Astoria (in early July)

For three weeks in June and July, Kevin stayed down in Astoria, OR (minus a couple trips home) where he had his boat in dry dock so that he and his crew could do some work on it - repaint, put on a new propeller, etc. (It was WAY cheaper at the boat yard in Astoria, if you were wondering why he picked such a far away place.) The kids really wanted to see what the boat looked like out of the water, but Kevin said we couldn't come until it was all finished as it wouldn't be safe to hang out while they were working on it. So, finally (as these things always take way longer than expected!), Kevin called and let us know the day the boat was scheduled to go back in the water. The kids and I were so excited! My parents came along with us and we had a very, very fun and memorable day together.

When we first arrived at the boat yard, the guys were doing some last minute welding and scrambling to get the boat ready for the lift. Thus, we were told to leave for a bit (kind of anti-climactic, eh?), but it was all good as we drove a few blocks over and hopped on the $1 trolley that goes along the waterfront of Astoria.

This trolley ride was so much fun! I can't speak highly enough about it. The trolley is 100 years old and was beautiful and fun in itself (i.e. seat backs that have to be flipped at the end of the line so that we could go back the other way!). The ride was lovely, right along the waterfront the whole way. The employees (or volunteers??) were wonderful and provided an entertaining and interesting (but not inappropriate!) commentary about the history of various buildings we could see and of good recommendations of things to do and places to eat. The whole ride took an hour round-trip and I couldn't believe it was only $1!! If you know me, you know that frugality is important (and a necessity) to me so anything that is reasonably priced or cheap gets an even higher vote from me! And the fact that Ben got to "drive" the trolley and ring the bell at every street crossing was just icing on the cake!!

That hour was just the right amount of time and we were able to return to the boat yard. The main attraction was the new name on the boat. Abby remarked to her daddy, "This is so exciting that I feel like I'm in a dream!" :)

We all lined up to watch the "show" as the boat yard employees put the straps on the boat and lifted her up. It's always a bit stressful for the captain to watch his boat (that's worth more than our home!) be lifted around like this, but he managed sit for awhile next to Ben, who was soaking the whole thing up - it was like watching his favorite TV show "Mighty Machines" LIVE! ;o)

Kevin with two of his crew (my nephew Stephen on the right).

We hurried over to the other side of the boat yard where there was a pathway along the jetty. We watched Kevin and the boat until they were out of sight, heading into the mouth of the Columbia where it meets the Pacific Ocean - one of the most dangerous river bars in the world. ;o) Kevin wouldn't make it back to the docks in Westport until the following morning (commercial fishing boats are not known for speed!) and then it was a race to finish readying the boat for tuna season!

After waving goodbye to Daddy, we headed for the 50-foot slice of beachfront in Astoria that we'd been told about and seen from the trolley. Ben was quite anxious to use his beloved excavator in the sand that Kevin's mom had given him and that he took with him nearly everywhere for about a month. The little spot was lovely and would have been perfect...had they not been sand-blasting the Astoria bridge above us. We literally had to yell to hear each other speak - it was quite hilarious. :)

After dinner at Burger King, we headed for home, but spontaneously stopped at a fish hatchery just off the road. The kids enjoyed feeding the larger fish for $.25 a handful. My parents emptied their pockets of all their change so that the kids could do it again and again....my parents would NOT have done this when I was a kid. Parents sure change when they become grandparents! ;o)

We then spotted a sign stating there was a falls nearby so we spontaneously took the hike (I think none of us wanted the lovely day to end??). While the falls was a bit of a disappointment (more river rapids than falls!), we enjoyed the hike through the woods and Abby made friends with an inch worm.

With one last stop at my dad's request to show us a beautiful viewpoint tucked off the highway of the Columbia River valley at sunset (well worth it!), we continued home, arriving at 11pm!! What a day! But oh so much fun and so memorable!!