Elevation: about 200 feet
Distance: 4 miles if you have 2 cars to shuttle
Free to park at Sunset Bay
I realized later that we missed another sea lion viewing point at Cape Arago. Make sure to check that out. Follow a short trail to the waters edge.
This hike was done on a Sunday after hiking at Golden and Silver Falls. This hike is best done with 2 cars in order to utilize the shuttle system. Luckily, we could do just that! We parked Kate's car at Cape Arago State Park and then the 4 of us drove back to Sunset Bay to begin hiking. There's a beach right there to admire before starting the trek. The trail climbs slightly and it's not long before you have your first look at the rugged coastline. Follow the small spur trail down to the Norton Gulch. Spend a few minutes here looking at the rocks with shallow water and bright green moss. After the gulch, continue south on the trail and you'll reach Shore Acres State Park in about 2 miles. Some of my best pictures from the day came from this park. There are great spots to watch the waves crash into the rocky shoreline. There is also a really great botanical garden that is definitely worth checking out while you're there. There is supposed to be a Mansion there, but we didn't see it, which led me to question: how big of a mansion could it really be? After spending some time in the botanical gardens, continue south and spend some time on a sandy beach! I collected sand here for my mom (she has me do this when I travel places) and we selectively found pretty purple pieces of shell to add to the collection. After enjoying the beach, continue on the trail as it climbs up and, then, hugs the coastline once again. Explore, where you can, on the rock formations. It's great to get close to the crashing waves. The next stop is Shell Island Overlook, where you can watch seals and sea lions. After viewing the marine life (bring binoculars for this), cross the road and get back on the trail. This is the only semi-difficult part of the trail. It climbs up for about 10 minutes of straight hiking. It emerges at an odd spot- an unmarked gravel road. Go right on the road and you'll happen upon a small clearing (there was a picnic table and port-o-potty there when we were there). Go across this spot and walk down through some trees towards the road and you're back at Cape Arago State Park. The Hike:
Elevation: about 200 feet Distance: 4 miles if you have 2 cars to shuttle Free to park at Sunset Bay I realized later that we missed another sea lion viewing point at Cape Arago. Make sure to check that out. Follow a short trail to the waters edge.
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Amanda had planned a trip to Coos Bay on the the southern coast to celebrate her birthday and was kind enough to include Aaron and me. I asked her if I could plan a hike for one of the days and I picked out this state recreation area. The park is about 45 minutes from Coos Bay, the drive is beautiful and totally worth it to see these two magnificent waterfalls. As of May 2015, the road leading to the park is closed about a mile from the trailhead. Have no worry, as you can park and continue walking up where the road closes for cars. It's actually a nice stroll along a creek and is really no bother at all (especially since the two hikes within the park are very short). I would recommend doing the trails in the order that we did. First, go left to see Silver Falls. You will see the cascading water in less than 10 minutes. After you're done taking in Silver Falls, go back the way you came to the trailhead. Now, go towards Golden Falls. The trail forks, stay right, and walk about 10 minutes until you see the next roaring falls. The view is a little more obscured than Silver Falls, but if you put in the effort of climbing over rocks (which I did not), you can get a closer view. When you're done viewing the falls from ground level, hike back the way you came and take the last trail you haven't explored (the left hand option from the fork, returning from Golden Falls it will be on your right). This trail quickly leads to the top of Golden Falls. It's so easy and has amazing views at the top. The first switchback takes you to a different view of Silver Falls, and the second switchback takes you to the very top of Golden Falls with a view over a canyon. Don't miss this part of the park. Even if you're not in good shape, make it happen. The Hike:
To celebrate the 4 year anniversary of the Packers winning Superbowl XLV (which happens to coincide with our dating anniversary), we decided we wanted to take a bit of a road trip. It had been over a year since our last visit to the redwoods, and we were overdue to return. Portland had been having an amazing winter of warm weather with many appearances from the sun. We hoped that the great weather would continue for our camping trip. About 10 days before our mini-vacation, my boss brought to my attention that an "atmospheric river" was heading straight towards northern California and the PNW. We reluctantly decided to keep our plans (as the heavy rainfall was expected to hit all areas of Oregon within a 6 hour drive from Portland). We decided to get a hotel room in Crescent City instead of camping. The drive down was pretty dry until about an hour out from Crescent City. Aaron did a great job navigating the windy road along the Smith River. With sign after sign warning us of landslide potential and falling rocks, he kept cool (I did not) and got us to our hotel by 10:30 pm on Friday. That night, the howling wind was so loud (measured at 50mph) that it woke me up from a deep sleep. As I lie there awake listening to the powers of mother nature, the hotel lost power. I started thinking of other things we could potentially do with our weekend, as it seemed improbable that we would actually be able to go out hiking with this storm upon us. When we woke up the next morning, the winds had died down and the rain had stopped. I called the ranger station, and the guy I spoke with basically advised me not to go out hiking that day. He said nearby towns were still without power, and the high winds would put us at risk for giant branches falling 100+ feet from the sky. What a way to go that would be: crushed to death by a giant redwood branch that is the size of a full tree in other forests. I decided not to heed the warnings of the knowledgeable ranger, and instead, take my chance on the redwoods. We fueled up with hard boiled eggs and bananas (thanks America's Best Value Inn for the "continental breakfast") and hit the road. SIMPSON-REED TRAIL The first hike of the day was the 1-mile loop Simpson-Reed Trail. Easily accessible from the road, and a short hike, it was a great choice while we still waited to see what happened with the weather. Although there is nothing really remarkable about the Simpson-Reed Trail, it is a nice loop trail with negligible elevation gain, big trees, and interpretive signs. It's right off of Hwy 199, so it is easily accessible off the road. A great hike for the older folk. Since the weather was still cooperating, we decided to go to a favorite old-growth grove: Stout Grove. During the summer you can access Stout Grove through the Jedediah Smith campground. There is a seasonal footbridge that allows you to cross the Smith River. We had to try the entrance from Howland Hill Road. We took the road until it turned to gravel and followed it for several miles more until the road was blocked by cones. Fortunately, there was another trail we could access from this road: Boy Scout Tree Trail. BOY SCOUT TREE TRAIL This was the hike we did. It's an out and back hike totaling 5.6 miles. The Boy Scout Tree is a 2,000 year old enormous tree. It's 27 feet in diameter and 300 feet tall. I had hiked this trail in the summer of 2011, with Sarah Voruz, on a bright, sunny day. With summer and sun, comes people. On this trip with Aaron, we didn't see one other human on the trail; or any of the trails we hiked that weekend for that matter! Boy Scout Tree trail is pretty awesome right away. I would recommend it even if you don't have the stamina to make it to the tree. If you hiked in 30 minutes and then back out, you would still be in for a treat of hiking through massive trees. After this hike, we headed south to visit a few other state parks. Unfortunately, we were not able to access a few places we had hoped. It may have been because it was the winter, or it may have been because of the crazy storm from the night before, but several roads were closed. We went to Elk Meadow in hopes to see the Elk heard we had seen the last time we were there. We didn't see any wildlife this trip. The road to Fern Canyon was also closed. We feasted on Chinese food for dinner that night and thought it best to fork over the extra cash on a nicer hotel that night. One that promised a hot breakfast. HIOUCHI TRAIL On Sunday, we were surprised with yet another day without rain. We went on our third hike: Hiouchi Trail. This trail winds along the Smith River and can also connect to the Stout Grove in the summer (the seasonal bridge was not in at this location either). We completed the 4 mile out and back hike in less than 2 hours. On our return back to the car, we finally were greeted with some rain. I would definitely recommend this trail, especially in the summer. If you camp at Jedediah Smith, you can take the bridge to Stout Grove, then take the 2nd bridge to this trail (crossing the Smith River for a 2nd time) and make a day out of it! FERN CANYON Fern Canyon is a magnificent hike through 50 foot walls of five finger ferns. It is located in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. I'm not sure that it is accessible in the winter, as the road there was closed when we were there in February. I have accessed it in July and in late October. Both times, I hiked through the canyon and then met up with a trail that takes you through tall trees. This is a very busy hike in the summer. The Hikes:
Simpson-Reed Trail
Boy Scout Tree Trail
Hiouchi Trail
Fern Canyon
Stout Grove
I highly recommend camping at Jedediah Smith State Park. There are trails accessible from the campground. It is the closest park if you're heading south from Portland. And it's near the town of Crescent City. Very busy in the summer. The only part of Fort Stevens that I've seen is the portion of beach front where there is a shipwreck. To get to the ship, all you need to do is hike up and over a mini sand dune. The ship there has been resting in it's spot since 1906. Parts of the ship are scattered south of the main ship. I've been there during low tide and high tide. I prefer low tide because you can get up and close to the ship. If you like photography, this is a great place for a photo-op. Especially if you're there as the sun is lowering in the sky. I'm pretty sure the ship literally made love to my camera last time I was there. Below are their photo-babies. This park is north Oregon coast. If you're heading to Astoria, this is a really easy side-trip. While in Astoria, eat at Bridgewater Bistro for fine dining right on the water with great views. Eat at Bowpickers for absolutely delicious fish 'n chips made fresh to order. They can potentially run out of fish because they use fish caught that morning.
Smith Rock State Park is a fantastic place to spend the day. If you leave Portland early enough, you can get there before noon and you can be in Bend by dinner time! The drive getting there is nice. There are several choices but we like to take Hwy 26 over Mount Hood which shoots you right out into the high desert on the other side. If you are a Weisinger, you will want to make a quick stop at the Indian Head Casino in Warm Springs! When stopping there with Aaron and his parents, they taught me a good trick: you can get free coffee in casinos. This is a secret I will most definitely use in the future. You'll take a right onto Hwy 97 and, from there, you take a left turn towards Smith Rock State Park (from here, there are signs all the way there). Once you get there, spend a few minutes in the nature center there (it's in a yurt). It is small but very informative about the surrounding geology. The rock is made from volcanic tuff (consolidated ash). The tuff is 30 million years old. There is ash from Mount Mazana (the volcano that is now Crater Lake) there. There are various colors and the rock formation is dynamic on it's own. I would highly recommend hiking up misery ridge to the top of the rock. It takes about 30 minutes and the views are well-worth the climb. On a clear day, you will see the Three Sisters, Mount Jefferson, Three-fingered Jack, Black Butte, Broken Top Mtn. and Mt Hood. On the backside, you will see Monkey Face. You will know what it is when you see it! It's steep coming down and quite rocky with slippage. You'll then follow the Crooked River around the rock formation until you reach where you started. As far as camping goes, there is a climbers bivouac just outside the park. From what I've been told and looked up, this is not ideal for camping. You can't have fires and it's really for rock climbers that essentially are living there. It's good if you are literally just looking for a place to crash.
A better option is to drive into Bend and get dinner and have a beer. My favorite spot is 10 Barrel Brewery. Good food and good beer with outdoor seating and a fire is almost always going. It is ALWAYS busy, plan on an hour wait to be seated, but it's worth it. The Hike (Misery Ridge Loop):
We have driven past this spot several times. We've even hung out at the Pelican Pub & Brewery a few times (this park shares the same parking lot). I think you can get away without a park pass since it is in close proximity to the micro-brewery next door. I put up my state park pass up to be sure. There is a different haystack rock formation that is very similar to the one at Cannon Beach here. Did I mention there is a micro-brewery right on the beach? Serving good beer and okay food? And you can drive right up on the beach? This is a smallish park, but it offers enough room to meander. It's a place where you should take the time to look up close at the rock that you're walking on. Or, of course, watch the crashing waves onto the coastline. We combined our day with Cape Meares. I wasn't impressed with this park. There are minimal trails. I think it's good if you're there with your parents or little kids (paved trails and a visitor center). I don't think I will make the drive here again.
This place is another prime example of how amazing the Oregon State Park system is. If this place were anywhere else, it would be a huge tourist destination. But because it is in Oregon, and waterfalls are a dime a dozen here, it is unknown to people who aren't from the area. The relatively easy hike features 10, yes, 10 waterfalls. The park is a busy place; with hikers, campers, bikers, swimmers and picnickers. I've only hiked here, but I plan to camp here in the winter, as it is open year-round. Start the hike at the South Falls Lodge Trailhead. The hike starts with a bang as you walk behind this roaring falls. The hike meanders up and down with a net elevation gain of 1,300 feet. To me, it is not very strenuous as there are plenty of places where the trail is level (you're not just trudging uphill for extended periods of time). Because of the up-close and personal experience with the falls, you will find yourself on some slippery terrain. Walk carefully and use rails when they are available (says "PT Megan"). What these waterfalls lack in name creativity, they make up for with personality. Silver Falls is Oregon's largest State Park with 9,000 acres. In addition to the trail of 10 waterfalls, there are many other trails covering the land. It's near Detroit Lake so come to this park to camp and make a weekend out of it. The Hike:
The Cove Palisades is a state park near Madras (and Smith Rock State Park) in central Oregon. It's a canyon formed by three rivers. We hiked here on our way home from Bend after hiking at Smith Rock the day before. This park is most utilized for it's water activities: boating, fishing, and skiing. We hiked the Tam-a-lau trail. It's a lava plateau that has views of Lake Billy Chinook and the Crooked River. The hike starts through a field of juniper and large boulders. The trail climbs up the plateau in one shot. Once on top, walk around the loop trail and then back down the way you came. The hike features sagebrush, juniper and lizards. The description I looked up said there are views of the Three Sisters, it was too cloudy. The Hike:
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I moved to the Pacific Northwest in August of 2012. I quickly identified myself as a hiker. I want to document my experiences so that I can refer to them for myself and others to provide the best hiking experience. I also hope to learn more about hiking from others comments and recommendations. Archives
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