Cape Dissapointment

The long awaited trip to Cape Disappointment had finally arrived! My mom planned a weekend trip for our family to stay in the lighthouse keeper’s mansion right next to Cape Disappointment lighthouse. My dad had always wanted to stay in this historical landmark and it took a six month reservation to land this spot. The price also doesn’t come cheap, so it was a Christmas and birthday present for my dad.

The McInerny family left Seattle in two separate cars-the scion iq and my jeep. All three of my brothers and my dad squeezed into the tiny scion, while my mom, Mac, and boyfriend, all travelled with all the luggage for seven people. My mom and and I had a later start than my anxious dad, but we stopped at Costco for snacks and then The Hudson (our favorite restaurant) for a quick lunch.

My dad's car arrived at the lighthouse around 4pm and they scouted out the area and enjoyed some fresh seafood from the small town called, Ilwaco. It looked like we were going to get some pleasant weather, which is unusual for the Washington Coast, but no complaints here. The only downside to staying in the mini mansion was that it did not allow dogs inside the building. This made traveling with Mac an obstacle, but it wouldn't be a family vacation without everyone's best furry friend. My mom's solution to this rule was to reserve a campsite at the national park. My mom volunteered to stay with Mac at the campground, but we all knew I was the only one capable of sleeping there.

When we arrived at the lighthouse keeper's house, we were instructed to drive through a private road with a private parking lot just for us. When we pulled up to our weekend home, it was bright, large, and bold. There were two large homes on the property but it seemed the other unit was under remodel. The two large mansions were situated on a fully fenced in grass platform only feet away from Cape Disappointment lighthouse. Because these buildings were so large and historic, I couldn't help to feel a bit eerie about the situation. But when we entered the home, it was homey, grand, and remodeled. It had an absolutely beautiful interior with vintage touches and views of the ocean and lighthouse out of almost every window. The two story mansion had a full kitchen, bathroom, dining room, living room, foyer, and three bedrooms upstairs. There was nothing eerie about this place, but even so, I wasn't expecting to sleep in the building. The fenced in lot was a huge benefit for Mac. This was one of the first times he has been able to have freedom off of his leash. He thoroughly enjoyed sniffing and wandering the lush acre of grass. Because it was also fenced in, we really felt like royalty because tourists did not interfere.

After checking out the home the first night, we ended up watching the sunset over the lighthouse and winding down and playing card games on the large dining room table. As everyone retired upstairs for the night, I joined Mac in the car for a good night's sleep. I did not want to travel all the way to the campground and be so far away from my family, so I resorted to sleeping in my jeep as usual. The next morning, the family woke up, showered, snacked, and ran around the sunny lawn. We then went to the Ilwaco Saturday market to grab lunch. My dad wanted to bring us to the same place he ate at the day before, so after some market window shopping, we sat down and enjoyed the harbor from the restaurant's outdoor deck. We tried selections such as clams, oysters, and chowder while two of my brothers ran to the adjacent restaurant to pick up crabcakes and shrimp cocktails. After a filling lunch, we rushed off to the park’s jetty which was built in the early 1900’s to shift the ocean current and provide more land. Most of the National Park land would not exist if it wasn't for the barrier. We drove to the beach and walked along the rocky jetty until we reached the end and scared the 100 pigeons away. Towards the end, the rocks were covered in the bird’s poo, making the appearance of the rocks bright white. After a stroll on the sand beach, we headed back on the road towards Oysterville. It wasn't long until we arrived at the rustic beach style fishing port. We went in to get fresh seafood and enjoy the trendy location.

Because Oysterville was a pretty sleepy city, we decided to head back down to a Ocean City to grab dinner. We took our time viewing the charming beachfront homes and then arrived in the more lively city to search for a dinner spot. Alec ended up finding a great seafood restaurant just feet from the beach. We all enjoyed our varieties of dinner choices and then went for the beach to walk off our food bellies. In Washington, there are locations where you can drive your car right on the sand of the beach. But with my luck, I stopped and parked before risking getting stuck in the sand. As we all got out, this was another opportunity to let Mac run freely on the sand. The beach was large enough and away from danger to keep Mac safe, and he was guarded by all his favorite people. Never have I seen Mac run so fast and for so long. He was completely sandy and a mess by the time we got back to the car. It was so much fun running around the beach with my family, just letting go of any worries and enjoying the happiness with everyone I love.

To enjoy the last night in the home, I decided to get my dad a carrot cake and candles to top the special weekend off. Once we all got back, my mom came out with the cake and we all started singing. We then relaxed outside talking about the old times until the sun went down and the mosquitos came out. We went back inside, played some of our favorite games with each other until everyone was wiped out from the long day and went to bed. I, again, went right back out to my car with Mac and slept so well. We left the park around 11am, and this time my parents drove Kellen back to Portland while the rest of us headed back to Seattle. It was such an amazing experience, one words cannot describe and pictures can not show. It was so great to have the whole clan there and enjoying every minute of it. But once we got back, my boyfriend and I were planned to attend another road trip just 5 hours after our arrival in Seattle...stay tuned for that blog!

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