Our friends have a tradition of camping at the coast one weekend each summer. This year we joined them, as did about seven other families. We pretty much took over the campground with a group of about fifty--most of them kids. Our yurt was booked exactly nine months in advance, five minutes after the phone lines were open. That is how fast the yurts sell out. Camping at the coast is a chilly adventure, and having some thicker walls, a heater, and pseudo-mattresses are a real plus for those of us nearing age forty. Yes, we are wimpy and old, and have no shame in admitting that.
The temps in Portland were in the high 90s and triple-digits during the weekend we were gone. Generally, the temps are 20 degrees cooler at the coast, which we figured would be perfect. Unfortunately, I didn't take into account The Wind, which is always present at the coast, and lowers the temps even farther. Let's just say the one pair of pants and one fleece I had packed for each person got worn plum out over four days. I had no idea we could get as dirty as we did. Hello, camping.
Besides being a bit cold, we had a great time and the kids pretty much ran for three days straight. We stayed for three nights and four days, which was the perfect amount of time. Long enough to make the packing worth it, but short enough to not need a full chiropractic exam upon arriving home.
And now for the pics.
Here's our yurt site, which comes with a yurt (duh), picnic table, and a fire pit. The hammock is ours. Yes, we packed our hammock.
Inside the yurt, there was a futon, which could sleep two of the kids:
Plus a bunk bed for the parents on the bottom and one kid on top:
It's not camping until hot dogs are cooked over the fire. Everything tastes better when cooked outside. Especially when I'm not the one doing the cooking.
We picked up a couple of "pudgie pie makers" especially for this trip. This is a memory from Pa's childhood. It's basically a cast iron sandwich maker. We buttered some blueberry streusel bread and stuck blueberry pie filling in between. Nummy samwidge.
With nine families attending, there was no end of things for the kids to do. They mostly made up games based on whatever things were on hand. Here they had one of our parachute guys and a whole bunch of kids went running, throwing, and catching.
Friday was the sunniest day, so we headed to the coast to play. Here were are walking towards Fogarty Creek. Complete with Pa wearing long pants and the boys wearing fleece.
This was our view as we all enjoyed a picnic lunch. The whole group had ventured to the same beach, which was about a 20-minute drive from the campsite.
First critter we saw was a starfish. The water was its typical self--cold, cold, cold. This particular beach didn't have a very big shallow area, so we didn't hang out at the ocean's edge for too long.
This spot along the coast had a big-ol' wall of sand the kids could climb. Campers is the one in the gray fleece.
See?
This is what the boys looked like after playing on the wall of sand:
We also took some walks to see the waves roll in:
The temps were warm enough that day to make the sand feel hot. Yay!
We picked this spot along the coast because it had water for the kids to play in that was not the cold and dangerous ocean. The group of kids spent a long, long time in the creek.
They also spent some time covering themselves with sand:
The boys were the biggest fans of the creek. Building dams, digging for clay, making castles. They were a delight to watch, so industrious and happy.
We had tried to pack our kite, as the windy coast is a great spot to fly one. Unfortunately, one of our kids had dragged the thing through the garage, getting its string in knots and tied around a chair. I tried (in vain) for about an hour to get it undone. Fortunately, someone in our group brought a kite and the Suz was ever-so-excited to try it out. One thing she has going for her is energy--which means that kite was up in the air in no time. One thing she doesn't have is control, which means that kite nose-dived to the creek about three seconds later. Wheeee!
Here's the Suz in the creek, about to give me the what-for for not letting her wear her uncomfortable swim suit. Yeah, it stinks to be a girl sometimes.
Back at the campground, the kids played several rousing games of Skill Ball:
And the Suz got to join in on a fun round of Sequence:
Two of the nights we shared a potluck supper, with half of the families supplying one meal and the other half supplying the second meal. Handy! Plus, it was a nice way for all of us to connect at least one time a day. We'd talk, and play, and follow that up with some talking and playing.
On Saturday, the whole gang went to a nearby playground where the kids did more of the same--running and playing and then running some more:
The Suz was in her element. All people, all the time.
The introverts of the crowd headed to the campsite early to take in a little peace and quiet. The five of us spent some time resting and cleaning up and playing games at the table.
You can see that the kids are starting to wear down! I'm pretty sure they haven't spent that much physical energy ever before in their short, youthful lives.
We all had a great time, though Pa and I pretty much collapsed once we got home. Our bodies haven't been that tired since who knows when. As for my voice, it has recovered enough that I could converse like a normal person, at least for most of the day. I still can't shout or sing or talk for long periods of time. But it was a joy not having to whisper or sit quietly.
Anyway, the kids are already begging to go again, which I'm sure we'll do at some point. In the meantime, Pa and I are reacquainting ourselves with such luxuries as "comfortable chairs" and "TVs." Ahh, the good life.
