Summer’s End

It’s hard to switch gears from the pace of summer vacation to back-to-school mode, but such is life and it’s got to be done!  We had a splendid time visiting the Oregon coast and it was one of the most memorable holidays we’ve had so far.

Of course, we took thousands of pictures but don’t worry, I’ll only share a few 😉

The Oregon coastline is one of the most spectacular driving routes in North America.  As we passed sandy beaches, majestic cliffs, gigantic windswept boulders and lighthouses, it was hard not to be overwhelmed by the breathtaking beauty of it all.

We began our journey by crossing over this very, VERY long bridge from Washington into Oregon.  The Astoria-Megler Bridge spans the Columbia River that separates the two states. Our first night was spent in lovely Astoria.

We did all of the touristy things that Astoria has to offer including climbing to the top of the extremely tall Astoria Column.

Once you get to the top, you completely forget that your knees feel like jelly and your lungs are on fire because the view is simply amazing!

The restored home of Capt. George Flavel and his family, the Flavel House Museum was a nice stop in Astoria.

(someone needs to really clean out that dirty camera lens, oops!)

I especially loved this staricase at the back of the house but I do not envy the maids who might have had to trek up and down those stairs all day doing various chores.

And look at all the tiny, perfect stitches on these hand pieced quilts.

I love the soft colors and the look on this one.

If you are ever in Astoria, you HAVE to stop for fish and chips at Bowpicker Fish and Chips. The lines can be long, but the wait is so worth it!!

We left Astoria and continued on down the coast thinking that we would stay the night at Seaside or Cannon Beach. Considering the many hotels that are between these two cities, we thought we’d find a room for the night! NOT!!!!! There wasn’t a single room available unless we drove three hours south to Florence!  Vineet jokingly told the kids that we might have to spend the night in the car, they didn’t think it was one bit funny 😀 Anyways, we knew our best bet would be to head inland into Portland and stay there for the night and so we made that impromptu detour. What’s a family vacation without some adventure right? We’ve been to Portland before and we love that city so it was nice to be able to enjoy an unexpected visit 🙂

That “winging it with a place to stay” was only for the one night because the next part of our vacation was actually booked earlier this spring.  We found a beach house to rent for a week in Netarts Bay which is part of Tillamook County and it was just amazing.  The house is set up on a hill and overlooks the bay to the west and the open ocean to the east.

There’s a walking path from the house straight down to the beach.  The sound of the waves and the couple dozen resident seals sunning themselves on the nearby sandbars, bliss!

Spectacular sunsets and views of the Three Arches standing strong in the Pacific Ocean, so very memorable!

The kids go back to school on September 2, the day after Labor Day.  Bittersweet after the summer we’ve enjoyed together as a family.  Although, I’m looking forward to the quiet so that I can actually get back to my sewing machine!

True that we have a few more weeks until summer officially ends, but September always feels like the beginning of a new chapter!

Posted by Preeti & filed under Family, Travel, Vacation. This post has 3 comments.