falls is a nice spot to take a break and view some nice water falls. They have a very large and nice state park there. You will then cross over hwy 299. Just keep going south. There is a nice CG near Hat Creek called Rancheria RV park. Big pull thru sites. Setting is very scenic. Just south of this area is hwy 44. Take hwy 44 east. There is quite a grade to pull as soon as you get on this road. It is relatively steep and long but take your time and you'll do fine. This section of road has more truck traffic on it than you'd expect. A lot of truckers take this road in lieu of going all the way to Sacramento to get on 80 or 50. But it is still a very nice route. Again lots of beautiful sites along the way. All kinds of places to pull out and rest. Several state parks along the way. As you come into Susanville there is a steep descent but relatively short. There is a nice commercial CG in town. I think it is called Mt. View. Nice clean park. Sites are all paved with concrete and very level. I think all are FHUs. Some grass and small trees between sites. Well taken care of park. I think we had a bit of a smell coming from a nearby stockyard or something. It was not too bad.

The rest of the drive into Reno is mostly flat. A few little ups and downs. A few miles east of Susanville you will connect to hwy 395. You're maybe a hundred miles or so from Reno at this point.... easy going the rest of the way. Of course as you get near Reno you'll pick up a lot of traffic. Just north of Reno hwy 395 becomes freeway and stays that way or at least 4 lanes all the way to the Minden/Gardenerville area.

The Silver City RV park is somewhat hard to spot. Coming from the north be prepared to turn left as you come down off the hill after you've passed the Lake Tahoe cutoff. There is a left turn lane. Traffic is very heavy almost all the time. The park is on the east side of the road.

Enjoy your trip. And see you soon.

HamRad
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Old 08-24-2005, 09:08 AM   #20
toolmanroy
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I am not sure of the highway number but I believe it is 138. If you cross over at Reedsport to I-5 that is also an easy crossover. You will pass through the town of Elkton and then into Sutherlin just north of Roseburg. There is also Highway 42 that goes from Coos Bay to Roseburg. Both are easier than 199 but not as scenic. If you want to see the redwoods, you will need to go into California.

We are going to Reno for Labor Day and we will be taking 89 that Searchers and HamRad have told you about. It is a beautiful drive if you have never been that way.
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