Thanks to our facebook friends and fans for helping us find out where to find the fun tonight!

• FIREWORKS in front of the Boardwalk, Bolstad approach, in Long Beach, at midnight
• Salon LOL Grand Opening Friday the 1st and Saturday the 2nd!  Locals will know the location as “Fish Alley, where the Siren used to be”  Downtown Long Beach, west side of Pacific, Fish Alley is aka 2nd Street.
• Ilwaco’s Sea Hag will be open with a party theme, Pimps N Ho’s, doing fireworks at midnight
• Olde Towne Coffee in Ilwaco will be open!
• Hilltop Bowl is open and ready for a fun evening.
• Tuscany, at the Port of Ilwaco, is having an italian dinner; look for the details in a blog post here just a day or two ago.
• 42nd Street Cafe in Seaview is open for New Year’s Eve with great dinner specials and New Year’s Day, too!
• The Elks in Long Beach is having a party tonight with live music for Elks and their guests.  Tickets and info: 360-642-2651
• Seaview’s Depot Restaurant has John Stowell playing jazz to dine by for their four course Gourmet Bash with party hats and noise makers to celebrate every time zone turning midnight.  It’s sold out but call; they may have a last-minute cancellation!  They’re opening at 5pm on Friday (New Year’s Day) so clammers can arm up on their way home and save their clam cleaning for daylight.
• Raven and Finch Wine Bar at the Port of Ilwaco will be open late New Year’s Eve and also New Year’s Day.

Just a few of the things we learned this week:

• Sturgeon season opens January 1st.
• A great bike ride in Ocean Park: up Park around back roads, quick trip on Vernon, down Joe Johns to H Lane, north until it ends and back into Ocean Park.  Just about 8.5 miles.
• A great bike ride on the south end of the Peninsula:  Starting on Sandridge near Cranberry Road, head south to the Port of Ilwaco, north to Seaview, hop on Discovery Trail from the Seaview Beach Approach and ride it north to the Breakers, out to Pacific up to Cranberry and back to the starting points.  For some extra burn, when you leave Ilwaco heading to Seaview, go up past Hilltop and the old High School.
• We’re going to have a blue moon tonight!
• VERY high tides with the clam digs that start tonight.  Be Careful!
• The Ilwaco girls games were canceled.
• Where to find muscle to unload the 72,000 Beach Vacation Planners that arrived yesterday.
• Some wonderful Christmas at the Beach photos!
• Where the fun can be found tonight (we’ll be sharing those details in just a few minutes!)

Want to join us?

Become a friend of Kara Funbeach:
www.facebook.com/funbeach
AND
Become a fan of the Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau:
www.facebook.com/longbeachpeninsula

Sturgeon are the largest freshwater species Washington anglers are likely to encounter. This prehistoric fish is available in the Columbia and Willapa Rivers year-round. Both green and white sturgeon are caught locally, but whites are the most common and certainly the largest, sometimes measuring over eight feet and weighing several hundred pounds.

Sturgeon feed on the bottom, cruising along and picking up tasty morsels with their sucker-like mouth. Anglers usually fish for them with smelt, shrimp and other baits anchored on bottom. Hooked sturgeon, especially the larger ones, may jump completely out of the water, providing a spectacular show for anglers or anyone who happens by at the right time! Since sturgeon must be between 42 and 60 inches to keep, lots get caught and thrown back making it an exciting day. There’s nothing like seeing the twinkle in the eye of a youngster who pulls in a fish taller than she is!

A sturgeon fishing trip in the Columbia or Willapa Rivers is perfect for those who might be concerned about sea-sickness. Sturgeon and salmon trips start at 5am for 8 hours or until the boat limits.

Click for Charter Information.

“…Best of the Discovery Coast results are just for local people, identifying our favorite teachers, doctors, mechanics and other individuals who play key roles every day in making this an exceptional place to live.”

Read the full story on ChinookObserver.com

The walking tour’s entry points will be at the Bolstad and Sid Snyder beach approaches. Visitors will be able to take themselves on self-guided tours of the area – and since the information can be changed at any time, they will receive the most up-to-date information on Fish Alley, the skate park, Long Beach City Hall, the whale bones in the dunes, Clark’s Tree, the baseball fields, Renee O’Connor’s obelisk art, and more.

Carrying colorful cotton fabrics, quilting and fashion supplies, Jelly Bean Fabrics also hosts fashion and quilting classes in the back room of the shop, which features giant tables and plenty of room to work on projects.

In a move rooted in the recent Pacific County budget crisis, Faith Taylor-Eldred, assistant director of Community Development and director of Environmental Health, notified Shelly Pollock, founder and leader of the Grassroots Garbage Gang, that the county will no longer be able to assist with the cost of dumpsters for beach clean-up activities.

Read the full story on ChinookObserver.com

Support the Grass Roots Garbage Gang

A makeshift gravel lot at the side of the road and a graffiti covered guardrail will soon become a scene of the past as workers from Astoria’s Wilkins Construction are gradually transforming the Beards Hollow Overlook into a more accommodating and welcoming tourist stop.

From major drug busts to miraculous rescues, the U.S. Coast Guard has just released its top 11 video compilation for 2009. The video highlights the year’s most compelling cases from the work done every day by America’s Guardians.

The top 11 video compilation includes 5 local scenes:

• The rescue of a paraglider pilot who crashed on the shoreline of Cape Lookout near Tillamook, Ore., by an aircrew from Air Station Astoria, Ore.
• A medical evacuation of a crewmember from a U.S. Navy submarine off the coast of Washington, by an aircrew from Air Station Astoria, Ore.
• The rescue of two crewmembers from a fishing vessel on fire 10 miles off the coast of Long Beach, Wash., by the crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Active and aircrew from Air Station Astoria, Ore.
• The rescue of six people from their capsized vessel two miles from the Columbia River, Wash., by a boatcrew from Cape Disappointment, Wash., and an aircrew from Air Station Astoria, Ore.
• The rescue of a man whose canoe flipped in heavy surf in the Necanicum River near Gearheart, Ore., by an aircrew from Air Station Astoria, Ore.

The public is encouraged to vote online at the Coast Guard’s YouTube channel for their favorite video in the Coast Guard’s best video of 2009 contest.

An Italian New Year’s Eve Dinner
Thursday, December 31st

Tickets – $40.00 each or $75.00 per couple

A Delicious Five-course Italian Dinner

Cozze e Vongola – Mussels and Manila Clams with Prawns in a Tomato and Fennel Broth

Panzanella- Grilled Tuscan Bread, Tomatoes, Artichokes, Olives and Gorgonzola Cheese

Braciola di Maiale – Grilled Pork Chopin an Apple Cider Reduction with Broccoli Rabe

Purea Di Squash Butternut– Butternut Squash Puree, Pine Nuts, Parsley and Shaved Parmesan Cheese

Mousse di Cioccolato – Mascarpone Chocolate Mousse in Milk Chocolate Cups with Raspberry Sauce
OR
Limoncello Panna Cotta – Served with Fresh Berries

*One glass of Prosecco is provided with your dinner.

Reservations are recommended and menu items will also be available.

Tuscany

Located at 161 Howerton Way at the Port of Ilwaco, Washington (360) 642-4899