This tree always amazes me each time I see it. This year I parked around the corner and walked up and took a few closer pictures of it from below.

While in Pacific Grove we dropped in at Back Porch Quilts and enjoyed looking around the shop. Then it was back on the road where we stopped in Moss Landing at Phil's Fish Market and shared a crab and shrimp quesadilla for lunch.

Along the cliff drive in Santa Cruz I spotted this Pelican mail box, what a whimsical design it is.

We watched the waves crashing in along the cliffs for while.

You might be able to spot the fisher people on the ledge just above the cave. I wonder what they were able to catch?

Back on the road and we continued along driving through San Francisco and then spent the night in Santa Rosa.

In Eureka Scottie Dog Quilts was closed but we did find Ocean Wave Quilt shop on V Street just off 101 in a converted house. They had some felted wool, but their prices were quite expensive.

We spent the night in Crescent City where we found a little Mexican Restaurant called Perlita's, mom tried the chicken enchilada and I had a chicken mole burrito. Both were great and the prices very good. Lots of locals in the shop including the high school teacher of one of the women working there!

Unfortunately I forgot to check my camera battery and have no pictures for 24 hours.

Back into Oregon where our first stop was Country Keepsakes in Brookings, a nice little shop I've not been to before, she has been open for 22 years.

Next stop was Quilter's Quarters in Port Orford, always a favourite shop of mine.

In Bandon by the Sea we stopped at Forget Me Knots quilt shop. It is a lovely large shop with lots of choices, they encourage you to bring your own bag and will credit you towards their rewards program by giving you 2 points if you don't use a bag!

They recommended Two Loons cafe for lunch which was very enjoyable. Took a few pictures with mom's camera of some wind chimes and banners in the village centre.

In Coos Bay we dropped into Threads That Bind Quilt shop that had a backing sale on. Too bad I didn't need any.

Farther north we stopped in Florence first at Joy of Quilting and their new consignment/art gallery shop called Gigi Mo's Quilt Gallery. They had some lovely pieces on display.

Farther along the road we went into Wenz-daze [pronounced Wednesday's] Quilt Shop. It was formerly known as Jody's Quilt Shop; the new shop is quite large with an extensive collection of flannels and has a long arm quilt machine in it.

At Ruth's Fabrics in Walport I found a cute little mini iron that decided to come home with me courtesy of my mom. Great for small projects and workshops.

We arrived in Newport for the night to find that Quilter's Cove was closed already; but it was our first stop of the next morning. They appear to be downsizing their shop but it is still a large friendly store.

In Depoe Bay we sat and watched some of the waves crashing onto the shore. They day was grey and rainy, but enjoyable to watch the waves for awhile.

In Lincoln City we walked through one of their large antique malls for a bit of a break and then headed to B.J.'s Fabrics in Cloverdale. There were two cars already there and there were about a dozen women in this little shop! There is only one shopkeeper and by the time she finished cutting their fabric she looked exhausted. They are part of a larger group staying in Tillamook and exploring the quilt shops along the coast.

We bypassed Jane's Fabrics thinking they would all be there and went to the Tillamook Creamery for an ice cream cone and found them there instead!

These skunk cabbage were in B.J.'s garden, they looked so pretty with the rain falling on them.

We decided to continue north to Canon Beach and have a late lunch at Crabby Sue's. It seems each time we get there it is closed for the day, well this time it was permanently closed! Their wonderful bronze of the child with a kite was gone. We went into Centre Diamond and found that several businesses in town had closed over the winter.

We left the coast and headed towards Portland where we spent the night in Beaverton.

The next morning we went into Fabric Depot before heading back into Washington State.

In Castle Rock we went to Quilt Nest Quilt Shop and then had a good lunch at Hatties.

Driving up the I-5 we found Sister's Fabrics in Chehalis. What a large selection of English paper pieces and 1930's style fabrics. I don't think I've seen so many in one spot. They advertise they carry over 10,000 bolts of fabric.

Next stop was Quilter's Junction in Centralia before continuing up to Fife for the night.

The next morning we stopped briefly at the Outlet Mall at Exit 200 before going to Aunt Mary's Quilt Shop in Smokey Point.

Then a quick visit to Trader Joe's in Bellingham and then back across the border and home.

Travelling up through Oxnard we saw lots of artichokes growing in the fields. We went to San Paula and checked out Brownie's Basement. This shop recently changed hands and they have some great bargains tucked in amongst the bolts of fabrics and gift items.



We took a driving break in Solvang where we walked along the Danish themed shops and had a driving break. We spent our next night in Santa Maria where the quilt shop had just closed.



Next we checked out Arroyo Grande and the Quilt Attic http://www.quiltspot.com/ I got a copy of their upcoming November Shop Hop to locate some shops along the way north. We drove through San Louis Obispo bypassing Betty's Fabrics and stopped in at Quiltin' Cousins in Pismo Beach. This is a small but well stocked little shop.



In Morro Bay we stopped again at the Cotton Ball http://www.thecottonball.com/ they have quilting, home decorating, knitting and sewing machines in this 2 level shop.



Continuing north we explored antique shops in Cayucous and then went into In Stitches http://www.cayucosinstitches.com/ she has been open just over a year and has some delightful quilts hanging on the front porch. We had lunch at The Little Market where they custom made a great sandwich for us.



On our way to Pacific Grove we looked at Japanese fabrics in Back Porch Fabrics
http://www.backporchfabrics.com/ Their computer system keeps you on file and I found that I was last there in 1999! Their staff is very informative and helpful.



Do you ever get the feeling that there is something special happening but you've not been to a place before? Well as I approached Moss Landing my bells started ringing in my head, I recalled seeing a show on Food Network about a Fish Market/Restaurant. Well, next thing you know I'm going up and down streets trying to locate it and that I did! Phil's Fish Market and Eatery http://www.philsfishmarket.com/links.html We tried both their white and red clam chowder with a steamed artichoke and garlic bread-great! As we left Moss Landing we spotted some antique shops that were closed for the day. Next time I'll check them out.

We spent the night in Santa Cruz and stopped in Half Moon Bay where we enjoyed a Flower Market and then their Farmer's Market. We then drove up through San Francisco the next morning. We stopped at the vista point at the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge to take some pictures.

We then headed up through vineyards and orchards as we continued North along the Redwood Highway. At times the trees crowded along the highway until we were again back at the ocean beaches; just in time to watch the sun set. We ended the day in Eureka.

The next morning it was cloudy, one of the few we encountered on the trip. As we drove into Crescent city the skies turned sunnier and we found a few antique shops open early on this Sunday morning.

Just across the Oregon border we stumbled upon our second quilt show! This was a small but interesting show with a good vendor's market.

Onto Port Orford and Quilter's Quarters, always a necessary stop for me. Then in Bandon we stopped at Bandon Boatworks Restaurant http://www.bandon.com/webfront/merchants/merchantdetails.php?merchantid=18 Forget Me Knots Quilt shop has moved onto Highway 101 into yet another larger store [the third location I've found them in] http://www.forget-me-knots.net/ We found out there was yet another quilt show that day in Coos Bay, unfortunately it was just about to close and we were about 20 minutes drive away. We did drop by Threads that Bind http://www.threadsthatbind.net/ only to find that they had closed for the weekend to be at the show.

The Oregon Coast Quilt Shops are having a shop hop in February 2008, I just might head down to it. We finished our day in Florence enjoying yet another bowl of clam chowder.