Cape lookout

THIS is why I moved to Portland!!!! Well, it's ONE of the reasons :)  This weekend Eric is back in Detroit so I decided to keep myself nice and busy so as not to dwell too much on how much I miss my friends and family. Although I still miss everyone and wish I could be there to squeeze and smooch my Godson and celebrate my Nanny's birthday, I did a pretty good job of distracting myself. 

Cape Lookout Trail

Pat and I set out on for a hike on Friday morning. We drove to the Oregon coast in under 2 hours and were lucky enough to have an incredibly gorgeous day! The sun was shining and it was so warm I didn't need a coat. I still can't believe December is being so nice to us. We accomplished about 8 miles of hiking throughout the day, and yes- my legs are feelin it a bit today :) We did roughly 5 miles out to the lookout and back, and then another 3 or so down to the ocean. 

Cape lookout point

If I close my eyes I can still picture the beauty and hear the loud crashing ocean waves. I was in awe of it all...the giant trees, singing birds, gorgeous drop offs, porkupine crossing our path, and over a hundred sea lions swimming in the waters below.  There is something so incredibly peaceful about nature. It calms me and brings a joy to my heart that I can't seem to find anywhere else. It's the type of thing I sometimes forget or let go of until I experience 
                                                                         it again.

After the hike we headed to the Tillamook cheese factory with Jess and Curtis (Pat's good friends whom we met up with on the trails). There we got to see where the cheese was made, but more importantly, we got to eat LOTS of free cheese! Pat and I headed back to Portland and chowed down on some delicious nachos and burritos for dinner. Yum. After dropping him off I finished my night off with a hot silky bath, jammin tunes, candles, and a good book. Talk about a spectacular day! 

You can check out more photos here or on facebook.