What's a trip to the coast without stopping by the ATM for a little cash. While waiting for Sharyn I got a glare reflected sign on the door of the bank. No Sunglasses, Hats, Helmets or Masks for your security and ours. A sign with no guns, bomb, long knives, bazookas might be a bit safer. Go figure.
We pulled the mini-musemobile into the big parking lot in Florence near Old Town to see a line of vendor tents already set up.
There was the BBQ truck...
... the Fry Bread stand...
... and a long line of stands from Paul's Violins...
to creative birdhouses at the far end...
... and too the left (riverside) of the board walk were the docks.
One stand manned by a couple who had lives in Alaska had glass floats ...
... collected from near the Bearing Strait...
One of the boats, Cap Armstrong, was a little dingy but was in the perfect place for a photo...
... and was just beyond the boardwalk fireplug...
... near "The Otter" a rather sleek looking sailboat.
Matt introduced us to Scentsy (pronounced Sen-See). From the ad:
"Scentsy Candles are a Unique Candle Warming system that uses a 25 watt bulb to warm the wax slowly into a pool of melted wax that maximizes the strength and life of the scent."
This is a great fragrance system
Glass flowers are not like real flowers but they make for very pleasant and colorful decoration. This stand had some very nice pieces.
Was this the Loch Ness Monster or just another of the river birds hunting for anchovies?
There were Tuna but these were not swimming and for sale at $2.25/lb...
... at this fish house on the river.
I was sorry we couldn't report a sighting of a "Killer Whale" but they are occasionally spotted nearby.
Oregon is definitely a mural state with some of the most interesting wall paintings ...
... and at this spot and many the giant anchors are also occasionally seen.
I did like this white moth on a plant with many white flowers (you have to trust me on the white flowers not pictured here.)
"The wayside blue and innocent heal-all?
What brought the kindred spider to that height,
Then steered the white moth thither in the night?" ~ Robert Frost
We did walk over to the "Backstreet Gallery" an artists cooperative made up of twenty-six local artists who had some really great work on display. It's a perfect place to find original art of very high quality and very reasonable cost. Go visit when you can and support the Arts by buying a piece to decorate your home.
Silly me I took one bridge picture without ...
... and with traffic. This beautiful Art-Deco bridge spans the Siuslaw River near where it flows into the Pacific Ocean.
"The Siuslaw River Bridge is a bascule bridge that spans the Siuslaw River on U.S. Route 101 in Florence, Oregon. It was designed by Conde McCullough, built by the Mercer-Fraser Company of Eureka, California, and funded by the Federal Emergency Administration of Public Works (later renamed the Public Works Administration). It opened in 1936.
The bridge's total length is 1,568 feet (478 m). When open, the 140-foot (43 m) double-leaf bascule provides 110 feet (34 m) of horizontal clearance for boat traffic. The bascule section is flanked by two 154-foot (47 m) reinforced concrete tied arches, identical to those used in the original Alsea Bay Bridge. Four Art Deco-style obelisks house mechanical equipment as well as living quarters for the bridge operator. The total cost of the bridge was $527,000"
Of course I did find real and not glass flowers...
... and like always they were fascinated me ...
... and I never stop wondering about the number of variations in the flora all around...
... even the long gone foliage can be astounding when we really see it up close.
Quote of the Day ~
"Crafts make us feel rooted, give us a sense of belonging and connect us with our history. Our ancestors used to create these crafts out of necessity, and now we do them for fun, to make money and to express ourselves." ~ Phyllis George (born 25 June 1949) is an American businesswoman, actress and a former sportscaster. She is a former Miss Texas and Miss America of 1971
