Okay. This event was definitely worth the drive and minor parking hassles. We loved the 46th annual Sand Castle and Sand Sculpture Contest at Crown State Memorial Beach in Alameda.
Sand castles bigger than a three year-old...
And lots of sculptures too. Contestants have to stay within the roped-off boundaries of their assigned space and must work with whatever can be found on the beach when they arrive -- sand, mud, seaweed, pebbles, a few shells, and flotsam/jetsam left by the last high tide.
An Ionic column...
The monster hiding under the bed...
Totoro from the animated Japanese film...
Anybody remember the old Hanna-Barbera cartoon Wally Gator?
Carl from the Pixar animated movie, Up...
Gotta love a clown hat formed by a mini teepee of sticks and seaweed...
"Maneki-neko," the Japanese good luck cat...
A real sand shark. (Oooo...bad pun!) And also a land shark! ("I'm just a dolphin, ma'am!")
Dragons, alligators, mermaids, and turtles seemed to be the most popular sculptures. (I didn't take photos of all of them.)
Converse Hightop with seaweed laces...
"D'oh!"
It was intriguing to see the techniques. Some contestants used straight sand while others ranged across the beach to find various shades and textures of mud. Contestants couldn't bring items to add to their sculptures and castles, but they could bring tools like shovels, spades, molds, and the like. Some used paintbrushes to whisk away excess sand or create soft texture. I saw folks using putty knives and kitchen tools to carve out details. There were spray bottles and even pump sprayers being used to keep the sand damp. Pretty creative.
And of course in the end we had get out there in the sand ourselves...
Congratulations to our buddies Julissa, Pete, Sofia, and Andre who got out there and made a beautiful castle. They didn't win a ribbon this time, but there were happy smiles all around.
What fun! I can accross your blog through Magic Onions. Our family just moved to the bay area a few weeks ago. We'll have to add Crown Memorial park to our list, it looks so pretty.
blessings,
Amanda
Posted by: amanda | 15 June 2012 at 05:25 PM
What a fun outing! Those sand sculptures look like fun, we look forward to our Oregon coast trip every year, and love playing in the sand! :)
Posted by: April | 16 June 2012 at 05:46 PM