Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Go With The Flow
Current location: Portland, OR, N 45 33.574', W 122 33.780', elev 57 ft.
On monday (happy birthday, Mom!), I drove north on I-5 until I reached Eugene, OR, where I headed west on Oregon 126 until I reached US 101 in Florence, OR. I had made it back to the coast. The Oregon coast is amazing to me, it was more than a hundred miles of untouched beauty, there were few cars, and few houses along the ocean, population centers are few and far between. Though there were plenty of sings proclaiming a Tsunami Hazard Zone - In The Event Of An Earthquake Seek Higher Ground. I wonder if those signs are relatively new (they looked new). There were so many great spots to stop the car and just look out over the ocean and dream a little. I think if I was to live someplace outside the northeast, Oregon would be the first place I investigate. Oregon to me was sort of like a larger, ocean fronting Vermont. Lots of farms, laid back people, a good mix of hippies, libertarians and patriots. I didn't even take many photos, because I wanted to keep this part of Oregon to myself.
Along the way, I came across a beach and stopped for a while. I parked my car on the hill above the beach, and when I stepped out, I encountered a vicious, raw wind, so I had to put on a sweatshirt to block the wind out a bit. I walked down the hill onto the beach and kicked my flip flops off to feel the sand. Once again, I ran into that strange juxtaposition of really hot sand and very cold water. I thought the waters of the pacific were warm and tingly, but I guess not. There were very few people on the beach, maybe 10 at the most, and the beach was at least a half mile in length. I walked to the far left side of the beach, there were these huge rock outcroppings I wanted to check out.
Down near the rock outcroppings, I came across a seagull. It was playing in the water, trying to catch a little bit of food, whatever the surf was bringing in. The seagull was floating on top of the water, in a few inches of depth, sometimes fighting the riptide a bit as it went out before the next wave rolled in. I watched the seagull for a bit, admiring his foraging efforts to catch little organisms in the water, walking up the beach a ways, then venturing back into the difficult water and wind.
On the ground
At one point, I got a little too close to the seagull, taking a few photos, and it spread its wings and caught the wind with very little effort. The strength of the wind and the updraft near the huge rocks was enough that the bird could reach great heights with ease, however, only with great effort could the seagull go in the direction it wanted. It occurred to me that the seagull was free, only limited by the wind, often aided by the wind, but even the seagull did not know where the wind would take him.
In the wind
The seagull's decision was a hard one, and you could see him struggling with it. He could land on the beach, in relative safety and security, but he was guaranteed to only ever eat the worms and bugs he found. He had a nice spot on the beach, but he was all alone (at least until I came over). His other choice was to fly, to take off and see all there was to see on the beautiful beach. But flying was the unknown. He might not find anything to eat, but on the other hand, he might come upon the ultimate prize: a clam or a crab to eat. He might glide out over the spectacular ocean in one minute, or be pushed perilously close to the rocks the next. Sometimes, the wind would hold him in one place, an equilibrium of movement, a clash of wills.
The equilibrium of wills
The seagull usually won the clash as the wind would eventually stop gusting with such ferocity, but for the seagull it was a pyrrhic victory as he would suddenly lose momentum and start to fall. He had to correct himself on the way down with great effort or risk crashing. I like to think that the seagull chose the unknown, the greater risk, the potential reward, far more often than he chose the safety of the ground.
The seagull's choice
I continued up the coast on US 101 until I found Oregon 18, just north of Lincoln City, OR. I took Oregon 18 east until I reached Portland, where I stopped for the night. View the day's photos here.
On monday (happy birthday, Mom!), I drove north on I-5 until I reached Eugene, OR, where I headed west on Oregon 126 until I reached US 101 in Florence, OR. I had made it back to the coast. The Oregon coast is amazing to me, it was more than a hundred miles of untouched beauty, there were few cars, and few houses along the ocean, population centers are few and far between. Though there were plenty of sings proclaiming a Tsunami Hazard Zone - In The Event Of An Earthquake Seek Higher Ground. I wonder if those signs are relatively new (they looked new). There were so many great spots to stop the car and just look out over the ocean and dream a little. I think if I was to live someplace outside the northeast, Oregon would be the first place I investigate. Oregon to me was sort of like a larger, ocean fronting Vermont. Lots of farms, laid back people, a good mix of hippies, libertarians and patriots. I didn't even take many photos, because I wanted to keep this part of Oregon to myself.
Along the way, I came across a beach and stopped for a while. I parked my car on the hill above the beach, and when I stepped out, I encountered a vicious, raw wind, so I had to put on a sweatshirt to block the wind out a bit. I walked down the hill onto the beach and kicked my flip flops off to feel the sand. Once again, I ran into that strange juxtaposition of really hot sand and very cold water. I thought the waters of the pacific were warm and tingly, but I guess not. There were very few people on the beach, maybe 10 at the most, and the beach was at least a half mile in length. I walked to the far left side of the beach, there were these huge rock outcroppings I wanted to check out.
Down near the rock outcroppings, I came across a seagull. It was playing in the water, trying to catch a little bit of food, whatever the surf was bringing in. The seagull was floating on top of the water, in a few inches of depth, sometimes fighting the riptide a bit as it went out before the next wave rolled in. I watched the seagull for a bit, admiring his foraging efforts to catch little organisms in the water, walking up the beach a ways, then venturing back into the difficult water and wind.
On the ground
At one point, I got a little too close to the seagull, taking a few photos, and it spread its wings and caught the wind with very little effort. The strength of the wind and the updraft near the huge rocks was enough that the bird could reach great heights with ease, however, only with great effort could the seagull go in the direction it wanted. It occurred to me that the seagull was free, only limited by the wind, often aided by the wind, but even the seagull did not know where the wind would take him.
In the wind
The seagull's decision was a hard one, and you could see him struggling with it. He could land on the beach, in relative safety and security, but he was guaranteed to only ever eat the worms and bugs he found. He had a nice spot on the beach, but he was all alone (at least until I came over). His other choice was to fly, to take off and see all there was to see on the beautiful beach. But flying was the unknown. He might not find anything to eat, but on the other hand, he might come upon the ultimate prize: a clam or a crab to eat. He might glide out over the spectacular ocean in one minute, or be pushed perilously close to the rocks the next. Sometimes, the wind would hold him in one place, an equilibrium of movement, a clash of wills.
The equilibrium of wills
The seagull usually won the clash as the wind would eventually stop gusting with such ferocity, but for the seagull it was a pyrrhic victory as he would suddenly lose momentum and start to fall. He had to correct himself on the way down with great effort or risk crashing. I like to think that the seagull chose the unknown, the greater risk, the potential reward, far more often than he chose the safety of the ground.
The seagull's choice
I continued up the coast on US 101 until I found Oregon 18, just north of Lincoln City, OR. I took Oregon 18 east until I reached Portland, where I stopped for the night. View the day's photos here.