Tillamook Coast Life Blog
Ocean isn’t all that glistens in Rockaway Beach
This article was originally published in August, 2017 and updated in August, 2018.
Family’s gem and jewelry shop glows with upbeat energy
Rockaway Beach is a jewel on the Oregon Coast, and fittingly, a gem and jewelry shop sparkles in the center of town.
That bright spot is Troxel’s Gem and Jewelry Company, adjacent to Troxel’s Rock Garden.
The Troxels — Jen, a jewelry designer, and Victor, a lapidary who cuts and polishes stones – opened a store in Rockaway Beach in 2009.
After some moves, they are where they “ideally wanted to be,” Victor said.
The shop carries jewelry and loose gemstones, and while “we also have specimens of some of the rocks the gemstones come from,” Victor said, “We’re not technically a rock shop.”
Rock on…
The Troxels also makes custom jewelry, including creations from stones that customers have found in nature or in the rock garden next to the shop. If that interests you, consider brushing up on rockhounding, a hobby that’s been growing in popularity in recent years. The Tillamook Coast is a perfect place to find beautiful gems and stones that will make unique earrings, brooches, bracelets and more! You can pick up agates and jasper around these parts, in green, yellow, red and white. You just have to know where to find them—and how to look. Agates, for example, can be found on the beach when the tide rolls over the sand, exposing beds of rocks usually buried. It’s hard to predict when and where the rocks will be exposed, but if you’re dedicated to looking regularly, chances are, you’ll get lucky at some point! Search the outgoing tide and stay vigilant; what looks like just a glint of light on the ground could be the star of your new favorite ring.
Get outside
Next to the Troxel’s store is a garden that is an ever-changing space of rock-lined pathways where visitors can sit, stroll and — if desired — pick rough stones and choose the price to pay for them. It also contains a 24-hour mini-golf course, giving kids something to enjoy. In 2017, the shop created a Wizard of Oz theme for the mini golf course, using a yellow brick road and some of the beloved characters from the childhood classic.
Make a day of it. Go exploring on the beach or hiking in the area in the morning. Use that time in nature to do some rockhounding. Then, bring in your treasures to the shop and browse the gems and jewelry inside. Finally, spend some time perfecting your putt-putt on the mini golf course. Troxel’s is more than just a jewelry shop!
“I really believe that God is leading everybody somewhere,” Victor said. ”We love what we do. I tell everybody if I had a billion dollars in the bank … I’d still come down here every day.”
Troxel’s Gem and Jewelry Company is located at 146 Highway 101 South in Rockaway Beach. They can also be reached at 541-418-2842 or rockawayrocks@gmail.com.
