Mini Vacations Rule

We don't do vacations very much, generally a few days here and there in the off-season of ranching. This means the weather is usually unreliable but there aren't many crowds either.

We decided on a mini-vacation this weekend, to celebrate with dear friends at their wedding.

 They chose the Oregon coast as their wedding site and were favored with the gift of most magnificent weather, at least for the days we were there! We hadn't been to the coast in the summer for years and while we did have to contend with a few other folks on the beach (I know, we're such hermits!) it was fun to watch them enjoying the day.

After the wedding festivities were over and we got back to our motel for a cup of tea in the afternoon, we decided to keep the car parked and walk on the beach instead of exploring the forest around Devils Lake. Everyone must have been feeling the love because there were no idiots, louts or badly behaved dogs. It was as though the sunshine put a haze of mellow joie de vivre around us all.

My grandmother lived on the coast around Lincoln City for many years and I have some sweet memories of time spent there. There are a few particular places I always like to go.

One is a headland at the end of Lincoln Beach, where Grams' last home was (and still is) located. As a girl, I'd hike down the beach, climb up to the rocks and sit on the one that had a survey marker on it, watching the ocean breathe and thinking long thoughts.

When I finally returned to that rock, ten years ago, after a thirty year absence, my heart whistled a happy tune as I gazed down into the churning surf and realized the ocean's breath hadn't changed at all. It felt like a circle had been completed, and now, no matter what the weather is doing or what I'm wearing, a few moments on Fishing Rock is required each time we visit the area.

Lincoln Beach itself is no longer my favorite for walking. Goddy and I have created our own special memories at Beverly Beach, and so another one came to be today. All that unmarked, unpeopled sand was to tempting, and with Goddy's warning of "Don't hurt yourself," I couldn't resist...