Beach at milepost 168

We've been here for a week and a half and really should be doing more home-shopping, but darn it, it's 4th of July weekend and we're going to the beach! Newport is only about an hour away and close proximity to the coast is part of the reason we moved here, so we're thrilled to head out. We drove south along the coast for quite a while until we found a beach near Waldport (Cape Perpetua area). Parking was close, the walk was short and not that steep, and the sand was wonderful for building and sculpting. Isn't it funny how beach sand can be so different? We've found grainy, gritty sand that almost hurts the feet; sand that's dry, hot and yields to your feet making for a difficult trek; and flat, wet sand that you can run on forever. This sand was smooth and pliable, yet stiff and damp. We used a scraper and a thick salsa bowl (what? you don't use thick, plastic bowls as sand toys?) and scraped and scooped to loosen the sand for building. Of course, you can plan and build and be as careful as you like, but the 3 1/2 year old will always be the King Kong of the beach, knocking down entire towns with a single stomp. :)