A Week in Four Parts (3)

Part Three

Seaside & Gearhart Ocean Inn

Seaside is about a 10 minute drive north of Cannon Beach and Gearhart is about 5 minutes north of Seaside.  Each little town is so vastly different than the other and I love that they are all so close.

Cannon Beach is more upscale, polished and sedate than Seaside which is more like a carnival town while Gearhart, about 5 minutes north of Seaside, is very, very small and rural in nature.

Cannon Beach is for grown-ups with it's expensive shops & restaurants while Seaside is for kids and is filled with cheap souvenir shops, bumper cars and arcades and Gearhart - well, Gearhart is more for those who want to commune with nature and find some peace & quiet.

I had a Groupon (I love Groupon) for 2 nights at the Gearhart Ocean Inn.  We had a one bedroom cottage and it was beautiful.  

I mean cottage-by-the-sea & ocean-beach cozy BEAUTIFUL ...

I mean close-your-eyes & big-sigh  BEAUTIFUL ...

I mean marble-shower & bead board  BEAUTIFUL ... 

 I mean romantically-simple & charmingly  BEAUTIFUL ...

I mean  OMG, its-all-ours-for-2-days  BEAUTIFUL ...

Well, I loved it anyways. 

Aside from being so beautiful, the staff was very friendly - they had bicycles, movies, board games and clam guns that they lent out to the guests.  (Aidan wanted to borrow that clam gun so bad but low tide happened too early in the morning for us to go clamming)

A very, very nice place to stay and I would give it 5 thumbs up (if I had 5 thumbs).

After checking into our cottage we decided to head back over to Seaside.  

- Aidan & Nana -

 Aidan wanted to check out the Aquarium so that was our first stop.

It was a small little Aquarium that has been privately owned since 1937.  I think that is pretty amazing!

There are about 10 harbor seals in the aquarium that you can feed sardines and will clap for you.

 

The aquarium focuses on local marine life and they have a 'touch tank' where the kids (old & young) are encouraged to touch sea anemones, starfish and prickly sea urchins.  

- Aidan touching a sea anemone -

Seaside was much more crowded but the weather was just as icky.  Windy, wet & cold but we wandered through the town and took in the sights.

Aidan was dying to eat at the Pig'n Pancake so we went there for lunch - it was basically a Denny's.  Aidan had Octopus & Noodles and was very impressed.

After lunch we decided to head back over to Gearhart and check out the beach.