Nestled in a quiet corner of Oregon flows Youngs River Falls; 54 feet (16 meters) of quiet, cool, cascading, stream. (click on any image to see full sized)
A few days ago, three members of the Voluntarist Brotherhood Motorcycle Club set out from Astoria Oregon to explore a little of the natural beauty that is so abundant here in Oregon.
As we turn off of the 101, back roads take us through lush farmlands. Twists and turns that are too fun on two wheels! Here is a head-cam video of the ride out to the falls. It's been a few years since I'd been there so I wasn't sure where the turn-off was. This made the trip out a little hesitant but a gorgeous ride none the less. (Unedited length 11:42)
Walking down the path into the bowl carved out by centuries of flooding, the exposed root systems remind me of some mystical forest from Tolkien mythology. Check out the incredible tree that is making its way through the rock. It's not every day you get to see a live root system from the bottom up.
I seriously overindulged on coffee that morning. It was so bad it affected my riding. So the hand-held go-pro needed some stabilizing. Sorry about the distortions. It's still worth sharing just to see the amazing growth of this enchanting rainforest.
(Unedited length 6:54)
The water collects into a deep black pool. I'm not sure what causes the blackish color. Decaying leaves? Algae? The water is actually quite fresh and clean, but the dark hue adds to the mysterious and mythical feel of this hidden gem.
As a couple of locals hope for a hungry fish,
Brennon and Anam, two of the First Four of the VBMC take a moment to draw in some peace, reflection, and tobacco.
You can see that despite the deceptively deep and black pools, the water is crystal clear.
Our walk out takes only about a minute and gives you some close looks at the gnarly exposed roots that make up the trail in and out of the bowl.
I hope you've enjoyed our visit to this little-known treasure. The Voluntarist Brotherhood Motorcycle Club is made up of individuals who share a common set of core values, one of which is to savor the experiences that life has to offer. We believe that all human interactions should be consensual, that a society built on voluntary exchanges is the next step in human social evolution. We believe that every individual ought to exist free from the initiation of force, that you should be free to Live All Your Life.
Still photos and the water surface-level video were all taken with a Samsung Galaxy S7.
All other videos are from a go-pro hero 3.
You'll notice that no photos or videos were edited for this post. My first $2,500 earned on Steemit will be going toward hardware to improve the production value of my content. I'll be documenting my progress so you can follow along on that process as well.