From Seaside To Newport Oregon - Home Five

Oh if we'd only known the surprise that awaited us at Whaler's Rest RV Park! When we arrived, I checked us in and then we perused the park map to figure out which direction to go. These parks are HUGE, over 300 spots per location. Many loops to consider and in some cases sewer or electric limitations. DH noticed an icon on the upper left corner of the map on the North side of the road (this park has two big areas called North and South that are separated by the road). It was a disc golf basket. What? our very own private disc golf course? So yes, that is exactly where we headed.

We found a pull through spot just one camp spot away from the closest RV spot to that course. We moved in and immediately went to play a round. It was nine holes, with hole seven's basket missing. The course is very, very short, so we played with putters only. The baskets are lower end with only one set of chains. They showed many years of wear, but we were thrilled none the less! 

In addition to our very own course, there were three public courses nearby. Of the public courses, we went to South Beach Park's disc golf course first. It had three different tee's. Even the furthest away white tees were closer than what we are used to. The mosquitoes there were agressive and numerous. We wore long sleeves every time we played there, even when it was warm and sunny out. It was less than 10 minutes away. We went there many times.

We stayed a couple of weeks and did manage to get to Wilder Park disc golf course once even though it was only seven minutes away. It was described as treed and hilly. Oh my, it was definitely for the big kids. It is located on an old timber farm. Very steep ravines and again lots of aggressive mosquitoes. I wore a baseball cap AND my hoodie up with the strings pulled tight. It is eighteen holes and we made it through hole eight where it became decidedly more difficult. We felt we'd done a good job keeping our discs on course. DH did throw his last disc way, way far down a ravine. After he fetched it, he was done.

DH and I have dabbled in DG since the 1980s. He managed to get two holes in one at our private Whaler's Rest course. He's never managed that in all his years of playing. As I think back on the times when we played in our youth, it was very casual with likely the wrong disc for what we were doing and we never played daily like we did during our stay.  I did not have as much success, but I did find a very good disc for me for these shorter courses. It is called a Roc, is made by Innova and is what is called a mid range disc. It is heavy at 175g so works well in the wind and I used it as a putter as well after getting tired of carrying two discs.

I now throw long shots right handed and DH suggested I putt left handed (my dominant hand) which resulted in dramatic improvement of my putting game. Because I recently changed to playing with my non-dominant hand (after hands surgery no less), I loved playing multiple times a day and think I did improve quite a bit. My hand was very sore at first so it was nice to play through that stiffness.

We played golf 3 + times a day. We changed up our discs, practiced various throwing techniques, picked various tees at South Beach for more variety. It was a great couple of weeks. So far it is my favorite Thousand Trails park by far! - we took tons of pictures, I will hopefully have some time at our next home to edit and size them so they can be posted.

What else did we do? I vended on one rainy saturday. They have a craft sale each weekend. I sold four cards. It was great practice for me. I have whittled down my basic business supplies to one small box with NO fancy displays or decor. I had to go to bed early so I could get up early and pack everything. I only forgot two items which DH brought me later, an extension cord and bags. It was in the family lodge with good internet access. I sorted cards, priced jewelry, did some writing and bookkeeping. Concurrently I downloaded audible books and shows. It was a productive day.

DH got up early to go to the ocean a few times, one morning was low tide. I am still so new to retirement that I enjoy sleeping in. He is perfectly content to go to bed at 2am only to get up at 6am. Im not ready for that, Yuck! I went with him to Ona State Park, it was a fun park with a bridge over a lagoon to get to the Ocean. I only went to the ocean once during our stay. 

DH took these tidepool shots with his Samsung S7 Edge phone.

Most campers use a satellite dish of some variety, we only have HD TV. Whaler's Rest has very few stations available so I did not bother with TV. Instead, I am watching Suits on my Amazon Fire tablet. I get to download a finite number of Prime Video episodes on it that I can watch in the evenings. Every few days I have to head to the lodge to download fresh episodes. I am halfway through season three. I've had this tablet for a couple of years now and never imagined it would become my primary media watching device. It is an 8.9" screen which is very good resolution and sound. I use a lap desk to set it on while in bed. I feel very retired and relaxed when I am cozy in bed watching shows. It is a special treat when we have free wifi, then I get to stream content from Netflix and Hulu. For now I've cancelled these because we have wifi to our rig so rarely.

Whaler's Rest has their own store, it is the first Thousand Trails store we've managed to visit because the hours they are open are very limited, as well as seasonal. I rented a dvd for $1 (this is a great retiree rental rate!). I also found a mid weight jacket for under $40. I did not bring myself a heavy jacket, so we've been sharing what DH brought. I am glad I found my own that fits me.

We did order thai food from Lucky Thai Elephant Restaurant in Newport and it was the spiciest 3 star I've ever had. DH has always ordered 3 and swears from now on he will be just fine with 2. I can handle very spicy food and it made my tongue burn. It was the first time I recall EVER feeling my tongue burn!

I finished up playing Monopoly at Safeway. I did win a board prize, but only $5. I also had alot of coupons. We shopped two days before we left and It was fun to watch the total go down, and down as the cashier applied all of my free coupons. Then I used the $5 gift card. She remarked on how much we got for our $113, it filled our cart!

I find that with all our outdoor activities, I don't craft as much, but I was expecting that to be the case. When it rains on the Oregon Coast, it really pours so I am glad to have my papercrafting supplies with me to keep me busy on those days.