Exploring Haystack Rock?

We woke up to sunny morning and decided to WALK on the beach to the Haystack Rock. The weather seems to be nice enough for some beach activities. So we packed and packed. We got snacks, water, plastic sand castle building tools for Caden and Makayla, and beach towels. Tom wanted to bring a beach chair, but there was only one. And he didn’t want to haul it. No kidding. With 4 adults and 2 kids, we had 2 backpacks and 3 baskets.

We learned quickly what seems to be near is not so true. It took us at least 25 minutes on the sand to get there, a little over a mile away from the house. Caden was doing really great, just one step at a time with his wood stick. Makayla gave up probably after 5-10 minutes and took a free ride on her daddy’s arms.

Haystack Rock is a 235-foot tall monolith, the third-tallest (not largest) such structure in the world. We timed it for low tide so we can explore the marine life in the tide pools. On that day, the Friends of Haystack Rock had volunteers out there pointing out interesting subjects to visitors, including many students on field trips!!!

Lots of birds nest on top of the rock. We found a few starfishes, sand crabs, one Dungeness crab, barnacles, Moonglow Anemone, Giant Green Anemone, and other things I couldn’t name. It was very fun for the young kids and the older kids (us) to find usual things. And it is totally ok to touch the starfish. Brenda did, Caden was a bit afraid, and Makayla wouldn’t even come close…I guess they can look kind of gooey, especially when a few congregated together.

The wind started to pick up by the time we made a half circle around the rock (the other half is still under water). We started to head back, right into the headwind. Remember the 25 minutes’ walk…Tom found a lower spot toward the shore, so we sat down for a break and some snacks while the kids can play with sands for a little bit. We brought a lot of snacks with us, better eat them than carrying them!