North Coast

(This post really belongs on Oct. 13, but I'm afraid you'll never see it, so here it is.)

Matt had a four day weekend leading up to the Humboldt Redwoods Half. We didn't want to do anything too strenuous for fear of being worn out on race day. So we decided to tentatively plan a trip up to the border if the weather was nice.

Sunshine peeked in around our blackout curtain on that Thursday morning. After making a quick plan over breakfast and coffee. We decided to drive up the coast until we found the Dairy Queen and maybe stop to hike along the way, then we set off. In my mind, the main task for the day was Dairy Queen. Matt told me he wanted to see the coast and explore the northern portion of his forecast area, but I know he was just as stoked for DQ as I was.

We stopped at a few lookout points along Hwy 101, took some pictures.

Crescent City from Hwy 101.

We checked out the Crescent City Harbor, still being cleaned up from the March 2011 tsunami.

Backhoe digging up broken pieces of ocean gunk that was washed into the harbor with the tsunami.

We also took a walk out onto the breakwater and took photos of their lighthouse. Open 7 days a week during the summer, it is only open on Saturdays during the "winter".

Crescent City Lighthouse

Then we crossed the border into Oregon. I was surprised to see so much farmland and open space right along the ocean. Most of the coastline near our home is rugged, with rocky cliffs and tiny beaches that only appear during the low tide. This is truly where the happy cows live, with ocean views as they chew their cud.

Brookings, the first town into Oregon was better than I expected. We accidentally stumbled upon a park, Chetco Point, that lead to a small cove and a rocky point jutting from the water. It was awesome to get out and hike in the sunshine right along the sparkly ocean.

Brookings has some niiiiiiice houses.

Chetco Point and Sunshine!? YAY!

Just as my morning coffee buzz wore off, we stopped for a buzz of a different kind : ICE CREAM. Matt refused to split something with me. I had to eat the entire mini blizzard by myself. Poor me, right? :) He had a tough time finishing the giant waffle bowl sundae that he ordered.

We explored the Brookings Marina. His office monitors a webcam at that spot, so he wanted to get a better understanding of what the area looked like outside of the camera's view.

On our way back to the south, we decided that it was still early enough for one more hike. We followed Hwy 199 into Jedidiah Smith Redwoods Park, the same highway that we drove on our move here. After driving much more windy highways than this one, it didn't seem as terrible as I remembered it to be. No carsickness at all.

Our hike, in the Ruth Perry Hatton Grove, was pretty uneventful. Sometimes I forget how much fun it is to NOT push myself to physical breaking points. Today was just about getting out and enjoying each other. One interesting thing we did notice was that the trail was lined by second-growth Redwoods. They looked so small by comparison. Only stumps of giants remained. Proof of what a treasure the old growth trees really are and how fortunate I am to visit them on a regular basis.



The Crescent City High cross country team came rushing past as Matt and I were taking photos. Coach led the way and told us that there were six others behind him. A mile later, he came sprinting back toward us again. When we returned to the car, he was waiting for his team. Completely soaked in sweat, he asked where we were from. When we told him, he replied, "Oh, so you're used to this moisture". When I exercise now, it's more noticeable when I'm NOT soaked through my clothes than when I am. As we drove away, Matt noticed he was wearing his Mayors Marathon t-shirt (from 2008 in Anchorage). The guy must have noticed and thought we were Alaskan. *Sigh* Not anymore.

Continuing south, we decided to savor the last moments of daylight.

We drove the Klamath Beach Rd. and found a secluded spot overlooking the ocean. As the sun dipped beyond our sight, the clouds lit up in an array of vibrant orange and red.

Perfect end to the day.