Epic Hikes of the World ( PDFDrive )

sunny May morning. With an outdated USGS topographic map providing the only
clues as to what might lie in store, I hit the trail with two old friends and headed
north into the unknown. The route climbed quickly, zig-zagging along a scenic
ridgeline to the summit of Timber Point, then descending through tangled
evergreen forest, finally re-emerging into golden straw-coloured bluffs high above
the ocean – a meditative spot for a midday break.
© Frank Bach | Alamy
‘Walter’s Wiggles’ zig-zag up Angels Landing
More afternoon rambling through deep forest and steep coastal gulches brought
us to our first overnight camping spot, in a semicircular cluster of redwoods set
about 200ft (61m) back from the Pacific. As twilight set in, we made the short
pilgrimage down to Little Jackass Beach, a scant triangle of sand tucked below the
ominously named Mistake Point, and lingered till nightfall under the spell of sea
arches and tortured-looking rock outcroppings at the foot of ashen cliffs. The sense
of solitude here, at the trail’s midway point, was profound; nothing but the steady
roar of surf, the lonesome hooting of a distant owl, and the wind-blown rustle of
alder leaves.