Fun in Florence

Old Town Florence is a cute area. It's small enough to easily walk around, with interesting gift shops, art galleries and good restaurants.

South of town, the Sand Dunes Recreational Area covers over 40 miles and some of the dunes are as tall as 300 feet. The beaches are great for leisurely beachcombing and/or sunset strolls.

Heceta Head Lighthouse is the most photographed one on the Oregon coast and is about 1/2 hour away by car. There are pleasant hiking trails in the nearby wooded area. The lighthouse keeper's cottage is now a B&B and interpretative centre and there is a gift shop at the complex as well. If you're a lighthouse fan, for a small donation, you can take a guided tour and pick up momentos like magnets or pins. If you're not into lighthouses, check out the sandy beach framed by rocky cliffs below the lighthouse. Even if the water is too cold for swimming, it's a very scenic spot for a stroll. You need a day pass to park at the site (.00) and there are picnic benches and public toilets near the parking lot.

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There is a large (free) parking lot near the harbour and the International C Food Restaurant.

The hotel is fairly new and the rooms are spacious and very clean. It''s located right on the scenic coast highway so is a breeze to locate.

The main building houses reception, as well as a large, bright and sunny breakfast area, an exercise room and hot tub that comfortably seats eight. The guest rooms are in the two storey building behind. There are no elevators, just stairs at either end of the building and there are pop and ice machines at each end as well. Washers and dryers are available for guest use.

Our room had 2 queen size beds and a decent sized bathroom. Free HBO was something the teen in our party appreciated. There was also a second sink outside the bathroom where the coffee maker and supplies were kept. Since we were four women sharing a room, this extra sink came in handy in the morning.

Breakfast was included and featured a selection of cold cereal, breads for toast, donuts, fresh fruit and coffee and tea, including an extensive selection of herbal teas.

There was no restaurant in the hotel but there were lots nearby and it''s less than a 5 minute drive into Old Town Florence.

The room rate was $101.50.

This large restaurant is located at the waterfront in Florence and is actually built on wooden pilons over the water. It's neuvo rustic and the interior is bright with lots of windows and murals on the walls. The menu is extensive - even the wine list is two pages long.

Since this is the Oregon coast, you'd expect to find lots of seafood and ICF doesn't disappoint. Standard menu items include a large bowl of steamed clams in a delicious white wine and garlic broth (recommended), oysters, shrimp cocktail, popcorn shrimp, calamari, clam chowder, surf and turf, crab, fresh fish, etc., etc. Some of the more inspired offerings include seafood pot pie with fish, scallops and prawns in puff pastry, halibut poached in wine, thin crust pizza with pesto and rock shrimp (two sharing couldn't finish the pizza)and the fisherman's net, a gigantic combo plate featuring crab, fish, scallops, shrimp, mussels, prawns, clams, oysters and calamari in a white wine sauce. Good luck finishing this one!

For those not into seafood, there is a large selection of pastas, pizzas, burgers (delicious, according to my neice), sandwiches, steak, prime rib, etc. There really is something here for everyone.

The portions are VERY large and a number of people leave with doggie bags. We shared a full size appetizer of garlic cheese bread (yummy!) and it was way too much, even for four sharing. In fact, all of our meals were very good but so much that we weren't able to finish any of them - although we tried very hard.

Desserts included a 7 layer carrot cake, lemon meringue pie or multi layered chocolate cake. They all looked delicious but we had absolutely no room to even consider them.

As well as a variety of fresh fish, the special of the day was All-you-can-eat dungeness crab for $24.95 and judging by the number of plates coming from the kitchen, it was a hit with many of the patrons.

Prices averaged about $15.00 for entrees and this was a place we voted to unanimously return to anytime we were in the area.

South of Florence, the Oregon Dunes National Recreational Area stretches for about 40 miles and some of the dunes are over 300 feet tall. There are a couple of places where you can rent a dune buggy to tour the area and we chose Sandland Adventures, just across the bridge from Florence.

One hour tours cost $30.00 per person and consist of a driver and 4-5 passengers per buggy. It's a narrated tour that includes a roller coaster like ride over the dunes, some of which are almost straight down, as well as an open stretch of flat beach area. Views from the top of some of the larger dunes are incredible but you can't get out of the buggy and it's pretty hard to take pictures as you are speeding along at what feels like 50 m.p.h. Be prepared for lots of sand - in your hair, your clothes and your face but goggles are provided to keep the sand out of your eyes.

For those with less time, money and/or sense of adventure, there are 1/2 hour tours for $15.00 but it doesn't include any time along the beach nor do you get to as many dunes as the hour long trip.

There is also a more sedate trip in a giant dune buggy that seats 40 people and costs $10.00 for an hour's tour. This is the only tour that leaves from the Sandland lot; the rest start and end at a park area about 2 minutes away by car.

As well as tours, you can rent your own dune buggy at $45.00 per hour but the clerk didn't recommend it for us since the buggies weigh over 600 pounds and are hard to right if you happen to tip. Also, she said that drive your own buggies are restricted to a much smaller area that doesn't include the beach or any of the larger dunes.

Sandland has lots of other activities at their main site. You can rent go karts, bumper boats, play mini golf ($5.00 for 18 holes) or browse through their large gift shop.

There is lots of parking at their lot and this is definitely an adventure you should experience when in Florence.

It's open 7 days a week, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. during the summer and until 5 p.m. throuighout the rest of the year. Their phone number is (541) 997 8087.

Eleven miles north of Florence is one of the main tourist attractions on the coast. These natural caves are the only lair and rookery for wild Stellar sea lions on the U.S. coast and they house lots of sea lions.

Entrance is inside the gift shop and you walk down a flight of stairs to get to the first level outside. You can't see the caves from here but there are nice views of the coast and you can watch some of the sea lions cavorting in the water. If you're lucky, you might be able to spot whales too.

A short walk will take you to the elevators where you descend over 200 feet to the cave which is as long as a football field and twelve storeys high. Inside, you can watch the lions and their pups as they frolic and jump in and out of the water. You can't take flash pictures because it frightens the animals. You're certainly not close enough to touch them but you sure can smell them and let me tell you, it's not Chanel No. 5.

You can't see the caves from the highway, just the large building that houses the gift shop. It has good quality souvenirs of the caves and Oregon in general, including nearby Heceta Head lighthouse. I liked the machine that turns a penny into a mini copper plaque of either the sea lion caves or Heceta Head lighthouse and at .50, it's quite a bargain souvenir.

There is plenty of free parking, some in front of the gift shop but most across the highway. Outside the gift shop entrance is also a good place to take pictures of scenic Heceta Head lighthouse, just one mile north.

The caves are open 7 days a week. Admission is $6.50 for adults and $4.50 for children.