Two weeks ago we wrapped the November issue of Global Traveler magazine, our North America issue, and in two more weeks it will be in your hands. We cover everything from Caribbean islands to family-friendly ski resorts and cities from Toronto to Nashville. My colleague and senior editor Jan Hecht wrote a great article about America’s undiscovered beaches . . . a favorite topic of mine. My recent blogs have shared a recent family trip to the Oregon Coast, which features plenty of lovely, quiet beaches and cute little towns along its 363 miles of shoreline.

One of our favorite Oregon beach towns is Cannon Beach, a few miles down Highway 101 from Seaside. Cannon Beach has always been the more artsy and sophisticated of the two, boasting lots of galleries and high-end boutiques and specialty shops. It’s long been the home of the nonprofit Coaster Theatre Playhouse, producing quality community theater for locals and visitors alike, though currently shuttered due to COVID-19. We were curious to see how the pandemic and the resultant health protocols affected business in the town, so we planned an afternoon amble after we’d spent some time exploring the tide pools and sands around nearby Haystack Rock.

Based on the time it took us to find a parking spot, clearly Cannon Beach was as popular as ever. The sidewalks along Hemlock Street, the main arterial stretching north to south through town, were crowded with folks enjoying the beautiful weather, most of them following the mask requirements. It appeared all the shops and galleries were open, and though most had some sort of signage reminding patrons to maintain social distancing, it seemed in several spots people weren’t too vigilant about that. Surrounded with so much fresh air, we didn’t feel at risk, though, and enjoyed poking into the little alleyways lined with kite shops, yarn stores and jewelry boutiques.

The restaurants scattered throughout town seemed to being doing great business, making use of outdoor decks to serve patrons while keeping proper distances between tables. We had to pop in to the Cannon Beach Bakery for a loaf of Haystack bread and some sweet pastries, especially our son-in-law’s favorite, Sailor Jacks. I recall stopping in there when I was just five years old for a maple bar, so it holds a special place in my heart. Another must-visit was Bruce’s Candy Kitchen, another long-time resident of Cannon Beach known to generations of kids for it’s house-made salt water taffy, which you can watch being made through the large window fronting the sidewalk. Bruce’s boasts dozens of flavors of taffy, and in the past you would choose from big tubs, filling your own bag with your favorites. We thought for sure there would be some adjustments to that system because of the pandemic, with a clerk filling your bag with gloved hands from behind a plexiglass shield, or something. But no, the setup hadn’t changed,   and though there were markings on the floor to remind folks to stay six feet apart, the store was crowded with eager patrons and there seemed to be no apparent attempt to regulate the number of people inside. We were a bit taken aback, but we did fill a bag (and quarantined the individually wrapped candy for a few days) anyway. Some traditions die hard.

We were glad to see one of our favorite beach towns appeared to have adapted to the new realities of doing business, and we look forward to a return to the town and to “normal” in the future.

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor