NEHALEM BAY JULY 2014

we set up the site successfully. we hadn't forgotten anything which was close to a miracle. 

the weather was beautiful so we headed to the beach which was only a 5 minute walk from our site. 

let me preface this with the fact that i don't like horses. i am scared of them, i had a traumatic experience as a kid. i love all animals but there are many that i never want within 1000 feet of me. there were 3 people riding horses on the beach. all a sudden lic and i look over and a whiteish horse sans rider is heading back toward the camp grounds. we thought this was weird and insanely unsafe so we look over to where the other riders are and there was a person unmoving on the ground. i start running/walking over to wear the person lay while calling 911. when i finally got over there there were 3 other people including on of the other horse back riders (and horse within 10 feet of us). the whiteish horse had bucked off its rider and she hit the sand hard and knocked herself out. she didn't know where she was from or even who she was with. she didn't have any other injuries but any head trauma is an emergency. i waited until the responders came and then made my way back to lic, jason, & the pups. 

 we spent a little more time at the back and then went back to relax at the site & make dinner. a little boy walked past & asked his dad if the pups (max & coop) new him & his told him no. the little boys response was, "but Max and Cooper know me." we had never met or seen this kid before. what!? i know they are common pet names but together. crazy. 

the night went on and we roasted marshmallows, had a couple drinks. my phone just keep buzzing so i finally took it out & i had 3 missed calls and 5 text. the first one i see was from my mom, "they found kyle." before reading anything else i knew it wouldn't be the happy ending we all hoped & prayed for. my best friend had lost her brother for the second time this year... i would have dropped everything and ran home to her but i knew she would be with her family & they needed each other.

we went on with our trip leaving the next morning to venture out at haystack rock with the pups.

...

sadly a few days later we had kyle's funeral.