Our second day at the coast was just as rainy. We packed up all our stuff and got in the car and went out to breakfast. We were both thankful we decided to eat first or we would have been grumpy without food.
We got to the hike and there were two entrances, so we made an informed decision. Actually Rach used her internal compass and decided. It started down pouring so we were glad we had our rain jackets. Finally we were on the trail and Rach said we had to find this little off shoot that would take us to “The Knoll” which is a lookout. I was so surprised when Rach shouted, “Here it is!” and started walking straight in the woods. I thought she was wrong and the climb was super steep and muddy. But she’s so good with directions and we were on the trail and came to the lookout. Again very cloudy and we laughed and said “pretend it’s sunny!” But it would have been so cool on a clear day to see the whole city and the beach from the cliff.
We continued on the hike looking for “God’s thumb” which wasn’t on the map… We were hiking through what felt like a rainforest and we think that it might actually qualify as one. There was so much cool moss on the trees. After a lot of walking I thought we were lost and wouldn’t find it, but then we came to the trail!
We started hiking out and you could see God’s thumb in the distance. We passed this family on their way back and they looked like they had been through something hard and were covered in mud. They told us that they went the direct route and almost died. But they came back on the side route and it was much safer. So they said we could either go direct and have a fun story to tell or go the safer way. Rachel looked at me with a questioning expression and I blurted out “Safer!!”
But I don’t think it was that much safer. Or I can’t imagine how dangerous the other one was. We were walking on the side of a cliff on a narrow path that was wet and slippery and you had to pay attention to each step. Of course Rachel is the expert and was walking along like no problem and there I was shaking and going slow. But I must say that the fear also made the experience fun.
We made it to the top and the view was incredible. We couldn’t have been in America, it looked like the cliffs in Ireland. It was also terrifying to be up on the edge of this cliff with the rain and the wind. I stood in the middle and tried not to move and also holding myself. Rachel was looking over the edge taking pictures and it made my heart sink!!
The way back was a little scarier going down. But I took it nice and slow. We also passed this couple heading out behind us. He made me so nervous! He was wearing sneakers and walking a dog and he kept slipping and the dog was pulling. And he was trying to walk on the grass, but that was closer to the edge… I had to watch them make it to the top because I was too nervous he wouldn’t make it.
We made it back to the car and the rain really started coming down! But we were off to the next stop at Ghost Forest beach!
We got there and the rain was coming DOWN! We walked out on the beach and had to scale the rock wall to get there. The wind was picking up. When you got on the sand you had to stand sideways because the wind and rain was so strong it hurt your face. But it was beautiful to squint and look at. The wind was picking up the water and moving it through the air, and it was basically a river in the air, plus the rain. And we were walking through that. I don’t think there was any part of me that wasn’t wet. We could have gone swimming and not known the difference. But the pictures, again, were worth it and we were having fun laughing at the craziness of it all.
We went back and found a public bathroom to change. We were trying to dry under the hand dryer before it started sparking.
We had one more stop at another beach. This one I mostly saw from the car while listening to music and staying dry. I also laughed when I googled pictures of what they look like on sunny days. But we said we got a view and experience that most people don’t!
We drove home and were so excited for a shower, food and bed.
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