As much as we think life is linear, it is not. Life is a bunch of circles. Now if you make a perfect circle, you just keep going around and around on the same path, but some of us make more elliptical circles and we end up on different paths that occasionally cross old paths. We could use this to describe relationships with others, career paths or, in this case – an actual path.
It was November 2013, I had just left Eugene Oregon and was headed north to Canada in my 1978 VW Bus I had just bought. The reason I was headed north? Simple, I had not been to 9 northern states and this was my chance. Back in Vermont, where I was living, we still had a bit of Fall to get through and I was unaware that states like Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana were already knee deep in winter. Sometimes ignorance is bliss, but back to today.
Back when I was in Eugene, I had gone up to Cougar / Terwilliger Hot Springs for my second ever natural Hot Springs soak. A day later, I found myself in awe as I traveled up the Oregon Coastline. Crossing over the Yaquina Bay Bridge. By bridge standards, it is neither very high, very dramatic or very long and yet this bridge stood out to me amongst all others I would cross on that 30 day coast to coast trip. After crossing over the Yaquina Bay Bridge, I found myself in Newport OR and I took a turn to head down to the water so I could take a picture of the bridge. That lead me to Historic Newport. A Bayfront fishing village on the north end of the bay. The fleet of fishing boats nestled in their slips, sea lions were out on the rocks barking up a racket. The joy I was feeling at that very moment was forever etched in my mind, but perhaps the best part of that moment was when I was taking a picture on Sandy the Bus when I heard someone yell out – HEY VERMONT! A couple I had met the day before while soaking in the hot springs up at Cougar/Terwilliger were also in town and spotted me.
After pulling out of Newport, I continued north along the coast and taking pictures and doing hikes at every beach access and state park I passed. Forward progress was not my goal. Taking it all in was. I hit Boiler Bay at Sunset and to this day, I do not recall where I camped, but I am sure it is the blog post from 6 years ago today. Here is a link to the blog post: North to Seattle – Day 1 Looks like I need to do some reminiscing today and maybe get some pictures from the same spots.
So I awoke this morning to Facebook Memories telling me what I was doing on this day, in the years past and there it was. I was in Newport, OR – wait! I AM in Newport, OR. I am right here right now in the very spot where I was 6 years ago on this very day. The chance of that happening – unplanned, I don’t know- One in a Million? I thought the chance encounter that introduced me to Steve and Marina – where I am currently Pet Sitting, was rare. I met them in Vermont and it was there I discovered they lived in Newport. Here is that story: The Best places to visit are in the Map Fold
Oh, and as a side note; The following day, I took off for Olympia, WA, to meet up with a couple that had contacted me through the VW Club offering me a driveway to camp in. There names were Colleen and Dale. Well I’ve spent almost a year with them now in 2019 both House Sitting and being a House Guest. Yeah, the elliptical circles of life. I love it.
Here are the pictures looking back to Oregon in 2013: