Today's the day we split out from the Portland area and headed for the coast. My sister got off at 2pm and took Thursday off, so we could spend some time checkin' out the ocean, before the holiday hordes descend. It's about an hour and a half drive from Hillsboro, so we could have done it in a day trip, but we wanted to take our time and see more. So, Dug booked a room ahead and got a sweet deal on a great place in Seaside, OR.
We drove about half way and stopped at Camp 18
for a potty break, photo op, and decadent dessert. Maia had been there before and wanted us to see the antique logging equipment, wood carvings 
and camouflaged elephant. 
I have always loved gears--the way they look and interconnect and the cool shadows they cast. And I've always loved rusting machinery being overtaken by green plants. It's such great imagery and symbolism and just plain looks interesting aesthetically.
Dug was all about figuring out what each piece did and when it dated back to and what type of engine it had. 
The kids snapped a bunch of photos, but mostly saw the rusting heaps as one big playground for climbing. We all enjoyed the quirky collection in our own ways.
My sister and I had berry related pies ala mode while the kids had huge brownie sundaes and Dug had a local beer.
We took a short hike along the stream and took a ton of photos around the funky place.
We made it to the coast by early evening, checked in at The River Tide and bundled up for a beach walk. It was breezy and a bit chilly. Undeterred by the air and water temp, the kids rolled up their pants and romped into the icy and crashing waves, enjoying every minute.
Dug was drooling over the number of kites flying all along the beach and mentioned several times that he wished he had a kite along. Before we left, a family magically wandered up and gave us their double kite, since they were leaving town.
They were two cheap ones tied together, but hey. Why look a gift kite in the mouth?! It was unbelievably high up and took ages to wind it in. By that time the kids were soaked and shivering. The area is prone to "sneaker waves" and a few big ones nailed the kids, drenching their hoodies and pants. We walked back to the hotel, a wet and sandy mess.
The room had a fireplace which the kids eagerly flipped the switch on. "They're big faker liars!" Zilla loudly proclaimed. When I asked what she was talking about, she said "This is NOT a FIREPLACE." Point taken. It was an electric pseudo flame lookin' deal behind a pane of glass that gave off little heat. We put the kids in the tub with jets for a hot bath and de-sandification. Then Dug ventured out in search of carry out dinner while my sister and I took the kids down to the pool and hot tub which were open till 11pm. No fakers there. The water was quite real. And much hotter than the Pacific!
We had the place to ourselves, except for one dad and a chatty 7 year old, Hailey (Halley's Comet-- Hell is comin'), whose family has moved to Oahu...but they haven't been able to sell their home in Oregon....so they have two homes....but she really lives in Hawaii now.....and she's starting 2nd grade.......la, la, la. The 3 kids had a blast playing together and comparing swim and silly jump tricks while I kept a lookout from the excellent poolside hot tub.
After a while, 4 middle aged Canadians from Vancouver Island came to share the hot tub with me. When we'd all made our introductions and stated our cities, one lady asked if I'm a hockey fan. I emphatically said yes, to which she bluntly said, "You know we all hate you." In the interest of international relations, I said, "I'm OK with that." And I didn't gloat over our winning season or throw a squid at them. We found common ground commiserating over ticket prices and scarcity of playoff tickets. They had been up since 4am, to make the ferry off their home island, so I forgave them for their misguided fan loyalty.
After an hour of pool time, we went back to the room and ate a late dinner and relaxed in the glow of the liar fire. Then we all fell exhausted into bed, to dream of ocean adventures to come.
Your old rusty equipment and gears shots are great as are all of the ocean photos. You have some marvelous reflection and shadows pix as well. We enjoyed your descriptions of all of the happenings of the day.
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