Read the whole article in Oi Magazine. Link: The Pacific Neverland

…We ride to the coast through the Rogue-Umpqua wilderness which passes us off to the Siskiyou forest, creating a nearly uninterrupted path of verdant Douglas firs and Jurassic ferns. The antithesis of its cardinal East side, Western Oregon is a lush temperate rain forest where pastel moss drapes every tree. The increasing moisture hinted in the air tells us we are getting closer until we reach Port Orford, the westernmost settlement on the Lower 48. Edging the coastline of Cape Blanco, I tug my jacket tighter to protect against the looming gray and harsh wind. When I am finally standing on the ledge I begin to cry. The feral waves crashing into the large jagged rocks make me sad for all the times that I have never been here. The twisted driftwood and tangled kelp remind me of my own unkempt hair. Rob holds me and suggests that we can camp on the beach for awhile and I agree to it knowing that in Oregon we all live with but can not keep our wild.