California Bound

The restaurant opened at 6 and we were there when they unlocked the door. After a hardy breakfast, Nancy drove Cappuccino and me back to Whaleshead Beach where we stopped yesterday. We bid Nancy farewell, and headed off down the mile of beach with its compliment of haystack rocks off shore.

The guidebook noted that we were to pick up the trail at the end of the beach and that it might involve a scramble up a steep slope, as landslides kept removing the lower part of the trail. With this unsettling description, we scanned the steep slopes ahead. This was made even more interesting my the overcast skies and the light fog blanketing the beach.

We eventually picked out the trail high on the steep shrubby slope. As we got closer we could see someone had fashioned rough footholds in the dirt. These presumably led up to the segment of trail we could see up higher. We started up the dirt footholds on this landslide prone slope with some trepidation. Some of the footholds were slanted, some with loose dirt and gravel, some small, and some partially missing. But we were slow and careful as we ascended and soon we were high above the ground, almost to the trail. We eased sideways on more footholds and bits of trail until we finally joined the trail we had seen from below.

Unfortunately, this trail was narrow, and still built on that same steep landslide prone slope. It had a friable edge and several areas where it had dropped a foot or two, but we just continue slowly with great focus. Cappuccino did great. As we crested the slope the trail improved and we thought we were home free as the more level path entered the forest. But after 50 feet, it devolved into another steep dirt slope. However, this section lacked even the footholds. So we moved up mostly on faith that our shoes would hold and somehow got up the ten feet we need to get to a real trail.

It was all quite thrilling, and we vowed, that if asked, we would never do that again.

Once on a real trail, we followed it for miles in and out of grand forests, through airy meadows, and to majestic vistas. At one point we came down to Lone Ranch beach which was another “look for the trail at the end of the beach,” but that turned out to have a fine trail to follow.

After nearly eight miles we got to the end of the Boardman Corridor and returned to 101. We walked the shoulder toward Brookings, OR and were able to walk on a bike path for much of that. Cappuccino and I stopped at our motel and picked up Nancy. We all walked down to the MacDs on 101 for lunch. Since most of the rest of the hike was along roadways, Cappuccino decided to stay with Nancy and let me finish the trail to the border on my own.

The MacDs was on the route, so after lunch I continued south. After a couple more miles through town and beyond, I got to McVay Rock State Rec Area where I returned to the beach for the last two miles to California.

The tide was almost at low so I figured I could make it around a sandstone point that was half a mile down the beach. This required a little climbing and descending, but nothing too hard. From there on it was smooth sailing along the beach to Crissey Field Sate Rec Area on the border. I met a nice couple from up near Grants Pass, I think, sitting on the beach. We chatted about the trail and the trip for a few minutes before I took my leave to finish. I hiked another half mile to California and then back to the Crissey Field visitor center where Nancy and Cappuccino were waiting for me.

Tomorrow we drive back to Eugene and I will update this blog with my plans to go back and finish the section I missed because of a knee injury.

Happy Trails…