Star trails

Cape Lookout campground, Oregon

Oregon Coast Road Trip and Car Camping

As I survived another quarter at school, I wanted a getaway during school break to reward myself. So I decided to go on a road trip and car camping along the oregon coast. It was indeed a refreshing experience. The weather was sunny most of the time which revealed the true coastal beauties from the north to the south of Oregon.

5-star hotel is overrated :)


The weather was still around 40-60F in March but I got my camping gears ready to keep me warm though there were times when it rained and the wind blew my tent so hard I thought it would be torn apart :). There were many campgrounds along the coast. It was a different experience getting out of civilization for a bit and sleeping under trees or open sky. The smell of fresh air, the singing birds in the morning and the sound of crickets at night were sort of soundtracks :). I expected the inconveniences and discomforts but they didn't seem to bother much when you have appreciation for nature. In fact, comparing to previous road trips, I enjoyed camping more than hotels. Now I suppose I understand why many others like to go camping.

View from Ecola State Park


It seems like there were a lot of things to see on each turn and curve of the coast. Some of the highlights were huge rock formations, lighthouses, surging waves against the rocks and sea lions. It also happened to be grey whale migration season (from south to north) which I was able to spot a few white spouts of grey whales from the coast on clear days. Even though it was hard to see them without binoculars, it was still exciting to know they're there by watching their spouts. It was also thrilling to hike up a steep cliff at Cape Lookout and sand dune in Florence.

The watch that survived the Khmer Rouge

My dad's Rolex, mentioned in Chapter 2, 5 and 17, is still working great after 40 years. A piece of machine and history.

My Father's book, 2nd edition

“The Life of a Physician Under The Khmer Rouge Regime” tells the odyssey of a Cambodian doctor in Cambodia's northwestern province, Battambang, during the Khmer Rouge regime (1975-1979) which wiped out nearly 2 million Cambodians.

The author is one of the Khmer Rouge survivors who lives to tell what he has witnessed during the three years and eight months under the ruthless Khmer Rouge regime and a number of events that occurred after the collapse of the Khmer Rouge.

Available now in Phnom Penh book stores.

Happy 2010!

Rainy, cloudy and windy new year, the Seattle way!

Sunset at Golden Gardens park