Flying High!!!

Those of us who went to the beach yesterday were flying high, both literally and figuratively!!!  If you could use a little exercise and a LOT OF FUN, this is an easy sport you should try.  It's very portable for those RV'ers on the road and just a kick in the pants!!!  I can't thank Nick and Terry Russell enough for getting me involved.

We trekked out to the beach, laid down my big tablecloth and deposited my new kite bag full of all my gear.  Let's get flying!!!

I was worried there wouldn't be enough wind, as there wasn't even a small breeze at the campground.  The beach however, was a different story!!  Nick's little wind meter said l7-20 mph.  Perfect for my Revolution 1.5 full vented kite.  Isn't she pretty???

With the wind blowing nicely, it was a piece of cake to get her in the air.  She almost flew herself!!  In no time at all I was doing spins, stalls and landings.  No, I'm not telling you about those times I flew it straight into the ground with a  C  R  A  S  H  !!!  For my first time in "real" wind, I think I did pretty good!!!

Dan flew his Prism Snapshot like a pro ... zooming back and forth across the beach until his arms gave out.  This time I brought my little point and shoot camera, so he took these pictures for me.

Even with the vented kite, it pulled me around the beach like a feather, which I'm definitely NOT!!  Pretty soon my hands began to cramp up.  Time to take a break!!

Miss Terry didn't really feel well and decided not to fly.  After Nick flew his new Prism Micron stunt kite, which looked like a bumblebee on steroids, it was so fast, he and Terry set up his new Revolution B-Series beauty!! 

It's amazing with just a tiny flick of the wrist, these will fly aloft and soar through the sky.  It takes some concentration the first few times to be sure you don't flick your wrist the wrong way, but it's definitely learnable and FUN FUN FUN!!!

If you're susceptible to the sun, be sure and cover up, or wear lots of sunscreen because you are going to be out here for hours, actually enjoying exercise!!!  Notice the thing at the right of this image that looks like a bird??  That's a hydrofoil kite attached to a surfboard!

Nick was flying high ... or rather low in this case, trying to keep the kite in front of me for a picture.

Here's the best shot I could get with my little camera of the wind surfer out on the water.  It was amazing to see how far this guy could go in a matter of a few minutes.  He is barely visible in the bottom right hand corner.

Time flies when you're having fun and two hours went by in a flash.  Time to head back to the rigs for another great Patty Chance dinner and a load of advil for my aching arms.  The funny thing is, I can't wait to do it again!!!

Great Friends ... Great Burgers!!!

Cannon Beach ... Carmel of the Oregon Coast.  Named for a cannon discovered in 1898 from a U.S. Navy Schooner that went aground in 1846, Cannon Beach lost it's Hwy 101 status when a tsunami hit in 1964.  With the bridge gone, the highway was relocated further East, but that didn't keep Cannon Beach from being a tourist magnet.  Come early in the day to find a parking spot!!

The first thing you will notice is the abundance of absolutely amazing flowers, growing in every inch of dirt and flower pot available.  Miss Patty went with me to check out the local yarn/quilt/candy stores and we oohed and ahhhhed the entire walk around town.  It's a good thing she didn't bring her "nursey" scissors!!  Patty being an ER nurse, always carried her scissors around, which she used to clip pieces of greenery at everyone's doorstep!!

As is the case on the casual coast, some of the stores weren't open at 10:00 as we wandered down the street.  The Picnic Basket opened it's doors a little after 10:00 ... close enough to lunch for me!!!

I guess this is what "laid back" means ... many of the stores have signs saying they will be open about 10 ... or maybe 11ish .... or "be back soon"!!!

The Picnic Basket had one of the best showcases of different flavored fudge I've ever seen!!  At $8.00 for two squares, I was able to pass it by ... most unusual for me!!

Bruce's Candy Kitchen was our second stop.  They make all their taffy behind the glass wall so you can see how the crazy little machine cuts and wraps each piece.  You can taste test the newest flavor sensation from the small basket just inside the entrance door.  They had some weird candies here ... many that hark back to my childhood.  You know, the ones my parents would never let me have ... including these Gummy Fried Eggs!!!

There are many galleries here with paintings, photography and glass.  Although a little too pricey for my beer budget, it's fun to wander through and admire the artistry!!

This group of flowers were definitely happy campers!!  I've never seen so many blooms on one plant!!

 

Another gorgeous variety of nasturtium.  I think these are called Phoenix Mix (internet search because I had no clue).  Nasturtiums are edible ... wouldn't this look nice on your dinner plate???

We stopped in at the quilt shop to find this beautiful succulent blooming like crazy!!  It's about 15 inches across!!!   Maybe if I lived here, I could actually grow things!!!

More succulents still holding the morning dew ... 

If you like quilt material, stop in at Center Diamond on the south end of town.  This shop has more batiks than you can shake a stick at ... and many more unique fabrics than I've ever seen anywhere ... and that includes a LOT of quilt stores!!!

Miss Patty is a GREAT friend ... she helped me pick out 20 ... yes 20 fabrics for a quilt called Turning Twenty.  This picture doesn't do the fabrics justice at all!!!  They are just gorgeous and will make a great memory quilt of my time on the Oregon Coast!!

As you walk around town, there are markers giving the history of many of the buildings.  Back in the 20's when the rich and famous rode trains to this area to relax on the beach, they built this skating rink.  It's now the Coastal Theatre Playhouse where locals put on shows like Little Shop of Horrors.

Tired of shopping, if you can believe it, we headed back to the rigs for a little rest before having dinner with Terry and Nick Russell at this 100% dive bar called Relief Pitcher (right on Hwy 101 just south of Seaside).  Don't let the outside decor, peeling paint or motorcycles, keep you from having dinner here.  They have the best burgers on the coast!!

There's a half pound of burger here, covered with fresh tomatoes, lettuce and pickles alongside two huge thick slices of bacon!!  I skipped the fries and went for the cole slaw, full of cranberries and raisins!!  Miss Terry and Patty had tomato basil soup, also delicious!!  The service was great and the prices reasonable ... what better place to have a great burger and tell stories!!

If you're really lucky and you have good eyes like Patty Chance, you'll find one of these beauties sitting just outside the window.  This is a Giraffe Moth, aptly named I think!!

Today the wind is supposed to come up a bit allowing us some afternoon kite flying time.  Maybe I can get mine to do more than go up, go down and crash!!!  Hopefully everyone's kites will fly high and long!!!  

Farmers Market #2 ... Astoria!!

Probably the best farmer's market I've ever been to, The Astoria Sunday Market is well worth the trip.  It amazes me how creative people can be.  Unfortunately I can't show you lots of images.  Those same amazing Artists don't like people walking around with big cameras "stealing" their ideas and possibly their customers.  I can't say I blame them, so even if you don't see something you might like here, definitely wander up to Astoria on Sunday!!

At 10:00 in the morning when they opened it was pretty crowded, despite the light rain.  If you like fresh veggies, this is the place to bring a really big shopping bag.  They have everything you could ever want.  Dan is a meat eater, so vegetables and goat cheese weren't on his list.  

Many, if not all, of the vendors we saw in Ilwaco were here.  This was probably the most interesting idea we saw for picture frames.  The gentleman took pictures of everyday items and added corresponding things to the shadow box.  The glass of wine picture had wine corks, the sand dollar picture had sand and a dollar bill, the Sees candy picture had empty candy wrappers .. you get the picture!!  Since this was DEFINITELY an idea to copy, I snuck in a quick picture when the vendor wasn't looking!!  

Next Sunday ... yes we will return next week ... I'll take more "phone" pictures, pick up some fruit (blueberries, raspberries, marionberries, blackberries) and maybe some jams and jellies!! 

My favorite place to drop a few bucks is at the very end ... the bakery!!  They have samples of everything but the pies ... a great place to pick up dessert on the go.  I purchased a small cherry pie (bribery for Dan in case we run into a quilt shop) and taste-tested every cookie, including the lemon white chocolate.   You can also sample every jar of jam and jelly!!  Breakfast on a cracker!!

There were tables of peaches, apricots, carrots, basil ... weird looking things I won't eat, like eggplant ... just an amazing variety of edibles!!

It's almost as fun to people watch as it is to shop!!  There are some interesting characters here ... like the girl with shocking turquoise-blue hair and her matching husband.  I didn't know Just For Men came in brilliant blue!!

This one I couldn't figure out.  I thought they were maybe wind socks ... some kind of hanging drapery accent ... but finally discovered they are mermaid outfits for your granddaughters ... or daughters as the case may be.  I'm not sure how they walk around in them ... maybe they are just for lounging around the pool!!!

At the North end are the food concessions, everything from falafel to Indian cuisine to Chinese food is served here, including hand sandwiches.  I purchased one for $6 .. BBQ pork with cole slaw in the middle.  It was delicious!!!

From the market, we drove up to the highest point in Astoria ... reminiscent of the streets of San Francisco.  The view of the big ships waiting to go up the river is spectacular!!

At the very top is the Astoria Column ... under construction on this day and so wrapped up you couldn't see any part of it.  It's $2.00 to park and enjoy the view, so we just drove through the parking lot and headed back out.  It's totally worth the drive up however, just to see this amazing scary bridge that crosses the Columbia River.  Hard to believe, but they say it is actually 4.1 miles long!!!

 The view to the South is where Lewis and Clark built the fort we visited a couple of days ago!!

More exploration and adventure are on the horizon for today ... Cannon Beach ... and I'm taking my phone for pictures!!!

Ilwaco Farmers Market ... Don't Miss It!!

Saturday is Farmers Market day in Ilwaca Washington, a few miles north of the Astoria-Megler Bridge.  It pays to get an early start, or at least be on the road by 9:30.  Traffic over the bridge can be bad at times.  You can see the leftover clouds from the morning rainstorm and maybe even smell the fresh air!!!

The market sets up along side the harbor where the fishing boats come and go as you walk the length of the dock.  Just park where you see all the fisherman's trucks with boat trailers.

There's everything from food to hand crafted items to toys and woodwork.  The best part is I don't think I saw anything that was overpriced except maybe the tacos.  If you have a special request and can hang around another week, most of the artists will make whatever you want.  

These boats were being cleaned after coming back to the dock with crab and fish.  Unlike other docks where gates keep you out, you can walk down these docks to the boats and talk to the fishermen.

A group effort, ladies were selling raffle tickets for this beautiful quilt.  Patty and I donated a couple bucks to this and to the local animal shelter that works to adopt out all their dogs.

A couple years ago I bought some of the best smoked barbecue sauce, but he wasn't here this time.  Patty's fish tacos were however!!  Too bad I ate that big breakfast!!

There were things to taste, including olives, garlic and raw cranberry juice.  There was even cranberry lemonade ... YUMMY!!!

Here was an entire table of "Barbara" purses.  Barbara Westerfield has many purses this size, in just about every color under the sun.  These were all made from heavy tapestry material with matching glass zipper pulls that she made for each piece.  

For $15.00 I purchased this one after the one I had my eye on was taken by someone else!!  RATS!!!  It's okay, this one is beautiful too!!  There were fancy ones and plain ones ... perfect for Barbara!

These three play old cowboy tunes, every weekend, year after year.  They work for free, so throw a few bills in their tip jar.  Probably not the best band you've ever heard, but their enthusiasm makes up for it!!!

There were several wood carvers making everything from knife handles to bowls, but this Hobbit bird house had me at tweet tweet!!  It's over twelve inches tall carved out of a solid piece of wood and at a measly $25, paid for his entire space at the market.  Every other sale for him will be money in the bank!!  Now THAT'S the kind of crafter I like to purchase things from.

It was a great day in Ilwaco and I came home with a few treasures, but not until we stopped in at the quilt store in Astoria, to save Dan the embarrassment of being the only husband waiting outside on the sidewalk.  He was certainly happy about that!!

Today is the HUGE Astoria Farmers Market, my all time favorite ... also one you should NOT miss if you are anywhere near this part of Oregon/Washington.  After last night's deluge from the sky, we will again have beautiful clean cool air to breathe.  I can't wait to see what treasures reside on the street corners of Astoria!!