Haystack Rock

Spent the morning at Haystack Rock, dodging waves, building sand castles, poking mussels and otherwise having a wonderful time exploring the beach and the water. We actually went into the water, at least to the shins, and got a lot of odd states from passersby. The water is a bit cold, yes, but I didn't come all this way without planning to get my feet wet. All we have to do is say "We're from Idaho, we're used to the cold," and that seems to satisfy most people.

Running into and out of the surf was great. The kids would take their buckets and scoop up water, then dump it in the little lakes they built by their sand castles. Then a big wave would come in and they'd give a fake scream and run. I think we were entertaining a lot of people with our weird little antics.

Haystack Rock is a tremendous place, even without the Goonies connection. (Side note: A shop here sells replica Spanish doubloons. Sales were slow until they re-named them "Goonie Treasure." I may have to buy one before we leave.) lots of life clinging to that thing. Aside from the sea birds, which I cannot name at this time, there are little crabs crawling on the cracks in the rocks, mussels and barnacles clinging to everything, and barnacles clinging to everything else, including other mussels and barnacles. We even saw sea stars and anemones.

I will try to post a few photos here, but I also don't want to spend a lot of time in the computer, either.

Another Oregon note: Pet-friendly doesn't begin to describe it. Pet-obsessed, but in a good way. Pet bowls with water on the sidewalks, pet groomers and vets everywhere.