A Long Beach Excursion

Urban Outcast Music #52 - The Cure by Watkins Family Hour
March 20, 2022: Spring break party time!! But before we trained our little ones to make and deliver our pina coladas, we had to make it out to Long Beach, WA. Along the way is the Billy Frank Jr Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge which I have driven by hundreds of times but never bothered to explore. It is a perfect place to turn loose the kids as they are almost always hemmed in by boardwalks.
No dogs allowed so Oak took out his frustration on the sand:
March 21st, 2022: This day was a good reminder of why coastal Washington is not a spring break destination. The wind was cranking and the rain stayed airborne until smacking into your face... We suited up the oompa lumpas and headed out to dig some razor clams. This was the first time the whole family would be in on a razor adventure and I had high hopes for them as aggressively stomping around to make the razor's neck contract feels like the perfect toddler activity. 
In retrospect I should have mentally prepared them for a flat beach and how it was normal to retreat a fair distance. The first bigger breaker sent my digging partner scurrying back to the safety of the dunes... A bundle of razors were gathered in solitude and we headed back to dry out and warm up.
March 22nd, 2022: A razor clam rematch with much better weather and the grandparents in tow. The calmer seas meant we had the undivided attention of both kiddos while we got two more limits. 
After getting all the clams cleaned, I had some fresh clam necks to try on the surf perch during the nap window. What I wasn't prepared for was the petroleum like consistency and visibility of the water. There was a serious algae bloom in progress which is awesome food for the clams but I'm going to claim it prevented the surf perch from seeing the bait on offer. Not a single bite or crab nibble in an hour of effort.
We finished out the day with a third beach visit which is definitely a sign of a day well spent.
March 23, 2022: No more clam tides for the visit so we switched to kites before heading south to check out Cape Disappointment. 
While I understand that a 1700's ship captain was frustrated to miss the entrance to the Columbia River, it is really poor marketing for some of the nicest scenery on the Washington coast (at least until you fly 100 miles north to Ruby Beach). I would love to bore you with more history but the kids don't appreciate a good sign and I'm still 5 months behind in my reporting so we are just going straight to the pictures.
March 24, 2002: We were so spoiled for this trip and woke up to sunshine for the third straight day, take that Florida!
But all beach vacations must end and we pointed the truck towards home. On the way we stopped by the Willapa National Wildlife Reserve Salmon Trail which is another great place to keep the kids contained with boardwalks (noticing the trend there?).
We eventually made it home and settled in next to the fire in lieu of the beach bonfire I should have provided.