Fun In The Sun

Finally… over the weekend; after months of cold and rainy days — the weather temperature reached past 70 degrees for the first time this year. To celebrate the welcoming occasion, we decided to take a road trip to Long Beach, Washington. Long Beach is famous for its annual international kite flying festival and being the world’s longest beach.  It took over three hours to get there but the anticipation of walking bare feet on the warm sandy beach distracted me from the time. However, when we got there, it was windy and cold — the town didn’t look very inviting to me. Actually, I thought it looked rather depressing on a bright sunny day. So, after driving around the town a couple of times, I felt it probably would be better to head down to Cannon Beach in Oregon instead. Even though it was an additional 40 minutes drive, my instinct was right. It was a great decision. The beach and the weather was fantastic. I had a great time shooting the beautiful scenery and the furry kids had a blast of fun in the sun.

As always, I love watching the furry kids play. Their comical antics and the joy they express are priceless moments forever etched into my heart.

Of all the beaches I’ve been to along both Washington and Oregon coast, Cannon Beach is one of my most favorite. I love its smooth sandy beach and despite the rows of multi-million dollar houses packed along the coast, it still has the natural wilderness quality.

Cannon Beach is recognized by its well-known landmark, Haystack Rock. It’s often accessible at low tide, especially in the summertime — and with an elevation of 235 feet, the rock is quite an impressive sight.  During low tides, there are many interesting tide pools to explore — which I love to do. The experience tends to bring out the kid in me and I find myself poking at the anemones, searching for sea urchins, hermit crabs and other critters with wonder and excitement.

Near Haystack Rock are two tall rocks rising straight out of the water — known as the Needles. Even though they are not as tall as the Haystack Rock, nevertheless, I find them  just as impressive. As I try to picture in my mind what the area must have looked like millions of years ago when volcanic eruptions formed these rocks.

It was a beautiful day to say the least… and nothing like an amazing sunset to end the day as we headed home across the Astoria-Megler Bridge  — the longest continuous truss bridge in North America.