About a year ago I sold a guy a part for a good price for one of his vehicles. He also just happened to be the owner of the Rogue River Mail Boats at the time. He thanked me and said he would send me some free tickets for helping him out. I chose not to say anything to the rest of the family in case nothing happened but about 3 or 4 days later a set of 4 tickets arrived in the mail. Since it was late in the season he even dated them so they could be used for the 2010 season as well. This past weekend we finally were able to use them. He had originally given us the 80 mile trip package but when we arrived at the office they graciously upgraded us to the 104 mile trip for free! We rate these trips very highly and I would say that if someone had no other reason to come to Gold Beach this would still be a very good reason to show up. It was a beautiful day and the fog was just lifting as we made our way under the Patterson Bridge to began our voyage.
Soon the sun was shining, the temperature was rising and even more smiles were appearing. Animals started showing up too! Let's see if I can remember everything we saw. Osprey,Blue Heron,Egret,Bald Eagle,Merganser,Cormorant,deer,otter,bear,and turtles.
Here's a few pics showing what we saw.
Bald Eagle
Western Pond Turtles
River Otters
Black Bear
Jason was definitely happiest when we were moving. Whenever the driver announced that we were going to do a high speed spin he looked like this!
Fortunately we seem to always sit behind someone who doesn't mind the extra attention from Jason. This particular lady was a kindergarten teacher from Coos Bay and she seemed to enjoy it! 
Annalie had a blast all day and was certainly the most lively one on board!
Everytime I get to take this trip I'm reminded of the beauty of this special place. It was also a busy day on the water with rafters who no doubt feel the same way. We feel fortunate to live so close.
