A lovely, warm day in Cannon Beach one September (pre-pandemic), and the little north Oregon coast town is under the graceful spell of what’s called the “second summer.” It’s this part of the year when the beach towns are at their warmest, and this time and place is living up to that nickname.

On the beach there’s hardly a wind, and the little that there is feels unusually warm – probably because it’s coming the south. Part of this second summer thing is a greater presence of Santa Ana winds. The sun is bright, and the waves unusually calm.