Road Tripping the edge of the world Day 2: Those are some big trees

Day 2 plan: See any redwoods we missed, hit various spots on the coast (Samuel Boardman State Park, Arch Rock, Cape Blanco, etc) and hike Humbug Mountain before going to Coos Bay for the night. 

Day 2 Results: Lots of redwoods, Harris Beach, Cape Blanco, and Coos Bay.

A much better day than the previous one.

We woke up at 7, gathered our stuff, played with the dogs of the hippies, and were on our way. Our plan going back into Crescent City was to drive through Jedediah Smith state park and check out some big trees. So we did. Our main stop in Jedediah was Stout Grove, a large grove of Redwoods near the entrance to the park. We drove in, the road becomes gravel but wide and mostly smooth, and soon we were weaving around giant trees.

Our first taste proved to be a smallish tree, but we didn't know that yet

We stopped in Stout Grove, where there is a short 1/2 mile loop through a large section of trees. It's a beautiful and hidden little spot. You just casually walk a loop on soft dirt, admiring the trees surrounding you. At one point we found a deadfall and climbed on top the fallen beast. We walked into massive clusters of trees that make you feel like an ant. It was great. We had the grove to ourselves, it was 8:30 in the morning, and it made the moment all the more special.

Stout Grove

Tiny me in the right corner. I'm 6'4 and never felt so small

I love bridges so much I became one

From the top of the deadfall looking down

The worlds most christian bench

It looks like a tremors worm about to eat

We left Stout Grove on a quest for breakfast. We settled on a small bakery in Crescent City and ate some breakfast sandwiches. Keeley got a little more work done (so much for a vacation) and I tried to figure out how to time the rest of the day. By 11, we were on the road again. We decided to keep investigating Redwoods for a bit before going north. We drove down to the Newton B Drury scenic alternative to 101 through Prairie Creek State Park. We were specifically aiming for a site called "big tree". Something called Big Tree in a redwoods park must mean something. We found it, and yes, it was a big tree. It was hard to really appreciate it though, it was surrounded by trees that made it hard to see from a distance and it was too tall and bushy to get a sense of height. But the Big Tree grove area has lots of trails, and we explored them all. The area has many trees that it's possible to walk between and even in the dead ones, and with the sun just breaking through the tops it was a wonderful place. The phrase of the hour was "Woah, that is a big tree" repeated ad-nauseam. But really, they are extremely big trees. 

Big Tree. I'm the small guy in front of it

Tree Hugs

Probably one of the coolest pictures I took

Cathedral Trees

When does a tree that old have a midlife crisis

In front of Big Tree

We decided to drive north after leaving the Redwoods. On the way back was a drive through tree. We paid 5 dollars for a total tourist trap, but hey, now I can say I drove through a tree.

Our next stop was Brookings OR for lunch. We had a delicious burger at a tiny place called the Vista Pub. Our drink of the trip was Arnold Palmers, we didn't do a lot of boozing. We get enough booze in Portland, didn't seem necessary to booze on the road. Also, driving and whatnot.

After lunch we hit up Harris Beach state park just north of Brookings. We had a lovely romp around the beautiful beach, looking in tidepools and admiring the thundering rock formations.

Arch Rock at Harris Beach

Rock Arch low exposure

Harris Beach is very pretty

We were running behind schedule after the beautiful Harris Beach, so when we got to Humbug Mountain we decided to skip it in the interest of time, as it was a 5 mile strenuous hike. We debated if we could come down and see it in the morning instead. Spoiler alert, we didn't. When we ate dinner that night I read more about the place, and it appeared the hike was a lot of work for little payoff in the views department, so we skipped it all together.

Humbug Mountain from the south

Our next brief stop came at Port Orford's Battle Rock, a rock on a small beach looking south. It was a short stop, but Battle Rock is cool and has a cave right through the middle about 20 feet long.

Battle Rock

Humbug Mountain from the north

through battle rock

The opposite angle of the previous picture

Our last stop of the day along the coast was Cape Blanco. I thought it was the most western point in the continental US, but apparently it's not, a cape in Washington on the Olympic peninsula has that honor. Blanco is very close however and it really does feel like the edge of the world. You drive out several miles from 101, up a hill, and park about a 1/4 mile from the lighthouse. The road to the lighthouse was closed as visitor hours were over, but no one was around so we walked the road out anyway. If someone wanted to kick us out they could, but the lighthouse area proved to be empty, and we just stood and admired the edge of the world for a long time. The wind was unbelievable, but the sun was setting and it was one of the most atmospheric places I'd ever been. It was probably the highlight of the trip for me frankly. There is something amazing about standing on a large rock jut on the edge of the world, with the sun setting over the wild blue yonder out in front next to an abandoned lighthouse that really just captured the entire spirit of the trip in one moment.

Cape Blanco, facing south, Port Orford

Rock looks like a whale

Cape Blanco

Cape Blanco lighthouse

South

Cape Blanco

Edge of the world

Cape Blanco peninsula 

Historic house nearby

We got into Coos Bay/North Bend near 8:30, took much needed showers (hippies in the woods did not have water I was willing to wash in), and ate dinner at a pizza place up the street. We stayed at the Itty Bitty in, which looked like a 50's dump but was owned by a nice couple eager to chat and the place was kept up very well.

Half the trip complete!