Adventures in Oregon: Cascade Head and Hart’s Cove in Lincoln City

We were anxious to travel to Lincoln City, OR as we had read so many intriguing reviews of the areas we chose for hiking. The Cascade Head Preserve seemed especially promising. It is a coastal headland with two trails one of which is much longer; 4.2 miles. The upper trail leads to the most scenic views and brings hikers to the top of the hills overlooking the ocean and nearby shore. This was really a no-brainer for us.

We opted for the shorter upper trail which was a relatively flat mile-long hike. We had been hiking for several days already and planned to continue hiking once we arrived at Crater Lake National Park so this seemed prudent.

It was difficult to find the correct forest road (Cascade Head Road 1861) which is more of a cut out along the highway than anything else. We persevered and finally wound up at the trailhead ready to go.

The first part of the hike looked like a pathway in Jurassic Park with the fungi and mosses covering the tree branches.


Jungle-like growth at the start of the trail
Jungle-like growth at the start of the trail

After hiking for a a bit more than twenty minutes, we reached the meadow viewpoints. The vista was stunning.


The meadow and ocean revealed themselves
The meadow and ocean revealed themselves

As we moved closer to the descending side of the hill, we could watch hikers arriving from the lower trail.


Hikers were arriving from the lower trail
Hikers were arriving from the lower trail

The contrast of the golden meadow, the green trees and shrubs against the blue ocean was a superb display of nature’s palette.


nature's colorful palette
A contrast of colors

The craggy rock outcroppings were also very dramatic.


Dramatic craggy outcroppings


Dramatic craggy outcroppings

I couldn’t resist taking a panorama from this expansive vantage point with such a remarkable view.


A panorama taken form the top of the meadow

Feeling self-satisfied, we decided to attempt the trek to Hart’s Cove and drove to that trailhead. We were somewhat daunted by the steepness of the trail heading down as we knew it would be uphill coming back. One rule of hiking when there is no loop is that for every down, there is an up!

We asked some ascending hikers what their thoughts were and after some encouragement, we began the descent. It was indeed downhill!

The first part of the hike takes trekkers through forests of hemlock and Sitka spruce. We then arrived at the open trail to the grassy meadow with anticipation of seeing the cove.


Finally, the path to the cove
Finally, the path to the cove

We were careful with our footing and made our way to an area where we could have lunch and enjoy the view of the cove.


A scenic backdrop
A scenic backdrop

Although we couldn’t see the sea lions, we could hear them barking in the distance.


A wonderful spot to enjoy lunch
A wonderful spot to enjoy lunch

We lingered for a time taking in the view and enjoying the best this area had to offer. Although we faced a strenuous (for us) return trip, the memories will remain long after our muscles have recovered.


A final view of the cove before we headed back
A final view of the cove before we headed back

For more information, you can refer to this web page: Cascade Head and Hart’s Cove


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Read previous posts about our adventures hiking and exploring in Oregon:

Exploring Astoria, Oregon – Part 1

Exploring Astoria, Oregon – Part 2

Exploring Astoria, Oregon – Part 3

Adventures in Oregon: Warrenton to Seaside

Adventures in Oregon: Hiking at Indian Beach

Adventures in Oregon: Views from Ecola Point

Adventures in Oregon: Movin’ On Down the Road

Adventures in Oregon: Garibaldi’s Graces and Pier

Adventures in Oregon: Tillamook – Cape Meares Lighthouse

Adventures in Oregon: Pacific City, Neskowin & Lincoln City

 

Read more Hiking and Exploration posts HERE


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018 – JBRish.com



Photography: As Shot – Butterfly & Bee on a Thistle

NOTE – “As Shot” photographs are some that I have posted on Instagram, but without any imposed crop that might not be warranted, less detail reduction and more of an explanation.




Swallowtail butterfly and bees buzz about a thistle at Yosemite National Park

While I would be the first to admit that this is not technically the most perfect photograph, there are certain qualities that I like. We were hiking along the Valley Loop Trail at Yosemite National Park when we came across a clearing. Nature, animals and wildflowers are some of my favorite subjects. The sun was very bright and I noticed that one thistle was receiving a lot of activity.

I remained at a distance not wanting to scare away the insects hovering about. My camera wasn’t the steadiest, but I think the lack of sharpness helps the picture convey a sense of motion. I particularly am glad that I caught the bee coming in from the left; although barely!

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Metadata

File Name: 000025_IMG_0275.tif
Capture time: 10:26:09 AM
Capture date: Jun 5, 2016
Exposure: 1/200 sec @ f/6.5
Focal Length: 215mm
ISO: 100
Camera: Canon PowerShot SX50 HS
Lens: 4.3-215mm

Edited in Lightroom

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Read more photography posts HERE

Visit Jeff’s Instagram Portfolio HERE


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2017 – JBRish.com



Half Dome from the Meadow 3/3 – Year of Yosemite (YOY) – Day 297

Half Dome from the Meadow

Half Dome as seen from the nearby meadow.

This is the last of this series of photographs of Half Dome taken from the meadow near the Yosemite Valley Lodge during the approaching evening hours.

Being presented with such a spectacular and iconic view with golden light, I didn’t want to miss a good shot. Add to this the fact that I was essentially using my camera for the first time, I had to make sure I took enough photos of this view. Some of the readers may think perhaps too many!

 
Do you have a question about our visit to Yosemite? Ask it in the comment section.

 

JBRish.com originally published this post
*All photographs Copyright by Jeffrey B. Ross with all rights reserved.

 
See previous Year of Yosemite (YOY) posts HERE. If you want to read the introduction to the YOY series, CLICK HERE.

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Meta Data – Day 297 YOY – Year of Yosemite

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Half Dome from the Meadow 2/3 – Year of Yosemite (YOY) – Day 296

Half Dome from the Meadow

Half Dome as seen from the nearby meadow.

Today’s photograph of Yosemite is another capture of Half Dome from an open meadow in the vicinity of Yosemite Lodge. We move a bit closer with this picture when compared to that of yesterday. As you can see, the evening light was taking on a golden glow.

 
Do you have a question about our visit to Yosemite? Ask it in the comment section.

 

JBRish.com originally published this post
*All photographs Copyright by Jeffrey B. Ross with all rights reserved.

 
See previous Year of Yosemite (YOY) posts HERE. If you want to read the introduction to the YOY series, CLICK HERE.

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Meta Data – Day 296 YOY – Year of Yosemite

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Half Dome from the Meadow 1/3 – Year of Yosemite (YOY) – Day 295

Half Dome from the Meadow

Half Dome as seen from the nearby meadow.

It seemed as though Half Dome was following us wherever we hiked in and around Yosemite Valley. As reported in a number of posts in this series, it had rained a number of days prior to our arrival and there was a decent amount of snow melt. Because of those two factors, puddles remained in the meadow near our lodging and I was able to take several photographs of Half Dome with puddle reflections.

 
Do you have a question about our visit to Yosemite? Ask it in the comment section.

 

JBRish.com originally published this post
*All photographs Copyright by Jeffrey B. Ross with all rights reserved.

 
See previous Year of Yosemite (YOY) posts HERE. If you want to read the introduction to the YOY series, CLICK HERE.

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Meta Data – Day 295 YOY – Year of Yosemite

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Capture time: 7:09:53 AM
Capture date: June 7, 2016
Exposure: 1/250 sec @ f/4
Focal Length: 6mm
ISO 80
Canon PowerShot SX50 HS

 

Year of Yosemite (YOY) – Day 183 (El Capitan – OK Photo, Not Great)

El Capitan from the meadow

While hiking the meadow area, El Capitan appears and reappears in many places

The picture above is anything but an awe-inspiring image of El Capitan. Part of the problem is, once again, the context of the mountain. We can see that it is large, but it is lost among the tops of the trees. There really is no clear definition of where the ground is and thus we are left to intuit how tall the trees are.

The full height of El Capitan is not appreciated. Because the trees are in the foreground, they look relatively large in comparison to El Capitan. This could serve as a picture of record to explain the jaggedness of El Capitan along with other physical features, but it does not present the monolith as the huge presence it is in the valley.

 
Do you have a question about our visit to Yosemite? Ask it in the comment section.

 

JBRish.com originally published this post
*All photographs Copyright by Jeffrey B. Ross with all rights reserved.

 
See previous Year of Yosemite (YOY) posts HERE. If you want to read the introduction to the YOY series, CLICK HERE.

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Meta Data – Day 183 YOY – Year of Yosemite

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Capture time: 10:50:49 AM
Capture date: June 8, 2016
Exposure: 1/60 sec @ f/16
Focal Length: 22mm
ISO 100
Nikon D3300

Year of Yosemite (YOY) – Day 182 (Sentinel Rock from the Meadow Area)

Sentinel Rock

Sentinel Rock as seen from the meadow area

One of the amazing features of Yosemite National Park is that it offers so many perspectives of the wonderful natural formations. As we have been discussing, perspective and context tend to influence how we perceive something. This picture (above) of Sentinel Rock taken from the meadow area presents a much different view of the spire than the views from above the valley where it tends to get lost among the other mountain tops.

 
Do you have a question about our visit to Yosemite? Ask it in the comment section.

 

JBRish.com originally published this post
*All photographs Copyright by Jeffrey B. Ross with all rights reserved.

 
See previous Year of Yosemite (YOY) posts HERE. If you want to read the introduction to the YOY series, CLICK HERE.

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Meta Data – Day 182 YOY – Year of Yosemite

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Capture time: 9:31:18 AM
Capture date: June 8, 2016
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Focal Length: 22mm
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Nikon D3300