With a zero tide this morning, we knew the sand dollar loot would be amazing. At least the local said it would be! So we parked near the beach, slept, then Micah scouted it out while I got as close to the prime picking spot as I could. It was drizzling/light raining, so we had to have a resounding thumbs up to proceed.
Micah sent me this picture…and I yelled…”hurry up..it’s time to go hunting!!!”
This was our walk out. Dash was the last straggler, because he is the most tired in the morning. I finally got him out, as I was anxious that Micah would pick up every last sand dollar.
The low tide left the coolest scene full of sand dollars and other sea life. I’m talking hundreds of crabs!
Pippi yelled “Holy Moly” (our word for an unbroken sand dollar) about every 45 seconds!
Dash’s loot was an impressive sight…and I am pretty sure he got the fifth most in the family.
Every once in a while, we would come across a live sand dollar making his circle which was pretty cool.
It was awesome!
We searched in the rain for hours! And not one complaint. The kids and parents both were in their happy places.
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As we drove south a tiny bit, we came across “Ecola State Park”. We checked it out, and discovered treaures!
First off…we discovered the most amazing change in scenery. It went from stretches of beach..to this moss-covered forest! It was like it went from A to Z in the matter of 1/4 of a mile.
At the bottom of the mile drive down to the water’s edge, we walked down this walkway to a perfect little beach cove. (Apparently a surf spot in Oregon!)
We weren’t sure what we could find, but we knew there is always something!
And you will never guess…
We found mini sand dollars!
It was party time!!!
At Ecola State Park, it somehow ended up being just me and Dash for a while. We had the best special date.
We found the prettiest tide pools together.
We found amazing rocks to climb.
And more big ones to jump off.
Honestly, this vacation is awesome. And I think it is different for each kid. For Dash, I think it is fun time spent with his family, all while he gets to expend his energy each day to its fullest. Honestly, our 45 minutes together was one of my favorite parts of the day. But another favorite part, was when we met up with everyone else, and they showed us all of their finds, and took us to their cool places!
Next stop…the Goonies rock!
Micah has completed item number 3 on his bucket list!
On our drive, we stopped at the Tillamook cheese factory. We ate lunch, and saw a bit of the factory. I love me a factory tour, but since it was a Saturday, the factory wasn’t going…so it was a so-so tour.
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Our final stop of the night was Lincoln City to find Agate.
Our agate finds were pretty meager, but we made do and figured out other awesomeness.
Like when Micah found this mountain of tires. When he sent this picture from down the beach, that is what I thought it was, but it happened to be a huge rock covered in sea anemones!
The kids explored the tidepools, and found treasure after treasure. And the best part is when our kids became the tour guides for other people asking questions.
Navy and Scout collected a bunch of Starfish for the other onlookers to inspect.
And then the time finally came, when it was time to find a shower, and settle in for the night in an unknown place.
But on our way up the beach stairs, Micah spotted whales that we watched breach a bunch of times.
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We found a beach shower that actually had warm water, and when the coast was clear — we showered up. Micah taking a literal 10 minute FULL shower!!! We set up the beds, put on a mellow movie, the kids fell asleep, and we drove until we found a place to stop for the night.
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