Summer Vacation at the Beach
The long awaited event of the summer was finally happening! I went to the beach with my family for four days followed by going to a party at my uncle and aunt’s house. I was super excited to finally go to the Oregon coast after not going for over four years.
Day 1
My family and I drove to Beaverton and stopped briefly at Uwajimaya to buy groceries and other necessities. You should have seen my dad and brothers they couldn’t stop looking at everything. They even bought a wok! The overall drive to the beach was long and I was so glad when we finally made it to our beach house.
My mom did a great time booking our place this time, because our beach house was three stories with a great view of the ocean, a hot tub, and beach access. Over the years we have stayed at different beaches along the Oregon Coast, and this was my first time staying at Rockaway Beach (it was the second time for the rest of my family). After unpacking, my dad cooked up some clams that we ate with butter; a delicious start to the vacation!
Of course since we were at the beach, we went out and explored. The water was freezing cold, but I still saw some surfers and paddle boarders. Along the way I also saw some sand castles, drawings and various shells and crabs. As per beach tradition, my dad and some of my siblings did a headstand (Joe was struggling hardcore to stay up).
Day 2
Day two started off with having breakfast at Grumpy’s Cafe & Bakery (yes, that Grumpy from Snow White). Then we paid a visit to Tillamook Air Museum. I was pleasantly surprised to find it more interesting than I thought it would be. The museum offered a scavenger hunt paper that people could do if they so desired. My sister and I spent the whole time finding the answers and it was a fun way to learn facts about the aircrafts that were there.
We returned to our place and spent the rest of the day on the beach playing frisbee, football, and soccer. We also went out in the water, but I didn’t spend that much time in it since it was so cold.
The previous day the weather had been cloudy and overcast so I didn’t have the opportunity to see any sunset. This night was different, and I saw some purple and oranges as the sun set below the ocean.
Day 3
Since the weather was so nice, we drove to Shortsand Beach to look at the tide pools and watch the surfers. There is also a hike from the beach up the mountain that my siblings and I did part of. It was a nice little hike that wound up the mountain through clover patches, ferns, and moss.
Afterwards, we drove and stopped briefly at Neahkahnie Mountain to look at the view. It was really great since it was a clear day. The last time I had stopped there, it was so misty that I could barely see anything.
Our next stop was at The Fish Peddler for lunch. They have a wide array of food to choose from. There seafood is so fresh and very affordable. I ordered the Captain’s Sampler, which had several different seafood products. It was delicious.
The rest of the day, we just chilled at the beach house and watched the sunset from the hot tub.
Day 4
Our last full day at Rockaway Beach started off when my siblings and I drove the short distance to The Three Graces. It is a really cool area when the tide is out, because you can go see the tide pools. I saw a jellyfish, lots of sea anemones, crabs, fish, etc. This was probably one of my favorite parts of the trip.
On our way to The Three Graces we had seen a sign for Barview Jetty. Since it was close by, we stopped for a short time there. It was really cool to walk along the jetty and we even saw a whale!!
For lunch, we picked up corn dogs at Pronto Pup. Fun fact: Rockaway is actually the original location that corn dogs were invented. This little corndog shop is only open a few days a week, and there was a steady stream of customers while we were there.
Day 5
Sadly, it was time to leave. We packed up all our things and began the drive to Vancouver. On the way there, we stopped at Tillamook Country Smoker. It is a shop that has a variety of beef jerky, sausages, etc.
Once we were in Vancouver, we ate lunch at Nom Nom. The Thai and Vietnamese food there was delicious and very close to our hotel. We wandered around and bought some chocolates from Fleur Chocolates. That night we had some amazing steak and dessert at Black Angus.
Day 6
Bright and early we drove to my uncle and aunt’s house to help them set up for the party. That whole day we enjoyed some live jazz, country, and rock music. It was nice to be back after so many years. I got to see my cousins and uncles and aunts that I haven’t seen in years. With our younger cousins we played horseshoes and waded in the creek. Overall, a very fun end to our vacation.
Day 7
The last day of vacation, we met up with some of our aunts and uncles for brunch at Brewed. The croissant sandwich and chai latte were so yummy. A wonderful way to end the trip. I loved that I could finally go on another beach trip with my family and that we also were able to make it to my uncle’s jazz party.
