Tuesday, May 22, 2007 ;
5:41 AM
21 May Mon
Woke up in the morning to blue skies and bright sunshine. Yay!
We headed straight for Requa Rd and the Klamath River Overlook. From there, we hiked a coastal trail and then branched off into a spur trail that led to another overlook that is 200ft directly overlooking the ocean.
It was the most challenging trail for ds1 so far, with steep ascents and descents and sharp bends that had no barriers. i.e. at certain points if you lose your footing, you will fall headlong into the ocean below. (ok well, that's exaggeration probably, cos there're bushes and so on growing by the side).
Though it was sunny, the sea breeze was strong so we felt chilly and had to wear jackets.
It was here that my beloved MIM silk sling's ring broke. Sigh. This sling has been through a lot with us. Both kids.. Travelled with us to various countries and places.. so many uses...
Well this has nothing to do with MIM, cos:
1. ds2 is quite big already
2. i don't handwash my sling, often throw it into the washer just like that.
3. the prev days' hikes incl today's was just too much? all the jerking, sudden tugs and sharp jolts may have weakened the ring?
Anyway, of course we were sad. dh was the one slinging ds2 when it broke. The rest of the trip, ds2 sat on dh's shoulders whenever he was tired during hikes. There were a couple of times in Yosemite that he was so tired he just napped there on dh's head. Aiyoh.
Good thing I am such a fan of slings that I actually hv another brand new unopened one (not a silk one though, a tropix one). Will use that for our next trip.
(above: Cow's parsnips with bees and dragonflies hovering) Back to the trail..
When we reached the overlook, I was breathless, both with exertion and also due to the wondrous beauty. The blue sky and ocean's surf were so dazzling. The river mouth where it meets the ocean was just so fascinating too. And, the most thrilling was that we could see the whales and seals from here! The waters were calmer today, and was clear enough for us to see the whales with naked eye.
With the bino's help, we could enjoy the antics of the seals and also the movements of the whales.
This trail was pretty quiet too, we only met this other Caucasian guy (think younger or about same age as us). He was coming from the overlook as we were reaching, and he was so excited he raved and gushed about spotting the whales. He told us this was the first time he saw whales in the wild and this was such a good place to observe them, he was just over the world! :-) Infected by his enthusiasm, we actually hurried on. We were not disappointed indeed!
After a picnic lunch there (cos we spent a lot of time there, till everyone was hungry), we drove to Enderts Beach Rd that led to Crescent Beach Overlook. It was also beautiful but not as much as the K one, we felt. Whales could also be seen from here, but not as clearly.
We followed the Enderts Beach Trail (1.2mi) that hugs tall bluffs (a bit scary to look down cos once again, no barriers and it is so high up), then drops steeply to a beach. The guide calls this the "Hidden beach"?
It is sandy here, so the kids enjoyed playing with the sand very much. They even played with another girl there. The wave action was really intriguing to watch. I thought I could watch forever. The thunderous noise of the waves was somehow pleasant too.
We couldn't stay for too long, cos the tide was coming in (high tide) and if we didn't leave we'd be trapped in the waters! :-)
We proceeded to a stretch of the beach that was close to the city harbor but still looked pretty uninhabited. Let the kids play with sand for awhile. (see below)
After that, we went on to Crescent City Harbor. There was this part where it is quite rugged, with rocks to climb and we thought the kids would like that. True enough, they ran far ahead to climb and I think, as the mother, I was the only worrying if they'd fall into the ocean. Cos they were both climbing by themselves, and really, if they slipped here, they'd either bash their heads onto the rocks or fall into the water. Maybe i just am a worrier lah.
Anyway finally we all made it to the top, and were rewarded with super strong gales and great views of the city/ ocean/ harbor. We stayed just awhile till it got too cold and we descended.
rainbows every day, do not worry for the morrow
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