Out to Sea

We visited Newport this weekend. It was a chance for me to unwind outside of pager range and to check out the Oregon Coast Aquarium, one of the top ten in the country. It was small but worth it for the undersea tunnels, the touch pool (the first I've ever seen in captivity. How cool!), and the friendly sea otters. Nathan played with the starfish, chased a puffin, and enjoyed the turtle exhibit. Afterwards, we visited the Rogue Brewery (for Chad) and slowly made our way back to Portland by heading north on the 101 towards Tillamook. We stopped for an afternoon snack at the Pelican Pub in Pacific City to enjoy the beach and the cream ale. Nathan made friends on the beach, both human and canine and managed to enjoy the sand despite his initial misgivings about the soft/hard stuff.