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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (June 20, 1977)
A rejuvenated ‘Old Town Florence, cheese and fishing await visitors at... By TOM WOLFE Of the Emerald After years of having motorists whiz by for the dunes, lakes and beaches surrounding Florence, the heart of the city — Old Town — is finding a new purpose. New paint, new management and some imaginative planning have been rejuvenating turn-of the-century buildings lining Florence's historical Bay Street into a nostalgic row of sidewalk shops and eateries. Florence, 70 miles west of Eugene, was once the standard port of call for lumber and fishing schooners serving the immediate area and lower Willamette Valley. After years of having modem travelers bypass the area, store fronts along the bay have been reopening as small character shops housing antiques, books, craft supplies and novelties. The dominant structure of the street is now a wallpaper opera tion. Through a silk-screening process devised by the owners, original prints are designed and processed by hand for commer cial and public sale. A stone's throw from the shops, commercial trailers and pleasure boats roll in and out of the Flor ence harbor as fishing builds dur ing summer runs of coho and Chinook salmon and, later, sea run cutthroat trout. As summer progresses, sal mon fishing activity intensifies and advance reservations for ocean charter trips become more necessary. Salmon fishing is best in August and, during this month, advance reservations are almost always necessary with any of the several charter services operat ing out of Florence or nearby Winchester Bay and Newport. Phone reservations may be simp lest. Cost of the half-day trips usu ally ranges from $15 to $25 with all equipment supplied. In addi tion to salmon; sea bass, ling cod and other bottom fish are often caught from the charter boats which hold six to 20 persons. Across the Siuslaw Harbor, egg-nog colored sand dunes TREAT YOURSELF to coffee from the coffee specialists. Allann Bros, coffee is served in Eugene's finest res taurants and roasted daily in our shop. Come in and treat yourself to a sample, on us. Cup for cup it costs no more than what you may be paying now. LLANN BROS. COFFEE 2465 Hilyard Si ^44 0221 open seven days a wppI doc doc doc DOC DOC DOC DOC EUGENE MONTESSORI SCHOOL SUMMER PROGRAM DAILY 9-2 (Lunch, Before and After School Care) 1 June 20-July 29 Inc. 2255 Oakmont Way — 345-7124 The Eugene Morhesson School does not discriminate against applicants and studems on the basis of race, color or creed DOC DOC DOC DOC DOC VX XK -MIC-XK slowly rise to overtake thin ever green forests and move lakes eastward with finger-like inva sions. Tireless northwest winds have spent the years sweeping ocean’s sand up into 300-foot-high dunes stretching 50 miles south from Florence. Their path has created an unusual combination of ghost forests and mounds of soft, toe-spreading playground. The 20 lakes within minutes of Florence are mostly sandy bot tomed and easily accessible for swimming or fishing. Dune buggy rides are also offered, usually for $1 to $1.50 per person. Four miles directly south of Florence the Siuslaw Bay offers year-round bay clam digging for those willing to brave the knee deep ooze with shovel and buc ket. Good locations for digging are either side of the North Fork Bridge on Highway 126. Mud clams are three to five inches long buried six to 16 inches. Dig gers look for quarter-inch holes or indentations and dig along side them with care to keep from breaking the shells. Each digger is limited to the first 36 clams dug. They can be shelled, cleaned and fried in pieces or ground and simmered for chowder. Crabbing and fishing is best nearer the mouth of the river. Bot tom fish such as flounder, sea The Coast bass, perch and an occasional salmon may be caught off the jet ties on either side of the river. Other locations, especially for perch, are on the Coast Guard Road, one-fourth mile south of Siuslaw docks. Crabbing may be done from any of the river docks and is best during slack tide. Most dock own ers rent crab rings and can supply bait — fish heads or carcasses. Three rings are allowed each person and only male crabs measuring at least 5 and three quarters inches across the back may be claimed. For the more tourist-minded, beaches north of Florence hold several attractions. About three miles north of Flor ence is a botanical wayside and nature trail exposing the native “cobra lillies," darlingtonia californicus. These carnivorous plants with bright petals lure in sects and then trap them in their hoods for later digestion A few miles further the highway begins climbing and circling the 800-foot-high mountains which drop as cliffs into the sea. Sea lions bask on some of the inac cessible rocks, whales occasion ally pass in the distance and at low tide the rocks hold natural aquariums for viewing. Tidepool animals are protected by state laws and cannot be collected randomly. Proceeding northward along the coastal highway the terrain is constantly changing between rock ledges and short sandy beaches. The lighthouse at Heceta Head, about 25 miles north of Florence, is one favorite spot for strollers and photo graphers. The short beach below the lighthouse is somewhat protected from winds by the mountain forms surrounding the beach on all but its ocean side. This pleasant situ ation isn’t unique to the light house area, however. Several less frequented beaches offer the same combination of beach pro tected by hills. Any of these beaches is a prime area for finding agates smoothed by the ocean s con stant grinding action, playing in the sand or simply lounging under the sun. A trip to the coast also offers the chance to watch cheese being made — and to delight in some of the samples. One of the oldest cheese factories in the state is located in Bandon, which lies on the southern third of the Oregon coastline, on Highway 101 Bandon cheese has been made since the 1800s and used to be shipped via steamboat to San Francisco. Visitors can watch the cheese being made at the Coquille Valley Dairy Farmer s Co-op, located at the northern end of the downtown area on Second Street The co op produces nearly two million pounds of cheese annually. County recreation (Continued from Page 11) servoir northeast of Madras, Oregon. Fishing anywhere in the state costs $9 for an Oregon Depart ment of Fish and Wildlife license. If you are a gambler and don t buy one at local sporting goods stores, fishing could cost you the pole and tackle and a stiff fine. The license fees are used for cleaning and stocking rivers. For inland fishing, try the Mc Kenzie River for trout; Siltcoos Lake near Florence is good for bass. Rumer has it that there are still fish at Fern Ridge reservoir west of Eugene and at Armitage park near Coburg. Coast fishing for sea bass and salmon is available and is espe cially recommended for those who have never had the fun op . portunity to become seasick. LOOKING FOR SOMETHING SPECIAL? Try the U of O Bookstore. We have the largest selection of books in town; and we re here to serve you! If we don’t have what you need, we ll gladly special order at no extra charge! And to help you find out-of-print books we advertise nationally every week, again at no extra charge. U of O Bookstore SS, Pafire 14 Se^tinn R Charter boats operate out of Florence, Winchester Bay and almost all of Oregon s major coastal areas. For the novice fisherman with out a pole, carp can easily be trapped on the Mill Race on warm summer afternoons. And if all else fails, try a local fish market BIRD WATCHING & WILD FLOWERS — From redtailed hawks nesting near downtown Eugene to grey-crowned rosy finches feeding above timberline, Oregon has more than enough birds to satisfy photographers and budding ornithologists. Oregon s forests, marshlands and coastal dunes are afire with wildflowers all summer. They come in all shapes and colors, but try to resist picking any of them. The Oregon Rare and En dangered Plant Species Task Force reports that one out of ten native Oregon plants is in danger of extinction. Mushrooms avoid Oregon in the summer, but butterflies and gnats more than make up the dif ference. In the late summer, wild berries are abundant where found (otherwise rare). Use cau tion when picking berries in areas that appear to have been chemi cally sprayed. Wednesday morning birdwalks are planned by the Southern Wil lamette Ornithological Club (485-1797 or 344-9591). The 90-minute walks in the Eugene area meet at the Mill Race Re staurant at 5:30 a.m. The Lane County Audubon Society (485-8783) has monthly meetings and occasional field trips. The Eugene Natural History Society (688-0294) also has trips and ac tivities. BOATING — If you’ve got the boat, Lane County has the water. Even if you don't have the boat, local outdoor stores will rent them for reasonable rates There are four major rivers in Lane County (Willamette, Mc Kenzie, Siuslaw and Long Tom) and all four offer unlimited dan gers for canoers and kayakers For a detailed chart of the canoe/kayak route from Dexter Lake to Harrisburg on the Wil lamette River, contact Mel Jack son at Eugene Parks and Recrea tion (687-5333). There is also a Eugene Canoe and Kayak Club (687-6895). Lane County s eight major re servoirs provide 36 square miles of uncrowded sailing water And rafts are a common tool for run ning the rapids on the upper McKenzie. COVERED BRIDGES — There are over 20 relics left on Lane County’s rural roads. They are excellent sites for hunting ter mites. Lane County parks and open space department has a complete list of covered bridges, including the dates they were built. BICYCLING — Cars are obselete in Ecotopia, so bicycle wherever you need to go. The bikecenten nial trail winds through the county from west to east. Spoke Folk, a recreational bicycling and short touring group, takes day bike trips throughout the summer. For a list of trips, contact Gary Pietka (342-4878). A final word on Ecotopian re creational pursuits in Lane County: forest fires destroy valu able wildlife habitat and no one likes to hike fourteen miles up to Hardesty Mtn. to find someone else's litter. And if you see any Sasquatch, they are protected under Ecoto pian law.
