For my birthday this year (some while ago),
we spent a quiet weekend at the coast,
specifically at the Coast House compliments of friends
who generously offered us a gift certificate in return for using our place abroad.
Just north of Florence on the Oregon Coast and hidden from the old highway
among the cliffs sits an elegantly rustic but updated abode with a self-composting toilet (much less scary than it sounds), loft bedrooms and a wooded or ocean view from every window.
From the parking space behind a large wooden fence covered with hanging moss, one winds along a hobbit trail through the woods and over stream...
...to the little cottage...
...where one is welcomed...
...by tulip and wine bouquets...
The loft bedrooms are a climb (one more than the other) but offer views looking out from the living room windows...
...the loft window...
...and the skylight literally just over bed and head...
With views stretching out over the tops of the cliffs...
...and the stunning, pounding surf of the ravine just below...
...we settled in for a quiet weekend of reading and snacking...
...Hiking...
...and pampering.
Or so we thought! The weather started out beautiful, just a little wind, then a few raindrops.
We pulled on our fleeces and ate cheese in pieces...
Even bared everything for a turn in the old outdoor shower.
But sometime into the second day, a storm moved in, shaking the little house and pounding the surf with such force, I wondered if we would fly away. I even determined to take another outdoor shower in the wind and rain, rustling up my sense of adventure, certain it would be delightful if I just gave it a chance. Guess what!? I don't recommend it!
But I do recommend the Coast House. Click here for more photos and rates.
All in all, it was a perfect weekend, the weather even clearing up enough at one point to do some hiking and walks on the beach. And the stormy periods gave me cause to do a little antiquing in Florence which I might not have done with good weather.
Between the Herbs de Provence-covered pork roast and the cake and ice cream (I never miss it on my birthday), the books and the evenings spent watching old movies and Molly online in the Live Owl Box, awaiting her newest baby, we thoroughly enjoyed this Cottage of the Cliffs.