DEVILS PUNCH BOWL HAM HOCK STIRS IN OREGON FLAVOR

From the top of Otter Crest Loop looking south to Devils Punch Bowl

Newport lies further south, Depoe Bay a little north.

Oregon tourists need to feel a part of the big show to get the most out of their trip.

Climb a mountain.

Run a Hood To Coast.

Stand in the Devils Punch Bowl at low tide.

See the point of land above the green yard sticking out?

Look where the point of the yard trails back to the left then curves back out as bare rock.

That’s where Devils Punch Bowl fills and drains on the tide’s schedule.

You can walk out on the rocky point and look over the fence, then head to Mo’s West.

Or you can get a bucket list piece done you didn’t know you wanted to do.

Walk down to the beach.

Navigate past huge rocks and head lands.

Be careful stepping on seaweed.

If you’ve been with a group of uncoordinated hikers and someone falls, you know what I’m talking about on the slippery green.

You know even better when you’ve been the one ruining a good hike.

This is treacherous territory, like driving on ice for the first time.

Don’t let any locals fool you, but wearing a helmet when you’re out on the rocks is a good idea.

You make it to Devils Punch Bowl and see the side vent.

The top looks like something out of Star Wars. A time machine, or portal between dimensions.

The size is shocking.

It doesn’t look so big from the top.

You wonder if any rock climbers have made it up those walls.

Then you notice the water coming closer and closer.

How long has it been? It’s only a little darker than it was, but you’ve been in the bowl.

Look around you. Is the way you came in blocked by water?

Put your camera away and gather up your hiking group quickly.

Tell them they might get their feet wet.

With no hesitation plot the safest route back closest to the cliff. Without panic, keep things cheerful.

Rising tide means time to go. Right away. But don’t run on the slippery rocks. Go.

Take the high trail.

No one wants to make the news as a night time Coast Guard rescue any more than anyone wants to spend a night in the Columbia Gorge lost.

Be daring, not stupid.

Read the tide book. Proceed with caution.

Be part of a grand adventure, not the part of the story where ‘someone’ wouldn’t listen.

What other Oregon Bucket List adventures can you name?