NAPPING ALONG THE OREGON COAST

DAYS 41 – 46:  Going on a holiday while ill has its challenges, but it still creates memories I wouldn’t have if I had decided to stay home.

Going on a road trip rather than renting a condo and staying in one place has had its challenges – one of them being the difficulty of taking naps.  Trying to sleep in the car while my husband is driving doesn’t give a very restful sleep. Also, I don’t always want to sleep and I force wakefulness so that I don’t miss anything.  We had actually hoped that we would reach our destinations sometime after lunch, find a hotel and there I could rest.

However, on a sightseeing holiday, we don’t always end up at the hotel that early.  Instead, we have been stopping at various viewpoints where I can sleep.  Perhaps I should write an article for those who need afternoon sleeps while traveling and give recommendations!  Certainly, the one I have done several times but don’t highly recommend is sleeping in Parkades.  It is distracting listening to the  echo of doors slamming, people returning with their purchases and sometimes it is rather cool in the parkade.  However, Greg has remedied that problem since he covers me with a blanket that can be used at football games which he carries in the trunk of his car.  Its warm fleece side warmed me up on a rather cool, rainy day sleeping in the Smart Parkade in Portland.  However, I digress.  Probably the most scenic nap point was during the Falls Loop after we hiked the hill at the Multnomah Falls.  We drove to the next falls where Greg wandered and I slept.  However, the Arcadia Beach was lovely as I inhaled the fresh fragrance of the forest while Greg sat on his lawn chair and read his book.  At the Manhattan Beach I faced the water and appreciated its beauty.

Often, Greg finds a bench near by or uses one of our lawn chairs and reads a book. However, when he decides to wander around the area, we have a disagreement regarding  how open I can keep the windows!  He doesn’t like to leave them too wide while I sleep to prevent anyone from getting in!  He has even returned and stuck his hand through the window and startled me to prove his point!  Once he poked his hand through our sun -roof worrying that that it also was too wide!  I appreciate the concern but I can’t take the heat!!

There are limitations to sleeping in the car since I have difficulty getting really comfortable.  I recline the front seat, take off my shoes and stretch my feet on the dash.  As I begin to fall asleep, the weight of my head causes it to jerk to the side or my mouth opens and I begin to drool which wakens me!!  Sometimes I try to lie on my side by leaning toward the window but that isn’t an easy undertaking.  Then of course, sometimes the sun decides to shines its rays into the window and I become very hot.  These complaints just indicate that I don’t fall asleep easily and because I don’t go into a deep sleep, I waken easily.

Sometimes I resent the need for these naps since I would like to join Greg wandering around the “nap site” or to set up my lawn chair and have a mini-break by reading my book.  However, while I wait for that time, I like to think that I am practicing a rather unique method of enjoying the Oregon Coast that most tourists don’t even know they are missing!