Visting Nehalem Point
Nehalem Point is located at the heart of Nehalem town on the North Coast of Oregon. It is bordered on one side by Nehalem River and the other by Nehalem Bay.
There are a lot of outdoor activities there ranging from hiking trails; which covers miles of beautiful elks in 100s of acres of meadow, you can do cycling for weight loss; or go to the estuaries to watch birds. You may opt to go surfing, boating etc. The options are limitless.
In the summer of 2010, together with my wife we made an impromptu visit to the place while on a road trip from Seattle to California. We hadn’t planned; but while on the road trip we decided to make a stopover there and we indeed had some fun… Our first stop was at the Nehalem Bay State Park where we camped for two days. We were lucky to get a good camping spot there although we had not made any reservations.
That evening
After arriving and erecting our tent we spent the evening watching the beautiful sunsets on the Pacific. My grandmother, who was diagnosed with breast cancer, loved the tranquility of the area and the way the park was neatly maintained and themed the most. Anyways, after sunset, we decided to have a short walk on one of the beaches in the park before eventually heading back to the campsite for dinner.
The following day we left shortly after breakfast and went to the scenic Nehalem Rivers where we hired a duo kayak and spent the whole morning rowing in the rivers; while catching sight of the birds and the stunning views of the Pacific. In the afternoon we decided to go to the Nehalem Bar Winery where we enjoyed some sweet dessert wines and spent the afternoon there before heading back to the camp site so that we could prepare to continue with our journey the following day.
Since then I’ve been to Nehalem Point twice
I’ve documented most of my experiences in the place and will be sharing them with you on this site soon.
The simplest I can say is that the place is so beautiful, cool and amazing. There are a lot of activities that you can do while there and as I undertake the task of re-purposing this website, I will detail more about the activities and things that you can do in the area. There are some posts that I’ve already published and you can access them by clicking through the topics below. I will be adding more interesting posts soon.
For most of my adult life, I have struggled with my weight. It is easy to ignore the first 20 extra pounds and the need to move one size up; especially if you live in sweats. But if you live in a coastal area, sweats become uncomfortable in the summer heat and everyone starts noticing how you’ve been bulging out of your pants. I started dreading the sea; even though I had moved hear specifically for the beach because I used to love surfing, and swimming. If you put me in a pool, I imagine I would look like a baby walrus.
For about five year, I was on a never-ending diet
Nonetheless, I couldn’t understand why all those people with amazing weight loss stories about doing the Atkins diet and how it benefited each of their lives, and unbelievable before and after pictures did right and I was doing wrong. Exercise they said. I am not a fan of gyms. This is because it’s full of these people who for some reason like standing in front of the mirror while they do endless bicep curls and why do they have to have so many mirrors on the wall, I don’t like staring at myself sweating out my own failure. I could have joined a club that allowed big women like me (yes; I had come to calling myself “big” because “fat” is such a dirty word) but there weren’t any such clubs.
A friend of mine invited me to be his plus one at his cousin Joe’s wedding in Oregon. One thing that I used to love as much as I did surfing was a good road trip. It was going to be a low-key wedding in some coastal place called Nehalem. I had never heard of it but I found a picture on the web of some people riding horses in a foggy beach. Oregon is supposed to be cold which would explain the foggy beach.
“It’ll be fun, we can go swimming and surfing and stuff”, my friend said and just for good measure added that wearing black at a wedding in Oregon was not frowned upon. It turned out, that people in Oregon generally didn’t care all that much about my weight. Nonetheless, it was not regarded as something of particular importance. One thing I must say about Oregonian; they love their beer and to be honest, they are weird; but in a good way.
This was to be holiday by George
George was going to make me enjoy it even if it killed me. We took nature walks, tried a bit of jogging along the craggy trails leading to the Nehalem Bay and I almost drowned when my boat capsized in the Nehalem River. But for all the bruises and blisters, I got treated to some nice wines at the Nehalem Bay Winery. People her love their wine and their beer and their food and the fresh air and their walks; after a while you learn to love and appreciate the simple things like the sunset over the Pacific.
If camping was my thing I would be gushing over the awesome hiking trails, boating or fishing in the Nehalem river, but I’m not so I won’t gush about the awesome scenery just the weird people I’ve met and how I had to drive thousands of kilometers to meet the love of my life who has always been there through thick and thin and three size dresses in between.
We live here now, George and I and the stray dog we picked up in a little town called Boring, Oregon. With love and a lot of bicycling up hilly terrain; I finally lost weight. I think I’ll open that club for big women here after all and we’d do nothing but dance in a space with no mirrors.
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Building Synergy through Adventure
Work can be stressful and can easily wear one out. There is always need for a break; a time during which one is given the opportunity to rejuvenate and regain energy as well as wash down the weary routine and boredom which takes one down. In many organizations, that period comes in the form of paid monthly leave, but in essence, that doesn’t bring the needed cohesion and teamwork; which should be a common facet of any serious organization that is geared towards gainful productivity. One of the best ways to boost the morale and productivity of co-workers is to take them for a holiday as a team.
That was the very experience that my co-workers and I were privileged to last festive season just before winter came falling when we had a visit to NehalemPoint. The management decided to give us an all-paid holiday experience to Nehalem Point as part of team-building and had to partially shut down the offices while leaving only key department in operation with a promise to have them go for a vacation after we were through with ours.
A total of 48 employees
Both managerial and operation workers were to take a vacation together. Quiet a good number for vacationing as well as team-building and morale boosting together as we had a whole week of getting to know each other well and bonding in a more spirited manner.
No Man is an Island of His Own; We all need Each Other
However, out visit started from the Pacific Northwest Coastline of Oregon. The very day that we arrived in the region we spent that afternoon playing volleyball for a great workout; as well as other games in the white sands of the coastline as we discussed the best way to blend in together all the while having fun. That afternoon was a nice one. Though the weather wasn’t as friendly as we have wanted it to be, no one was bored. The beauty of the white sands was splendid and a real secret to happiness.
That evening we stayed at a cottage in the area surrounding a bonfire and drank some rum and other booze. There those of us who went to bed past midnight, but I did choose to retire early so that I could have energy for the activities that were scheduled for the next day.
And the main activity that day was surfing followed by canoeing in the afternoon. I’m a good surfer and those who were good like me were instructed to be the instructors\ of the others as we were divided into groups though we still had good instructors from the company that we had purchased surfing packages.
I was to teach my senior supervisor and three other colleague
He was a tough guy at work, but out here in the field he was the one to follow my instructions. That’s why I claim that the holiday was good for mentorship and team-cohesion. He wasn’t a fast learner and he took most of the entire morning before he could get on board unlike the others in my group. Anyway, eventually, he was able to mount a board and even break the tiny currents that featured that beautiful morning.
In the afternoon we went canoeing with my group and it was a good experience as we took turns to paddle along the shores of the pacific. All through this period we treated each other as equals and not like a boss and a junior. We shared experiences, loved together and even planned of making a visit to another place together.
Harmonious Relationships and Joint Efforts can Help Build Lasting Relationships and Fosters Pride of Fellowship
The fifth day of the vacation was the real eye-opener for the need to be and live harmoniously with each other. The previous day we had spent the night at Nehalem Point where we had arrived on the third day for sightseeing. We then hiked the following morning with our backpacks till we reached the beach of Manzanita. However, we had come here to some boating because we had been guided that the ocean part of this region had wonderful waves and we really wanted to check them out.
We arrived shortly after 9 in the morning and met many surfers who were there enjoying themselves as they surfed. The company that we had booked for the boating adventures with was already there. In groups, we set out to paddle in the amazing waves of Manzanita. We had gone about two miles deep into the ocean when calls for alarm came as the groups behind us started screaming. Apparently, one boat had capsized due to the occasional strong brisk winds and there was need to rescue them.
I was among those who dived in the cold ocean waters to look for my colleagues. Every good swimmer was in the water and we did our best to bring our colleagues out, thou one co-workers had to be resuscitated and rushed to the hospital after the incident due to hypothermia. It showed how much we could all do together as a team while helping each other in areas of difficulties. We all realized that we needed a common fellowship for better productivity and eventually good pride.
Strengthening the Family Bond Through Holidaying
One thing I love about my Uncle Jim is that he’s full of surprises and always has time for us. Perhaps he sympathizes with the facts that my mum struggles to raise me and my younger sister single-handedly after my dad died in a car accident while I was still six and my mum doesn’t have a decent income that guarantees us the life that any parent would love to give to their loved ones. Not only does Uncle Jim try to support us in our livelihood, something that he has done for ages, but usually find time to be with us during holidays and even takes us for vacation.
One of the most memorable and nostalgic vacations that he decided to sponsor us for was visiting Oregon. Actually, it was simply a good one; something that really bonded us more because it came at a time that my mum had decided to try dating again, only to fall in the hands of a ruthless brute who not only made life a nightmare for her but us too. I don’t want to talk about the ill-treatments that we had to undergo in the hand of this; son-of-a-Lucifer; but will just state that he almost turned me and my sister against our own mother.
As much as he tried to pretend that he was there for us
The fault that he did tried to our family was very damaging, but my uncle came to be our messiah as he fought to reunite our family bond again, more strongly, through just a simple vacation to Oregon that he sponsored. That was back in 2009. Today, we are a strong family and we are always there for each other especially now that I’m done with college and I’ve been able to secure a job in a good audit company.
We need to be there and Care for Each Other in Family Life
The holidaying came as a surprise to us when Uncle Jim mailed to us some ticked a check to get us to Nehalem Point. However, it was something that we had not been looking forward to. Actually, I had all along been contemplating what I would be doing during that summer holiday and our home seemed all strange to us. It was kind of haunted; Therefore, I never wanted to be there during that school break; but there were no better choices. I felt that my younger sister was experiencing her worst too and I was really sympathizing with her. But all sheer coincidence; a two-week break comes along courtesy of Uncle Jim. As a matter of fact, it was a real life-turner. Indeed it was.
Though Nehalem Point was where we choose to stay as we awaited Uncle Jim to join us the following day, fun was a quiet a distance from the place. The fun started the very day that we arrived at the place as we all decided to hike down the Elk Meadow admiring the vast colorful land of meadows; and later that day with the help of the lovely and hospitable resident of the area we went to the north shore of NehalemBay where we met hundreds of people who had arrived there for summer holidays.
Some were there with their kayaks, others bikes, there were those who were just basking by the sandy shores; and yet others were hikers as we were. They were too friendly and we spent some time with a group of for hikers who helped us suggest the best activities that could excite us in the region.
The Holiday Taught Us the Importance of Love and Sacrifice in Family Life
Uncle Jim arrived the following day in the morning. He wasn’t weary in any way and wanted us to start the adventures that very day. It was a beautiful sunny morning and it could be a shame for us not to walk around. Walking we did. We hiked till we reached the mouth of NehalemRiver. All along we shared stories and joked and at times we discussed the way forward for us as a family. This contributed much in bringing us together as a family.
On reaching the mouth of the river, Uncle Jim arranged for a boat and together with a guide we paddled through the Bay only to return late in the afternoon to a nice hotel where we enjoyed sea food together. From there we spent the rest of the afternoon in the sand dunes along the Bay and in the evening we hired some bikes and cycled back to our hotel for dinner as we called it a day.
The next few days in Nehalem were spent sightseeing, fishing and mingling with the locals. In essence, the whole experience helped us to reflect the need of being together as a family through good and hard times and being there for each other. There was a lot left to question ourselves after the trip. Think of the situation where Uncle Jim left his family behind and decided to take us for a holiday instead. It is because of love and the sacrifice that we all need to do for each other as a family. Simply a good lesson was picked form the holiday and helped strengthen our family bond after all we had been through.
Kayaking in Nehalem River
I want to recount about my first kayaking experience that I had on the North Coast of Oregon. I need to stress that I come from Michigan which has some of the longest freshwater coastline in United States, but throughout my life, I have never ‘interacted’ with water. Literally, I mean that before Oregon, I had never had any experiences with outdoor waters, safe for the little showers that come every spring and give ‘poor’ kids like I the opportunity to play hide and seek whilst it is still raining.
Partly my blame for the lack of any experience can be attributed to my domineering father, who insisted that all he got was to enable us get ‘good education’ and thus all the free time that we had even during holidays was to be spared on books; yeah that the life of any authoritarian and I had to live by the code. Otherwise, any who objected to that way of living was deemed ‘weak and doomed to fail’. That’s my lovely dad.
I don’t refute the fact that he hardly earned enough to take us for a vacation at least in the nearby waters surrounding us like other parents did for their kids, but the old geezers prejudged that as a precious waste of time and money and never had time for that. As a matter of fact, he highly discouraged us to be anywhere near those regions, and any of my siblings who dared cross his line of authority and plans was dearly; mercilessly should be the word – punished.
It Takes Heart to Appreciate the Beauty of Nature
Therefore, by the age of 16 I never knew how to swim; not even in a bathtub. We were all confined to our washroom for any water experiences. I must admit that we kinda liked it. It was all that was there for us and the best way to derive glory from it was to appreciate the way of life that was thrown at our faces.
Fast forward to my college life, I was in second year when my friends and I decided to visit Oregon during our summer vacation. It was a vacation that I had really looked forward too and ensured that I had saved enough to serve our projected budget; and still be left with some cash for some luxuries and damaged that we never foresaw. We had decided to go to Nehalem Bay, Oregon as a group of six. Two in the team hailed form there and were core in coordinating the vacation schedule. The rest of us and never been to Oregon.
So there we are at Nehalem Bay and I want to try my first kayaking experience. I was nervous, very nervous. There was a tinge in me especially when I realized that I was to paddle in a two-person kayak with a fellow amateur friend with little or no experience just like me. With that said, I felt that very intimidating and wanted to protest. There was no way I was going to kayak for over half of the day with a bloke much novice as I was. There was no protocol to warrant that, period.
Paddling is one of the Best ways to Experience Nature
After much thought I decided to bring my considerations to my friends who were quick to agonize with me; and reassure me that everything would be okay. They understood the fact that I couldn’t even swim; but reassured me that the waters were still and there were minimal chances of ‘capsizing’. What really made me fearful was the fact that my kayak-partner seemed all comfortable. He didn’t see any reason to panic, yet he too had zero-experience. Also, he was striking me as a psychopath who cared little about life: it was as if he thought that there was more to life than living and never gave any thought about any mistake; which would put our lives at stake.
However, I felt that my panicking was becoming an embarrassment; since I was the only one complaining and decided to reserve my worries to myself and give the water experience a chance. Anyway, there was an assurance that we would all paddle as a group and be there for each other.
We were thoroughly inducted and off we hit the waters
Nonetheless, I must agree that one of the best places to learn kayaking is the Nehalem Bay. We paddled along the river and went close to the Pacific. All along the way we shared stories and Talking Moose jokes while taking pictures of the bald eagles and the scenic beauty. It was all fun and by the time we reached the river’s North Fork I was an ‘expert kayaker’.
We safely returned after reaching that point. And I was kinda feeling stupid for the scene I had earlier created as I resisted kayaking with a novice like myself. All in all, I’m sure that they all understood my position. This was because nobody made fun of the incident later; even as we went to prepare for the next day’s experiences.
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