Climbing the Neahkahnie
Neahkahnie Mountain Hike
I've been patient. And patience does pay. With green currency. No, really.
A bunch of us from work drove out to the Oregon Coast last week to hike up the Neahkahnie Mountain trail, just south of the Oswald West State Park. It was after work, and we hoped to catch the sun setting over the Pacific from atop the Neahkahnie mountain.
A good hour and half drive later (which was in itself awesome!), we came to a dirt road. That was a first for me. My car groaned and moaned through all through the half mile drive, but we made it to the trail head without too much trouble otherwise.
Covered in dense foliage, quite unlike my hike in Texas earlier this year, this hike looked very promising. The air smelled fresh, and we were raring to go! Five minutes into the hike though, and i was huffing and puffing like a dragon. Luckily, no fire though. My fellow hikers ahead of me made it seem deceptively simple. A good forty five minutes later, i was almost at the summit. Just when i thought i had made it, i was in for another surprise...a 100 feet "rock climb" up the mountain. This was positively scary. I'm writing this post, and so you know i'm still alive. :)
Fog settling over the mountain pulled the curtains on what i'm sure would've been a brilliant sunset. But looking down at the beach sitting atop the mountain...it was peaceful. And that was good too.
In what seemed like no time, it was time to head home. Still woozy from the climb and the vista, my mind lingered. i promised the mountain that i'd come back again, and stay longer. Do you want to go with me?