jansenco | Writing 301

Written by Corey J.

I awake to a foggy December day. I roll out of bed, take a shower, get into cozy clothes, slap on a few jackets, and head towards the beach. After about five minutes of walking, the visage of a rocky formation juts out from the sand and fog in the distance.

As I walk along the creek that cuts through the beach, salt and fresh water clash. The wind rips the waves into a frenzy, adding mist to the fog, a refreshing change from city air.

As the sun shines dimly through the fog, Proposal Rock casts a shadow along its southern side. Within said shadow lies a Ghost Forest. Stabbing through the fog and sand are the remnants of an ancient forest, long since dead. The fog and wind add to the hauntingly beautiful atmosphere as waves crash into the eternal sentinels of petrified wood.

It’s a perfect day on the Oregon Coast.

Introduction to the Town of Neskowin:

Neskowin, Oregon is a relatively unknown town to the general public. Lifelong locals usually like to keep it as that hidden gem, only really liking outsiders during the summer months. That isn’t to say the people of Neskowin are rude or xenophobic, but permanent residents enjoy the quiet atmosphere and lack of mass tourism. While Oregonians are more likely to know of its existence, Neskowin residents love their seclusion from large crowds. As of the 2019 census, there were only 164 permanent residents in Neskowin (Wikipedia).

Neskowin is a small coastal town that does not have much at a glance. However, as a seaside town, it has beach access. As people who have visited the Oregon coast know, the sand and water are cold most of the year, hence why my family will usually bring several jackets for a walk on the beach in spring. One thing that is immediately noticeable about Neskowin is the existence of Proposal Rock and the petrified Ghost Forest.

With Proposal Rock acting as town mascot, the town’s main draw is the beach and what is on it. Other cities have massive rocks, but Proposal is unique in how easy it is to get to. On occasion, bald eagles can be seen circling above the tree-coated rock.

The central part of the beach is divided by a river. However, depending on rain or the time of the year, the beach can look drastically different between different months. For example, it is typically divided between north and south beach, but if the river has been running high or there has been a lot of rain, the north beach can cease to exist.

Proposal Rock:

As stated, Proposal rock acts as Neskowin’s mascot. Along with the looming sea stack rock comes a local legend. Depending on the version, some details differ, but this is how it goes:

In the late 1800s, there was a sailor named Charley Gage. The exact details of Charley are thin, but Della Page is the daughter of a homesteading family that grew crops along the Neskowin Creek. Apparently, one day the pair climbed the rock and chose to get married while gazing out across the sea. “Della’s mother was so thrilled she named the prominent landmark ‘Proposal Rock,’ a moniker that endures to this day” (Urness).

My family has a story not too different from this. In 2019, my sister Megan and her now-husband Ty went out for a walk on the beach. Everything was normal during their walk, but while Megan was watching the sunset on the expansive ocean, Ty got down on one knee and proposed in Proposal Rock’s shadow.

While I have never climbed to the top of Proposal Rock, I have seen groups of people who have scaled its rough exterior. To climb Proposal is not for the faint of heart or tender of hand. Depending on what the creek has done to the beach, it can sometimes be quite difficult to reach Proposal Rock. During low or minus tides, you can walk around the backside of Proposal Rock.

The Ghost Forest:

Most visible in the winter during low tides, the Ghost Forest juts from the waves and sand to show a time long since passed. While the petrified tree stumps are around 2,000 years old, they have only been consistently visible since the winter of 1997 (Atlas Obscura).

The running theory is that an earthquake hit the Cascadia subduction zone around 1700. The shake was strong enough to drop “the forested land into the tidal zone. When the ocean rushed in, it buried the decapitated trunks in the mud, which staved off decay and preserved the forest remains for years to come” (Atlas Obscura).

The trees were Sitka spruce trees that potentially reached heights between 150 to 200 feet tall. For most of the remains, the base of the trees remains buried under sand and water. Nearly every stump is covered with barnacles and muscles, and each stump is unique.

To Summarize:

Neskowin is a beautiful and small coastal town. While the name “Ghost Forest” sounds ominous, it is a hauntingly stunning location to visit. While the town itself is fantastic, the beach is what draws people to Neskowin. In addition, the stories and legends surrounding its most famous landmarks draw tourists to the town during the summer, ensuring the town can stay afloat financially.