CANNON BEACH — A self-described “rockhound” since he was a child, Randall Schaefer’s new crystal shop on Hemlock Street, filled with rocks of every shape, size, texture and hue, is a dream come true.

“My grandparents got me into collecting when I was, like, 9 years old,” he said. “So I‘ve been rockhounding for years.”

Schaefer’s passion for finding, collecting and curating rocks and gems continued to blossom until it became a fully fledged business idea. He’d been wanting to open a rock shop for several years, and initially planned to have it located near his home in the Columbia River Gorge.

Those plans changed when Schaefer befriended a surfing instructor in Cannon Beach who happened to work at Bahama Boards, a business that provides surfing lessons and gear rentals.

Inspired by the coastal atmosphere, he rented an apartment in Seaside and set up his stones in the front room of the Bahama Boards building instead.

“He does the surf lessons, so he’s doing the sea stuff,” Schaefer said of his friend. “And I’m doing the land stuff, rocks and crystals and all that.”

The new hybrid surf-rock shop, which will retain the Bahama Boards moniker, opened in March.

Schaefer, also an avid hiker, finds many of his products in the foothills surrounding Seaside and Cannon Beach. Though the trails he follows to find raw stone are often within an hour of each city, they can be intense.

“There’s places where I’m going 10, 12 miles out, and I backpack out 80 to 100 pounds of raw material, then go home and cut it and shape it … The energy, the vibrations, the looks, the different varieties, it’s just amazing what the earth produces,” he said.

The rocks and crystals can be used for meditation, healing, overall well-being, or just as beautiful decorations. Schaefer’s favorite is Labradorite, an iridescent blue-hued mineral that he said is great for meditation.

“Everything I have in here now are things that I would buy myself,” he said. “I won’t put anything in the store that I wouldn’t buy myself, and it’s the same with prices. I think some rock shops really tend to overprice some materials, so I try to keep everything at a fair price of what I’d want to pay.

 

“I’ve got to appease other customers too, obviously, but I’m just trying to have a big selection at a really good price. Because, yeah, this is a business, but it’s also my passion. It has been for pretty much my whole life.”