RETURN TO THE BAYOCEAN SPIT

Yesterday was one of those unexpected sunny, calm dry days here in Netarts.  It happens often in the Fall and Winter. The forecast calls for rain (and yesterday even thunderstorms), but to our surprise a beautiful day is delivered!  Dusty and I were in the office until 5pm after a very full day and could have easily kicked back for the night, but decided it would be shameful to waste such a nice evening.  By 5:15 we had our bikes in the back of the truck and were headed for the Bayocean Spit, about a 10 minute drive from Netarts.  You could see rain in the distance driving along Tillamook Bay over Garibaldi and some high rising cumulus clouds over the coast range, but so far no rain overhead!  We were just one of two cars in the Bayocean parking lot, which means we would practically have the place to ourselves.  One of many bonuses of Summer coming to an end!

Quickly we were on our way, with the intent of peddling to the South Jetty and mouth of Tillamook Bay (about 7.5 miles round trip).  As we headed up one of the first inclines not even a mile into our ride the right pedal of my bike suddenly snapped off underfoot.  I am under every impression this could have turned out much worse!  Fortunately we weren't too far from the truck and the only casualty besides the broken pedal was a scrape on the inside of my ankle.  Our attempts to repair the pedal were unsuccessful, so we backtracked just a little bit and ditched the bikes for a walk out one of the sandy trails to the beach.  

I stripped down to a t-shirt heading out the trail, realizing it was actually quite warm out for this time of night!  The beach revealed its glorious self as we came up over the dune.  The tide was heading out from eight feet at 2pm, which meant there was plenty of beach available for walking.  And, still no rain!

 As we walked toward the water Dusty spotted a crab pot in distance.  It appeared to have just washed up and be in decent shape.  Sure enough, as we got closer we knew it was worth taking a closer look.

Walking past the buoys and along the rope it was obvious this pot hadn't been in the water long. To our surprise once we reached the pot were live crab inside!  

Well, some of them were alive.  At closer inspection there were a couple half eaten in there -- likely the victim of cannibalism!  The crab that were alive (though moving slowly) were good sized.  The smaller crab stuck in the pot I'm pretty sure became the meal of the big guys/gals!  We decided to do our good deed for the day and release them all back to the sea.  

The tide eventually carried all of them away.  The last one was pretty sluggish, but still had a little life left in him.  Beautiful night for a rescue, right?

Once the crab were released we gathered up the rope and carried the pot back to where we'd left the bikes.  Dusty found a way to balance the pot on the handlebars of his bike and we made our way to the truck with ease.  Just as we reached the parking lot it started to rain.  I mean really rain!  We quickly loaded the bikes and our beach treasure feeling pretty fortunate to be back in the truck!  It rained all the way back to Netarts and into the night.  

While we weren't able to complete our original idea of fun for the evening, I'd say it turned out pretty good all in all.  I have some bike repair to do, but there were definitely multiple silver linings to the trip: I wasn't injured, we were only a mile from the truck when the pedal broke, we had a nice walk out to the beach because of it, enjoyed a spectacular display of cloud reflections over the beach and ocean, saved some crab from certain death, acquired a usable crab pot and made it back to the truck just as the rain arrived.  I can't wait to return -- roundtrip, or not!

p.s.  It turns out the forecast for today was correct.  The wind and rain are upon us!

See you at the beach!

~Wendy

www.iWantABeachHome.com  

GREAT THINGS TO DO....EVEN WHEN IT RAINS!

We had friends and family in town last week, which was a good reminder of all things great to do within just a few minutes of home!  When I asked them how they spent their days here's what they said:

1 - Went to the Cape Meares Lighthouse (the shortest lighthouse in the world) and the Octopus Tree.

2 - Hiked down the stairs to Short Beach between the lighthouse and Oceanside.  Hunted for agates.

3 - Crossed the creek at Short Beach and got their shoes wet.

4 - Ate at the newest restaurant in Oceanside -- The Blue Agate Cafe.  LOVED the food.

5 - Walked on the beach in Oceanside at low tide x 3...rain or shine =)

6 - Stopped in to Lex's Cool Stuff on Crab Avenue in Netarts.  Touched and tried on all kinds of things.  Purchased a fantastically decorated witch hat, a pair of velvet pumps that look like they've never been worn and turquoise snake-ish skin looking boots.   I have actually never been into the store.  I'm feeling a blog post coming on about her cool stuff in the future =)

7 - Headed into Tillamook: Destination: La Tea Da for a light fair and tea.  They couldn't say enough about this place.  All very good things, including plans to return in the future.

8 - Returned to Netarts for "Happy Hour" and appetizers on the bay with family and friends.

9 - Drove back into Tillamook for First Friday at the Blue Heron.  September's Event: Grape stomping!  It sounded like they had a great time enjoying wine, food, music, the works!  Lucy and Ethel even made an appearance and apparently fell out of their bucket onto the concrete!  Ouch!  That's gonna hurt in the morning!

10 - Made appointments at Chez Belle Salon in Tillamook for manicures and pedicures.

11 - Had an amazing seafood feed back at the house -- Fresh caught local salmon and fresh Willapa Bay clams cooked in white wine and garlic.

12 - Went to the Tillamook Farmer's Market Saturday morning.  Ate breakfast at the La Mexicana Cart.  Returned with fantastic fresh veggies and flowers.

13 - Picked up fresh oysters from Pacific Oyster in Bay City for their farewell Oyster BBQ.

14 - Spent an afternoon on the deck at the Schooner enjoying wine and a spectacular view of Netarts Bay!

15 -  Headed into Tillamook for lunch at La Mexicana.

16 - Returned to the beach in Oceanside, but went through the tunnel this time and checked out some tide pools.  Waded in to the tide pools to get pictures of starfish...got their shoes wet again!

17 - Ate breakfast at Roseanna's in Oceanside.  Enjoyed fantastic food and watched the fog lift revealing the magnificent Three Arch Rocks.

Not to bad for a four night stay, especially considering it rained two of those four days!  I loved hearing of their adventures each day and enjoying seafood feasts each night.  Really there is so much to do here and truly just not enough time!  Thank you, Teri, Carolyn and Donna for coming to Netarts for a visit.  It was a ton of fun and we can't wait until you come back!

See you on the beach!

~Wendy

Oregon Coast Statistics: Lincoln, Clatsop & Tillamook County

Here we go -- Let’s run the numbers!

Between Lincoln, Tillamook and Clatsop County, there are currently 1,771 residential properties actively listed for sale.

County to county, the statistics vary. Beginning in Lincoln County there are 878 residential listings, 383 have ocean views, 97 are oceanfront, and 51 homes are priced over $1 million. The highest priced active listing is $9.5 million located in Cloverdale, with views of Pacific City’s Haystack Rock.

Next in line, Tillamook County has 370 active residential listings. 80 of those have ocean views, 24 are oceanfront, and seven are priced $1 million or higher. 31 homes with ocean views are listed $400K and under. The highest priced homes in Tillamook County are $1.25 million and are located in Oceanside, Netarts and Manzanita.

Clatsop County, Oregon’s Northern most coastal county has 523 active residential listings. 111 homes have ocean views, 28 are oceanfront, and 34 are priced $1 million and above. The highest priced home in Clatsop County is $5,625,000 located in Cannon Beach.

There are 149 oceanfront properties for sale. With so many to choose from, those in the market for such are in a virtual candy store! The downturn in the market has created a stock pile of exceptional homes offering one-of-a kind architectural uniqueness and highly desirable locations. The opportunities to locate and purchase homes of this caliber have never been better. Everyone is feeling the pain of recession in one way or another - the positive light I have to shed on this situation is it’s bringing out the biggest and the best at the beach!

If you haven’t been out to the coast since summer, it’s time to come back down for a visit and take a look around. Prices have definitely dropped over the last six months. Many sellers have come to terms with realty and reduced their prices. They are more than ready to sell. Are we at the bottom? That fact we won’t know until prices start to climb back up! Get your Spring Break reservations set up now. Oregon Coast Real Estate is ready and waiting.