Author: Joshberu@gmail.com

This morning, I woke up at 5:15AM, slowly packed up, and hiked out from Blossom Bar at 6AM.  I first passed Paradise Bar/Lodge (http://www.paradise-lodge.com/).  Like several other areas on the trail (Rogue River Ranch, Winkle Bar, etc.), Paradise Bar is a huge expanse of dry, flat land which serves as a nice, occasional contrast from the rugged, heavily forested areas that make up most of the Rogue River Wilderness.  At the last section of Paradise Bar, there were two adirondack-style chairs, which were arranged side-by-side  facing the vast meadow.  These chairs reminded me to take a few moments to appreciate the view, solitude, peace, and the sounds of the wilderness.  After spending a few days in nature surrounded by the constant sounds of birds, wind, and moving water, many of the constant sounds of nature become background noise. However, it’s occasionally nice to FULLY tune back into the sound/views and appreciate the beauty.

After a few more miles of walking, Brushy Bar (at mile 30.5) was another beautiful area along the Rogue River which contrasted greatly from the scenery I had been accustomed to until then along the trail.  Brushy Bar area is densely populated with tall, towering trees some of which extend hundreds of feet upward.  The trail through the trees at Brushy Bar ended at a raft landing/camping area along the Rogue River.  I filled up the water bottle in the Rogue River, retraced my steps back to the Rogue River Trail, and continued on toward Foster Bar.

 

 

 

After crossing the wide bridge above the creek, I entered Big Bend, the largest meadow yet along the Rogue River Trail and the historical site of the final battle between the Native Americans and white settlers.  On May 27-28 1956, the white settlers dealt a final blow to the Native Americans during the 36-hour battle at Big Bend.  After the Native American’s surrendered, about 1,000 Native Americans were relocated to a reservation a few hundred miles away.  Here is more information about this last battle at Big Bend as well as some of the battles leading up to it.

After Big Bend, the Rogue River Trail officially ended at a trailhead parking lot.  From the official end of the trail, I walked a half mile on a dirt road to the main paved road, and  another half mile on the paved road until Foster Bar.  At Foster Bar, I asked several different groups of people whether they were headed toward Gold Beach.  Finally, a group of 6-7 people (in a couple of cars) offered to drive me to Gold Beach.  This group of people included the kayaker, “lost-hiker,” and rafters.  The drive to Gold Beach consisted of about 40 miles of windy roads alongside the Rogue River.  The driver dropped me off the McKay’s Supermarket, the only 24-hour supermarket in Golds Beach.

I then walked another mile south to “Inn at the Beachcomber” and showered.  By 4:30PM, I was walking toward Hunter’s Creek Bar and Grill (http://www.yelp.com/biz/hunter-creek-bar-and-grill-the-tav-gold-beach) to use WIFI and watch Game 7 of the finals between the Cavs and Warriors.

Hunter’s Creek Bar and Grill is a casual, neighborhood bar about a mile south of Gold Beach, Oregon, and a 1/2 mile off of a lightly traveled Highway 101 exit. Hunter Creek runs behind the building, slowly flowing into the Pacific Ocean a half mile downstream from the bar.  I ordered a Veggie Burger, ArchRock Pale Beer (made in the brewery next door), and enjoyed watching the game while using my laptop/wifi.

I have to admit that even though it’s easy to hate the Cavs and Lebron James, Lebron James is one of the most dominant, talented, and motivated basketball players of our generation.  His body language, intensity, and defensive/offensive effort is inspiring.  I’m happy for him and his team’s accomplishment.  They deserved it more than the Warriors, and they wanted it more badly, especially after seeing how emotional Lebron, J.R. Smith, and the entire team was after the win.  After the game, I walked back to the motel and enjoyed a well-deserved night of sleep.

 

 

 

Videos from today:

Last night, while I was laying in bed ready to fall asleep, I spent 30-45 minutes searching the Internet for information on mountain lions.  There’s no better way to make yourself terrified of mountain lions than to conduct internet searches.  After searching phrases such as: “Mountain lion attacks Oregon,” “mountain lion populations,” “what to do if you see a mountain lion,” and “number of mountain lion deaths,” I was exposing myself to terrifying/horrific stories of “surprise attacks from behind” which naturally made me feel anxious and concerned.   What makes mountain lions scary? Their name (“Lion”, rather than Mountain cats, cougars, or something less intimidating), the method in which they kill (claw the neck/throat, hide in vegetation and conduct surprise attacks from behind, etc), their size, their speed, and their diet (large mammals.)

Interspersed with these extreme stories/event, were also rational facts:  the odds of being attacked by a mountain lion are almost nothing (1/17th of the odds of being struck by lightning), mountain lions are intimidated/scared of humans and it’s not in their nature to attack humans, mountain lion encounters are exponentially less likely than bear encounters, and there have only been 16 verified mountain lion attacks in the past hundred years in the United States.  Basically, what all this information amounts to is that it’s not worth worrying about mountain lions at all.  Even though mountain lions are terrifying, when the viciousness/terror of an attack is multiplied by the extremely rare/negligible likelihood of an attack, the overall fear that I should rationally have is also negligible. Rationally, I should be be exponentially more worried of dying in a car accident or being struck by lightning than from a mountain lion attack.

In the extremely unlikely event that I encounter a mountain lion, I already know to expand/enlarge my appearance, shout/make loud noises while maintaining eye contact with the mountain lion, and slowly walk away from the mountain lion.  I’ve already decided that my go-to song in the case of a mountain lion encounter is “ho hey” by the Lumineers.  I figure that that the “ho”s and “hey”s should sound intimidating, and in the worst case, if it doesn’t work I’ll still enjoy singing the song.

This morning, I also realized that there are similarities between fears of mountain lions and social anxiety/self-consciousness.  Both social anxiety/self-consciousness and fear of mountain lions are caused by irrational and exaggerated fears. Although both can be terrifying and lead to great discomfort, feelings of helplessness, and anxiety, neither of these fears needs to be terrifying. If the right questions are asked and your thoughts/fears are challenged, a reasonable person will find that there’s nothing worthwhile to worry about. Unnecessary anxiety is poison that needs to be challenged, exposed, and removed from your thinking.

Upon arriving in Oregon, I asked the visitor center at the airport if there are any interesting attractions or activities in Medford.  When the volunteer working at the visitor booth mentioned that there wasn’t anything to do in town, I thought that he just didn’t know anything about Medford or was depressed.  However, he was correct (or maybe I’m also depressed).  The Trip Advisor page confirms that besides hikes and nature attractions outside the city, there is nothing notable to do inside the city.

Here are some observations/research from walking through Medford and online research:

• City is spread out over a large area (no walkability)
• Public transportation is pathetic  (basically non-existent)
• High unemployment (>8%)
• Uses of land throughout the city don’t seem to be conductive to a high quality of life (used car lots, motels,tattoo shops, fast food, smoke shops, liquor stores, etc.)
• When Highway 5 was built, it diverted traffic from Downtown.
• No urban vitality (downtown area has minimal car traffic, no pedestrians, all businesses were closed at 7PM (and probably even earlier)

What could be done to revitalize growth in the city?

• Attract new companies to the city (Since there is already an infrastructure and decent natural surroundings, the addition of high quality jobs can start a domino effect)
• Create a beautiful/walkable downtown/urban area within walking distance of the river which will act as a ground zero for residential and mixed-use growth.

From the airport, I walked several miles on Biddle Road, passing through the area with all the motels, passing by the indoor regional mall, and eventually arriving at the City Center Motel in Downtown.  A few minutes after leaving the airport, I noticed a sign for a BLM visitor center and decided to stop by and chat with the employees.  I took photos of a couple of road maps which will help me in reaching the Grave Creek Boat Ramp from Merlin, and which will help me reach civilization after completing the hike at Foster Bar.

Across the street from the mall, I stopped at a Barnes and Noble/Starbucks location where I reserved a hotel for the upcoming night and continued planning tomorrow’s logistics.  After walking another mile or two toward Downtown, I checked into City Center Motel and shortly thereafter I walked over to a Bricktowne Brewing Co (http://www.yelp.com/biz/bricktowne-brewing-company-medford)  to watch game 6 of the finals between the Cavs and Warriors.  Because the Cavs won and forced a game 7, game 7 will take place at 5PM on Sunday.  This just provides further incentive to arrive in Gold Beach early on Sunday afternoon/evening in order to watch the game.

Tomorrow morning, I’ll wake up at around 6:15AM, leave the room at 7:30AM, eat a quick breakfast at the hotel office, and board the 7:45AM bus from the bus station in Medford to Grants Pass, OR.  In Grants Pass, I should probably load up on energy-dense foods for the backpacking trail.  Form there, at around 12:30PM, I’ll take a bus from Grants Pass to Merlin, and continue walking/hitchhiking to Grave Creek Boat Ramp.  As of now, my goal is to hike about 5 miles into the Rogue River Trail  and camp near Big Slide.  Even though I only walked about 5 miles today, I feel blisters forming at the edges of both of my pinky toes.  I need to apply tape on my toes to stop the friction from causing blisters during the next 10 days.

 

As I’m starting to write this entry, it’s 1:30 AM on June 16th.  My flight to Medford, OR leaves at 11:30AM this upcoming morning.  Over the past week, I’ve come to the logical and rational decision that I would be better off postponing the trip until work is less busy. On Monday, I called Allegiant Airlines with the intention of canceling my reservation and either receiving a refund or credit toward a future flight.  This phone call resulted in me spending 45 minutes on hold, and hanging up in frustration before being able to speak to a customer service representative.  I just didn’t think it was worthwhile to spend so much time on hold, when there is such a small likelihood that Allegiant Airlines would even cooperate with my request to cancel the flight. On Tuesday, I decided to send Allegiant Airlines an email explaining the situation and my frustration with being on hold for 45 minutes, wanting an exchange/refund, etc.  Although, the website promised a response within 24-28 hours, I still haven’t heard back with a response to my inquiry.

Until about 7PM tonight, I had accepted that I would be wasting the $125 flight booking and completing the trip sometime in the future, whether a month from now, six months from now, or some distant future date.  At 7PM, I just decided that it would be worthwhile to complete the trip.  As long as I have my laptop with me and can respond professionally to emails, I might be able to hike on the two weekends (approximately June 18th-20th and June 25th-27th), and use the weekdays in between to relax in Southern Oregon/Northern California, while remaining accessible by phone and email.

In the past couple of hours, I sprayed my clothing, tent, and backpack with Sawyer bug spray and conducted some last-minute research for the trip. There is a lot of uncertainty for the logistics/lodging of this trip because I’m not sure how much time it will take to hike each of the backpacking trails, I’m relying on public transportation/hitchhiking for logistics, and I still haven’t reserved any hotels/models/lodging/campsites for the 10 day trip.  This is sure to be one of my most adventurous experiences and I’m excited/anxious for my comfort zone to be expanded so that I can gain some insights, challenge myself, and open myself up to increasingly adventurous experiences in the future.  After completing this trip, the JMT will be a reasonable next adventure to consider.

About 10 days ago, I was within a few days of completing a 30-day road trip from Chicago to Los Angeles.  One night, I was gambling and socializing at a blackjack table at a casino in Coos Bay, Oregon.  During a conversation, the blackjack dealer mentioned that she grew up in Gold Beach, Oregon, a small town about an hour’s drive south of Coos Bay. I then asked her whether there were any attractions, hikes, or other activities she would recommend during my drive south through Oregon. She enthusiastically recommended that I go on a jet boat tour of the Rogue River, which I ultimately signed up for and completed a few days later.  The journal post from that trip can be accessed by clicking here.

During the jet boat tour and previous day’s hiking on the Rogue River, I enjoyed the natural scenery and solitude along the river, especially on the Overgrowth Trail and the Myrtle Tree Trail. During the jet boat tour, the pilot, Darin, repeatedly directed our attention to the Rogue River Trail, a 41 mile trail which roughly follows the path of the river  from the Grave Creek Boat Ramp until Foster Bar.

History of the Rogue River Region (Southwestern Oregon)

The first inhabitants in the area of the Rogue River were the Native Americans, who inhabited the area as early as 8,500 years ago.  At the time, the Native Americans lived a hunter-gatherer lifestyle.  Around 1,500 years ago, the Native American created villages along the banks of the Rogue River.  During the early 1800s, the Native American population throughout the entire area of Southern Oregon is estimated to have been around 5,000.

The first encounters between white people and Native Americans occurred in the late 1700s, when British explorers docked near the area of the Rogue River.  During the 1800s, the relationship between the whites and Native Americans included several violent clashes interspersed between years of tense peace.  During the 1850s, the encounters became much more deadly.  Shortly thereafter, the Native Americans were moved to out-of-the-area reservations to protect them and halt the ongoing conflict.

About the Rogue River:

Interesting facts:

• The river starts at Boundary Springs in Crater Lake National Park
• From there, the river flows 215 miles until its headwaters at Gold Beach
• The river starts at an elevation of 5,320 feet and eventually flows into the sea
• The watershed (area or ridge of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers, basins, or seas) of the Rogue River is 5,156 square miles and includes areas in Southern Oregon and Northern California.
• The river was named “Rogue,” due to white people’s description of the Native Americans as “Rogue” people.
  • http://www.dictionary.com/browse/rogue?s=t

Lost Coast Trail

When I began researching and planning to hike the Rogue River Trail, it was difficult to justify the effort and hassle that the planning and execution of the trip would require, just to be able to hike 41 miles (equal to about 2-3 days) on the Rogue River Trail.  In addition to the Rogue River Trail, I was hoping to find another remote, scenic, 30-50 mile backpacking trail, which could be combined with the Rogue River Trail to create a two-part backpacking trip.  After a couple of Google searches, I became increasingly set on adding the Lost Coast Trail to the trip.

The Lost Coast Trail is generally used to refer to two separate, yet nearby coastal trails on a remote coastline in Northern California.  The “Lost Coast” obtained its name as it has been “lost” from development, infrastructure, and significant populations due to its unwelcoming, often extreme terrain and geology.  Throughout California, Highway 1 runs alongside the entire California Coastline, except the coastline of the Lost Coast. During the construction of Highway 1 in the 1980s, Caltrans had no choice but to modify the route of Highway 1 to run about 20-30 miles inland to avoid the Lost Coast area and its earthquake-prone, mountainous terrain.

Since the 1980s, the Lost Coast has been preserved in its natural, undeveloped state with the formation of Kings Range National Conservation Area and Sinkyone Wilderness State Park.   While conducting research, I actually discovered that there are two separate trails, each separately and altogether known as the “Lost Coast Trail.”  Both trails run parallel to the coastline and are about 25 miles each.  The northern Lost Coast Trail passes through Kings Range National Conservation Area and is referred to by many as the “coastal” section of the trail because the trail mostly follows the the sandy beaches and coastline.  The southern Lost Coast Trail passes through Sinkyone Wilderness State Park and is referred to by many as the “ridge” section of the trail because the trail primarily runs atop steep ridges and offers hikers a bird’s-eye-view of the coastline and beaches, often hundreds of feet below the ridge.  The northern and southern trails are connected by an approximately 4 mile paved road. The nearly 100 miles of trail hiking during this trip should be more than enough to challenge me physically and mentally.

 

Trip Plan / Preliminary schedule (as of 5/31/16):

• Thursday, June 16th
  • Board a flight from Los Angeles to Medford, OR
  • Bus ride from Medford to Grants Pass
    • Bus Schedule: http://www.co.josephine.or.us/Files/RVCL.pdf
      • 7:45, 8:45, 12:15, 4:25, 5:25
  • Find a way to get from Grants Pass to Grave Creek Trailhead (27 miles) either by hitchhiking, walking, ubering, or using one of the shuttle services that transport hikers/rafters along the river (probably the best option.)
• Friday June 17th- Monday June 20th
  • Hike the Rogue River Trail averaging 10 miles per day (40 miles total)
  • After the hike, find a way to Gold Beach, OR (combination of hitchhiking, walking, or using one of the shuttle services that transport hikers/rafters along the river (probably the best option.)
• Tuesday June 21st – Wednesday June 22nd
  • Public transportation from Gold Beach to Eureka
    • http://www.rome2rio.com/s/Gold-Beach-OR-USA/Eureka
      • Gold Beach to Brookings
        • 10AM, 1:55PM, 5:25PM (not on Weekends)
      • Brooking to Crescent City
        • Everyday at 8AM
      • Crescent City to Eureka
        • Every 30 minutes
  • Find a way to get from Eureka to the Mattole River Trailhead (Note:  The only way to Mattole Beach is via the road the heads southbound from the city of Ferndale.)
• Thursday June 23rd – Friday June 24th
  • Hike the portion of the  Lost Coast Trail through the Kings Range National Conservation Area (24.6 miles total) ending at Black Sands Beach
    • http://www.everytrail.com/guide/the-lost-coast
• Saturday June 25th
  • Hike the Lost Coast Connector Trail (9.5 miles) from Black Sands Beach to Hidden Valley. Hidden Valley is the trailhead of the southern Lost Coast Trail, a trail that passes through state-administered land.
• Sunday June 26th- Monday June 27th
  • Hike the Southern portion of the Lost Coast Trail until the Usal Beach Trailhead (25 miles).
• Tuesday June 28th
  • Take the greyhound bus back from either Eureka or Willits (preferably Willits) to Los Angeles
    • https://www.greyhound.com/en/ecommerce/schedule
      • Routine times of departure are 9:45AM from Eureka or 1:05PM from Willits
• Wednesday June 29th
  • Arrive in LA Wednesday Morning

Goals for the Trip

• Experience traveling without a car/transportation
  • In most cases, having a car while traveling provides convenience and flexibility. Nothing to do in this town?  Just drive an hour or two and arrive in a city with more activities and attractions.  Have a couple hours to spare? Drive across town and check out a nice pedestrian area or drive outside the city for a short hike. When you don’t have access to a car, your options are limited.  You can either choose to make the most of your immediate surroundings, or you can take a relatively slow, short-distance walk or public transportation to another area.  Nowadays, with the inescapable technology available at our fingertips, I want to experience living slowly and intently without being able to escape into technology.
• Test my physical/mental limits (increase my self-imposed fitness/adventure limits)
  • Backpacking 90 miles isn’t easy.  Especially while carrying 30 pounds, sleeping overnight in a tent, eating bland nutrient dense foods, disconnecting from technology, and not showering for days at a time.  However, the feeling of accomplishment that comes from a successful thru-hike or adventure is worth it.  The experience is priceless and will likely change my perspective and challenge my self-imposed limitations.  Suddenly, a 1-month backpacking trip through Europe doesn’t sound too intimidating, a 12 mile trip up to Mt Baldy seems like an afternoon walk, and hiking the John Muir Trail seems like a very doable adventure.
• Enjoy the solitude/scenery/inspiration
  • Few experiences can offer the same feeling of solitude/scenery/inspiration of backpacking in nature.  Nothing speaks more clearly and truthfully than being surrounded by nature, the environment, biology, and geology.  Nothing is inexplainable, yet everything is incredible/unbelieveable.  Both the Lost Coast Trail and Rogue River Trail have very minimal (if any) road access, contain vast,  landscpaes, and are lightly traveled.  There’s really no way to prepare yourself for what you’ll encounter, just brace yourself and prepare to be excited at the beauty you’ll encounter along every step of the way
• Increase endurance/fitness
  • Hiking is an endurance sport.  The first time I tried backpacking 50 miles, I quit after 25 miles.  The first time I tried backpacking 165 miles, I quit after 30 miles. My lack of abilities were likely a combination of mental and physical unpreparedness.  However, since these failures, I’ve gradually built up my endurance and completed both of these aforementioned backpacking trails.  Through backpacking the Rogue River Trail and Lost Coast Trail, I hope to further increase my physical and mental endurance
• Learn more about myself/what I want/what gives me pleasure
  • Numerous studies have shown that people are about 60% more creative while walking and shortly thereafter
    • https://news.stanford.edu/2014/04/24/walking-vs-sitting-042414/
    • http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/04/30/want-to-be-more-creative-take-a-walk/?_r=0
  • Being in an environment of solitude (away from the media, other people/ideas/perspectives/assumptions) allows you to think more independently, to challenge why things in my life are the way they are, whether I want to implement any new habits (perhaps tasks/activities I’ve been subconsciously doing while traveling), or to eliminate any habits (things that I’ve been avoiding while on the road which I think may be improving my well-being)
• Meet interesting people along the trail
  • Travelers (especially backpackers) are some of the most friendly, welcoming, non-judgmental I meet.  They are open to new perspectives, understand the value of relationships, are flexible, and are passionate about nature.  Almost every encounter is an experience filled with growth, amazement, and lessons.

What are some challenges?

• Logistics
  • Transportation to, from, and between trailheads
    • There’s a chance that I could end up not finding a ride to and from the trailheads for hours or even days
  • High tide vs low tide
    • A large portion of The (Northern) Lost Coast Trail is on the wet sand near the beach.  Some of this portion is impassable during high tide. Overcoming this obstacle, will require planning and/or patience
• Weather
  • The area encompassing the Lost Coast Trail receives over a hundred inches of rain annually.  The weather in this area is notoriously rainy and foggy, with some (unforunate) hikers not being able to see more than a feet ahead of them during their trips. These accounts of extreme fogginess and rain are usually from hikers during winter, fall, and early spring.  Hiking the trail during the summer should reduce this risk significantly
• Loneliness
  • Spending days at a time hiking in the wilderness may lead to feelings of loneliness.  This likely won’t be a problem.  I can journal, read,  and listen to audiobooks/podcasts.
• Keeping up to date with Work
  • I’ve planned the trip to be about 11 days (Thursday – Tuesday).  Therefore, six of the days will be Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.  This will hopefully reduce the likelihood that I’ll miss important phone calls or emails

Overview Maps of the Three Trails

Resources:

Link to Kings Range National Conservation Area (Northern Portion of Lost Coast Trail)

Link to the Sinkyone Wilderness State Park Guide (Lower Portion of Lost Coast Trail)

Link to access the Lower Rogue River Trail Guide

Link to Access Upper Rogue River Trail Guide (Not planned for this trip)

Supplies

• Sawyer Premium Odorless Permethrin Insect Repellent Trigger Spray, 24-Ounce
• BearVault BV500 Bear Proof Container Bear Vault
  • Required for both the Rogue River Trail and the Lost Coast Trail
  • http://amzn.com/B0019LSGQE
• Sunscreen/Sun Protection
  • This is especially important for the Northern portion of the Lost Coast Trail, which has little-to-no shade
• High tide and low tide map / Thorough Lost Coast Trail Guide
  • Many online voices have suggested stopping by the BLM office to pick up the tide map and a much better trail guide than what’s available online