So that I don’t always have to hike alone and so I can make some friends who are not ten years younger than me, I decided to join this Meetup group. My first adventure with the group was a 4-day trip to Eugene, Oregon to do some hiking. We stayed at a hostel and did some very scenic local hikes. It was kinda chilly and rained a little, but it was so much fun – and beautiful! Fortunately, the people I carpooled up there with were really nice and funny (as was everyone else!) and very knowledgeable about the terrain we were driving though. Hopefully, I’ve made some new friends.
The first hike we went on was to Sweet Creek Falls.
This was a short easy hike along a river that had fall after fall after fall, culminating in this one.
There was snow on the ground and it was chilly, but not too bad, and it rained for most of the hike, but it was light. It was very lush and green.
Then we drove to the coast to see the Heceta Head Lighthouse. It was really beautiful. Not so much the lighthouse, which was cute, but the coast was pretty spectacular.
Chris, the Meetup organizer, had contacted the Eugene Hiking Meetup group organizer, Mark, so we could all hike together. Only Mark came out to hike with us, but he was awesome. He drove us around in this old ambulance that had been converted into a 20-passenger van. And he brought his dog Bonkers, on whom I must admit I have a huge crush!
The Vanbulance
The next day, we split up and my group went to the Willamette National Forest. The trail was muddy and at times a little steep, so I felt like I was finally getting a little exercise.
At one point, the boys started hauling ass ahead of us, but they were kind enough to leave a giant arrow on the ground at a fork for us. I thought it was pretty cool.
I split off from the rest of the group so that I could try out my new little pen fishing rod. It took some practice, getting it to cast and reel in smoothly. I didn’t get a bite, but I found a big elk antler down by the water, so I got a nice trophy!
On the way home, we stopped at Table Mountain for a little walk through the wildflowers. It was a really neat place that I hope to come back and explore sometime.
My carpool friends:
Liz
jennomics 