An Oregon Coast Adventure - March Fuji Roundup!
The Matchbook | 4.17.26
Another month passes, another simple life captured in photographs. The little Fuji hangs around my neck more often than it does not, and because of this, I’m able to chronicle our routines, our tiny adventures, our wanderings, our love.
I love this.
March was full, only this time we got to leave Montana after a long time of stillness and remaining stationary. One of our special Bespoke Elopements, in which we plan the adventure, officiate the wedding with a custom-written ceremony, make the flowers, and photograph it all, took place in one of our favorite spots in the world: Cannon Beach, Oregon. That spot holds extra special value to Lady G and I, as that’s where I proposed all the way back in 2017. Ahh.
The month was SO full that this little Fuji Roundup has to span TWO posts, so tune in next week to catch Part 2 and the stories that accompany the images!
Click on the first and it’ll let you see them bigger and scroll through each one :)
We kicked things off only a few days into March by first driving to Bozeman (as Helena’s airport sucks and got rid of almost every flight) to take a quick hop over the Rocky Mountains to Portland, before driving through the late darkness to Cannon Beach. We had to stop to grab dinner to avoid traffic, as of course we landed at 5pm, just in time for rush hour traffic to spill from the city like a flood. We got in too late to see ANYTHING, but we could hear the sound of waves washing up onto the shoreline, and instantly our hearts felt calm.
Woke the next morning to wander early on the beach, say hello to our old friend Haystack Rock, and of course get Lady G her much needed coffee and me a tea. It was quite literally the worst tea I’ve ever had, as there were these weird floating bits of somewhat burned brown rice in the bag, and it was also like $7. Insane. When the barista asked Sarah if it was “Sarah with an H?” she said yes. Somehow, she thought that meant the H went before the R. That’s a first. Wandered to Arcadia Beach, and started scouting locations for the Elopement ceremony that was to come the next day.
Scouting, for us, means investigating almost every corner of the places we’re going to be shooting. We really want every experience to be unique, and filled with as much beauty, intimacy, and f’ing splendor as possible. We found amazing shells, stunning sea stones, ferns, insane forests, sea stacks, and lots of Sarah just being so sillily gorgeous I can’t understand what she sees in me. I love her in light, I love her in silhouette. Yep.
So much wildlife surrounded us on this particular trip, a nod from the universe I think, as I’ve always believed animals are our spirit guides through whatever we’re doing. Go the right way, the animals show up and tell you this, deviate from the path you’re supposed to be on for the serenity of your own little soul, you’ll find a startling lack of them. We saw elk, eagles, sea birds, squirrels, strange little jellyfish type creatures called By-the-wind-sailors, and more. Spent the rest of our first day wandering Cannon Beach, not buying a single thing other than some lunch fixings, and just fell into the slow and familiar rhythm that the sea seems to always want to provide. So many little moments snuck in, more than I can fit here, but it felt so good to be away from home again with Sarah. I love our bizarre wandering life.
Wrapped up our time before the big Elopement with a sunset walk in the birds and orange glow, and snuggled into bed watching “My Lady Jane” that was on Amazon Prime. We weirdly loved it and I’m not super bummed they aren’t making another season it seems. Lame how shows you randomly stumble on and begin to love just cannot survive the onslaught that is the streaming wars.
We woke the next day and spent it leisurely eating a breakfast I cooked us, popping out to the ocean, and then coming back in to rest and stay dry before the wedding festivities with our (now) dear friends Alana and Jake, who were so lovely to trust us with their entire wedding elopement extravaganza. I also snuck this photo of Sarah getting ready because I LOVED the light around her. Like I said…Stunner.
This was just the first bit of March, and so much more happened after. SO, next week, stay tuned for the second half of the month that was, the things that filled our goofy little lives together.
I love you all.
Be good.
Love love! Canon Beach is on my bucket list. :) These photos make me want rain -- we just got another 8" of snow here.
My fave photo is the one of the little feather, all damp in the sand.
And Sarah is a total babe!! Oh, excuse me, I mean, "Sahra." XD
I read a meme that said, "I was in an interview to work as a Starbucks barista and they asked me how I would spell Stefanie with a 'ph.' I spelled it 'Phtefanie" and they just went ahead and made me regional manager."
Your story made me think of that and LOL
I was at Cannon Beach in October 2000 and loved every minute. As a girl who had lived her whole life up to that point on the southwest coast of Florida, the Gulf of Mexico was my playground, with it's hot, sandy beaches. To step onto a Pacific Northwest beach that was cold, and surrounded by mammoth rocks, was life altering.