The Portland Metro area, and all of Oregon for that matter, is experiencing a very unusual heat wave of day after day with temps over 100 degrees, with high temp records being broken almost every day. On Monday the 27th, DeeDee and I picked up Amber, Isaac, and Abigail and we went to the coast to Cannon Beach. Cannon Beach is famous for Haystack Rock at the south end of the beach. We got to the beach around 10 AM, before the crowds, and got a good parking spot in one of the city's free lots. We set up on the beach and enjoyed the sun, cool breezes, and view. There was just a slight hint of fog in the air which kept the temps nice and balmy. Amber, Isaac and I walked to Haystack Rock to look at the tide pools while DeeDee and Abigail stayed at the blanket so Abigail could play in the sand. As we walked along the beach to the Rock, Isaac and I wrote names in the sand, Isaac walked on the "rail road tracks" and "roads" made by the three-wheel sand buggies that people were riding on the beach, and we made sure not to step on any of the dead jelly fish that had washed up over night. At the tide pools Amber had lots of "teaching moments" with Isaac, as she pointed out barnacles, sea anemones, crabs, star fish, and a few teeny tiny fish caught up in the pools. Of course we also had to watch out for the seagull gifts from above as we looked at the pools.
After joining back up with Gramma and Abigail, we played in the sand some more, then walked back into town for lunch and a stop at a toy store. We left around 3:15 or so, the temperature gauge in my car said it was 71 degrees (21.7 C). As we started back inland on US 26 it quickly got up to 100 (37.8 C) and stayed there most of the way back. But, as we got out of the coastal hills and into the valley approaching Hillsboro where Amber lives, the temperature started climbing and when we got to Amber's house at 4:30, it was 107 (41.7 C). Thank goodness for air conditioning in the car and in Amber's house. When DeeDee and I left for home around 6:15 the temperature gauge in my car, which had been just parked sitting in the sun, said 121 (49.4 C). As we drove home the car cooled off and the temperature stayed right around 100 and was still at 100 when we got to our house in Scappoose at 7 PM - and YES, our house is also air conditioned.
Our temperatures in Scappoose since Saturday through today (Wednesday) have been between 103 and 105. According the weather forecasters the highs will stay that way until the heat wave breaks, supposedly around 10 PM Thursday night, after which we should be back in the low to mid 80's. Hanna would have been miserable, as when it got to 80 she thought it was way too hot. Once this nasty High Pressure system over us moves out to the east, it will get back to normal, 70's and 80's in the daytime and high 50's low 60's at night.
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