The Top Five
[Print edition published May 16, 2008]
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| Niki Price, on board the Marine Discovery Tours vessel 'Discovery.' |
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By Niki Price, editor
Newport
The Brewer’s Memorial Ale Fest is a brew-dog party. What does that mean, precisely? Are the dogs making beer, wearing rubber boots and awkwardly stirring vats? Hopefully not. Will the dogs be drinking the beer? Probably. Will Rogue be serving a beer made from dogs? I can’t believe you thought of that. You are one sick puppy. Or, perhaps it’s a festival dedicated to beer-flavored frankfurters? No on all counts. The BMAF brings people, pets, music and microbrews together in the name of Brewer, the beloved companion of Rogue head brewer John Maier. You can raise a plastic mug to this pleasant black lab, a local favorite who died in 2006, from 4 to 10 p.m. Friday, May 16, and noon to 10 p.m. on Saturday, May 17, at the Rogue Ales Brewery in South Beach. Your $10 entrance fee buys you a souvenir mug, five free tastes and live music, but there are other ways to contribute to the Oregon Humane Society, including a raffle for a custom Steve Swan surfboard, a dog wash and doggie-look-alike contests. And your brew dog is welcome, of course. For details, head to brewersalefest.com or call 541-867-3660.
Lincoln City
This goes out to a girl we used to call “Dog Show.” It’s not as bad as it sounds. Yes, she was the girlfriend of one of my pals in college, and no, we didn’t like her. But it wasn’t because she was unattractive. She got her nickname because Rob once chose to attend a competitive dog show with her, rather than watching very interesting sitcom reruns with us. She was branded forever on the next public outing, when she wore silver hoop earrings so large a terrier could have jumped through. Her hair was also long, luxurious and Lassie-like. Fortunately, Dog Show lasted about as long as the herding group at Eukanuba, and we – all of Rob’s friends, that is – were able to move on. She still might turn up on Saturday, May 17, for Lincoln City’s favorite dog show, Mutt Masters. If so, I’ll have to apologize. See story, page 6.
Rockaway Beach
Rushing through Rockaway Beach is nigh on impossible. I found this out when I was there last Thursday, researching today’s cover feature on the city’s annual kite festival. I bustled in with questions, a camera and a schedule to keep, which everyone seemed to find a little amusing. After all, they don’t sell superconductors or Blackberries in Rockaway. They deal in ice cream, caramel corn, sand buckets and clam chowder. They can help you fly a kite, take a walk, ride a train or read a book. Once you’re there for a few minutes, you’ll find this attitude is quite infectious. What, exactly, is the hurry? The Rockaway Beach Kite Festival will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, May 16, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 17. See story, page 11.
Lincoln City
When I first heard about a new roost of Vaux’s Swifts in northwest Lincoln City, I got my dander up. “Faux swifts?” I said. “Do they think that we can’t afford the real ones?” But Kathleen Nickerson, president of the Lincoln City chapter of the Audubon Society, set me straight. A flock of these manic little migrators have chosen a new nesting spot, in the chimney of the First Baptist Church, at the corner of NW 17th and Jetty streets. Kathleen reports that every evening at dusk, hundreds of these birds circle around the chimney and enter, one by one. We have no way of knowing how long they’ll be here (she first got word on May 8), but such a collection of swifts is rare in this area. Catch it while you can.
Garibaldi
Say “salmon fishing” to just about anybody on the coast these days, and you’re likely to hear a deep sigh. The commercial salmon closure is about saving California runs, but it’s having a profound psychological and real financial effect on us here in Oregon, where the salmon is our mascot. For a pick-me-up, find your way to Bounty on the Bay. This fishing tournament targets spring hatchery Chinook (still completely legal, by the way) to raise money for the Tillamook Estuaries Partnership, a nonprofit that works to restore water quality and enhance degraded habitats throughout the watershed. There’s still time to compete, although seats on the guided trips are pretty scarce. At the very least, you can plunk down $35 for the grand seafood dinner on Saturday, May 17, featuring a huge spread of grilled oysters and barbecued albacore tuna. “We don’t always have great fishing, but the grilled oysters always draw them back,” said guide Bob Rees. See story, page 8.
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