OCT Reedsport to Brookings, the end is in site!

I apologize for the lengthy delay in posting. Once again, WordPress dropped my last post and I didn’t realize it until I logged on to make post hike comments, so here goes again…

I left Reedsport in an early morning fog. This would be the theme for the next few days. There would be fog until 10AM, then the sun would reappear only to be replaced by fog before sunset.

Reedsport was a friendly place. I struck up a conversation with a local about the often gloomy weather and he kept to the theme that I’ve heard since day 1 on the Pacific Crest Trail, and from Facebook posts from all over the country…. “I can’t remember ever seeing a winter/spring like this before.”

There’s a new daily ritual that I have settled into. When I’m walking miles and miles of beach, the humidity is , obviously, 100% when it’s foggy, resulting in a wet rainfly on my tent. Even when the sun comes out, the humidity remains quite high at the ocean’s edge, and it takes well over an hour, sometimes approaching 2 hours for my rainfly to dry when I set it out if the winds are calm. Add the fact that I then have to thoroughly wipe sand off of it when I’m done, and I end up with a real time consuming pain in the neck daily procedure!! The remedy for this is to “wear” the rainfly, sort of like a cape, while I’m walking. I’ll put on my rainproof jacket and hold a corner of the soaked rainfly with each hand and let it “sail” behind me while walking along the beach. The air currents I produced while walking helped to dry the rainfly much faster, usually within a half hour. I’m also tall enough that it didn’t touch the sand, so no more wiping the sand off of it!

My hike took me through Coos Bay. They had a nice harbor, including a spot downtown that allowed me to actually walk on a boat! That was a neat experience! There were a couple of hikers in Coos Bay that were hiking the OCT northbound, previously on the PCT. I actually recognized their trail names, having read them in different PCT trail register/sign in sites. Remember, I’m hiking southbound. We traded information about “trail” conditions. They told me the “trail” was completely non existent ahead, so don’t attempt the hike to Sunset Bay, or Cape Arago State Park. They attempted it, then backtracked, walking the highway.

I was walking the highway about halfway between Coos Bay to Bandon when a concerned motorist actually pulled over and gave me a ride the remaining 10 miles to Bandon! The highway ahead had relatively no shoulder and he was concerned about my safety! I graciously accepted his offer! When I accept a ride, I make it a point to hike/walk extra to make up the extra miles.

Bandon ended up being a big disappointment. This is a renouned spot for photography, but not on this journey. First, the weather didn’t cooperate. Secondly, it’s famed sea stacks are south of the main urban area, the only hiker campsite was north. It was an 8-10 mile round trip hike to get there. There was a heavy fog, so I didn’t take any pictures. I did notice wildflowers everywhere!

One thing I want to mention about camping in Bandon is an individual I ran into in camp. He’s bicycling all over the world, across China/Mongolia, Australia, and all over Europe! I’ve actually heard of him, so I was absolutely thrilled to talk to him!! Imagine that, running into a round-the-world cyclist Ive heard of!!! He was extremely friendly and fascinating to listen to! His wife lives in China, so he spends a good deal of time in China. He told me about their current very scary and volatile political/government situation. Expect to hear lots about this in the next few years!!! He showed me his bicycle and it surprised me. His bicycle doesn’t use a chain. It uses a belt, resembling a timing belt found in an automobile! He says they last 5 times as long as a chain, and don’t need adjusting due to stretching. His bike was old school steel framed, not aluminum or the carbon fiber which can be found on today’s high dollar bikes. How cool!!

My hike eventually took me past Port Orford, and into Humbug Mountain State Park. Port Orford has the only ‘dry dock’ in the region! When a boat comes in, it’s lifted out of the water by a crain-like device and put into what resembles a boat parking lot. That was quite interesting!

Humbug Mountain State Park was a neat place. There are a few trails in this park. One trail took me down to the ocean and the other took me up to the top of the “mountain”. The “mountain” was only 1,750 feet, but sure resembles a mountain, considering I started the climb from around 10 feet above sea level!

Sticking to the theme in Oregon, the scenery was neat, the campsite was very subpar. There was no place for hikers/bikers to store their food so little critters didn’t intrude. A critter invaded my pack during the night and ruined my remaining food. I even had it hung. Luckily, I only had a day of food, so I salvaged a little, leaving me enough for breakfast and to make it to Gold Beach.

Gold Beach was a nice stop. I stayed in a $55 dollar cheap motel. After hiking an estimated 27-31 miles, I was beat, having badly underestimating this particular point to point distance! It was about what you’d expect a $55 coastal motel to be. It DID have a shower, ANNND provided a night, free from chipmunks and squirrels! Talk about gourmet! Hiker hunger kicked in and I fed my bizarre craving! I bought, and ate 10 king sized Reece’s peanut butter cups, within 10 minutes, then immediately began cooking dinner.

The hike from Gold Beach to Brookings was rather anticlimactic, but the weather pattern has changed dramatically! It’s now 100% sunshine and RECORD highs into the lower 90s. Central Oregon is in a short term heat wave. Medford, Oregon, had a high temperature over 100, and the prevailing winds are blowing out of the east, (off shore flow) blowing that heat to the coast, shutting off what seemed to be the permanent cold and cloudy coastal fog machine!! I’m absolutely loving this heat! The locals seem to be suffering in it, but after weeks of rain/fog/wet tents, this is just divine! And, having 900 hiking miles under my belt since late March, along with over 30lbs of weight loss, the heat does not affect me at all! The hot sunshine puts me in a glorious mood!! I strolled into Brookings sunburnt to a crisp, but not caring one bit. ITS SUNNY OUT!!!!!

Brookings would be my favorite stop of all, providing me with the most incredible sunset I’ve seen in a year, in front of photogenic sea stacks!! I will post this shortly!