When we stayed at the Alfred A. Loeb State Park a little over a month ago there was a trail from our cabin called the Riverview Trail which follows the Chetco River. It was very nice, and I highly recommend it if you are in the Brookings area. However, when the trail ends you do not want to turn around and head back. Instead, cross the street and take another trail. This one is called the Redwood Nature Trail.

While not as spectacular as Stout Grove in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, this trail is still pretty darn special. Stout Grove in Jed Smith can get a bit crowded (relatively speaking for this neck of the deserted woods anyway), but you won’t likely see another soul on the Redwood Nature Trail. The trees can get hundreds of feet high and some are hundreds of years old. Lots of moss and ferns cover the ground; natural creeks with mini-waterfalls abound as well.

Posted on December 3rd, 2008 under nature. Tags: brookings, hike, trees. Comments: 4

Here is the little guy I talked about in yesterday’s blog entry. He was living out on this big rock in the ocean. There was grass (or maybe it was just moss) on the top of this rock but no trees. I’m not sure what he lived on. I doubt he scampers back into town on a regular basis since the rock is only connected to the beach for a brief part of the day. Even then it is probably a 40-yard scramble over a bunch of jagged rocks with water flowing between them. Then it’s another 20-yards of beach to the trees.

I suppose you could say he is a mini, non-human version of Ted Kaczynski, living life on his own terms, bucking the trends that his predecessor squirrels followed. I didn’t notice any manifestos or bombs in his possession however.

Posted on November 14th, 2008 under nature. Tags: beach, brookings, water, wildlife. Comments: None

At low tide on the Oregon coast you can walk out onto some of the large rocks in the ocean that are surrounded by water when the tide is higher. I took the above picture from one of those rocks. I was quite surprised to find a living friend out there who didn’t have wings and can’t swim (as far as I know). I’ll show you him next time.

Posted on November 13th, 2008 under nature. Tags: beach, brookings, water. Comments: 1

My kids enjoying the surf at Harris Beach in late October

Posted on November 11th, 2008 under people. Tags: beach, brookings, people, water. Comments: None