My Sweet Camping Trip

Well, I've been back for awhile now, but I have neglected to blog about my sweet, sweet camping trip. Last week, last Thursday, to be exact, the Goingses, the in-laws, the Howlands, and the Siglers went camping, along with two other couples to Cape Lookout on the beautimous Oregon Coast.

T'was chilly, but that is to be expected when rain is predicted off the ocean. It only rained on our last day there (Sunday), but it threatened a couple of times. But we lucked out more often than not. We were able to get a group campsite, which held up to 25 people. At the height of camping, we had 23. :) Much fun was had around the campfire, making s'mores with chocolate marshmallows. Let me tell ya, peeps, the chocy marshmallows are NOT a nasty gimmick, they're FRIGGIN' GOOD... So if you see them in the store, swipe a bag and make yourself some kick-ass krispie treats!

Here's a pic of me, all snuggly in my blankie. Hey man, it was cold, even by the fire! But that blankie kept me toasty for the most part. Aren't I like, totally cool in my "Chopper" sunglasses? (Borrowed from my super-cool DH, no less. Those glasses squeezed my head, tho. I couldn't wear them all day.)

One of the cool events on the trip was the sea lion who hopped out of the ocean and chilled on the rocks by the beach for a bit. The park rangers were swarming the place, setting up signs - "Don't Feed the Sea Lion!" and "Don't Touch the Sea Lion!" LOL Guess people are, in general, pretty stoopid and need a sign to keep away. Regardless, DH was able to get this shot with his paparrazzi lens. (Actually, he wishes he had a paparrazzi lens. This was taken with just his run-o-the-mill wide angle lens).

The kids had fun, we explored the beach and brought back loads of shells and sand dollars. Everyone got dirty, regardless of the showers that weren't too far away. But hey, that's par for the course when you're camping. Taking a shower during the experience is almost sacrelige. lol You haven't been camping unless you smell like the campfire!

You see those rocks the sea lion is basking on? Well, they were a ways up the beach, and in fact, you had to traverse them in order to get to the beach. I happened to twist my ankle on one of them **grumble grumble** but anyway, the cool thing is the tide would come in around sunset and the surf would wash up on the rocks. Then it would lift all the rocks off the ground and pull them out a bit then push them back on the beach. The resulting noise of this phenomena was a sound I had never heard in my life. Almost like... Rice Krispies when they crackle in your milk, but with ocean water and smooth stones--and much, much louder. Nature's rock tumbler, I guess!

All in all, we had a great trip. We headed out to Cape Meares, saw the lighthouse that is no longer in use, then proceeded to the Tillamook Cheese Factory in Tillamook (about 10 miles from our campsite). Of course, here in Oregon, you can get Tillamook cheese and ice cream in every store you go to, so it wasn't *that* exciting. But the cool thing about it is watching them make cheese. If you go on a weekend, it's boring, because no one is working. If you ever go to Tillamook, go on a weekday so you can watch them package the cheese with their cool mechanical doo-dads. We were able to get some cheese you can't get in the normal grocery store, such as Cracked Pepper White Cheddar and Garlic and Chili Pepper Smoked Cheddar, along with what we call "Squeaky Cheese", the cheese curd they sell. Totally bad for you (as it's the stuff they scrape off the top of the cheese when they make it, but o-so-good...) If you're freaky about food textures, tho, you prolly won't like it, because like I said, it's squeaky when you eat it. LOL

The cool thing about our campsite was that it was literally ON the beach. Well, there was a dune "burm" (sp?) that kept most of the wind off us, but for the most part, all you had to do was walk past the cars, traverse the rocks, and you're there on the beach. Too cool. Waking up to the sound of the ocean crashing is pretty awesome, I must say.

If you ever go camping on the Oregon coast, I highly recommend Cape Lookout 10 miles south of Tillamook. It's sooo much fun! I'm glad to be home, but seriously, it's *just* now that I've finally caught up with all the laundry I've had to do... With four kids, a dog, and tons of clothing, towels and blankets that all smelled of campfire... That part I didn't enjoy so much. :P

~~Becka