Oregon's Hobbit Trail: A Real Enchanted Forest.

I have been daydreaming about my experience here since the moment I left. The Hobbit Trail, a hidden gem of a hiking trail on the Oregon coast between Florence and Yachats, is a truly magical place: covered by a canopy of trees, blanketed in moss, and completely filled with wonder. As soon as you enter the forest, you feel incredibly small in the presence of something so wondrous. The winding, mossy trail leads you through about a million breathtaking places before spilling out onto an even more breathtaking private beach.

I have a hard time picking a favorite place/activity/experience on the road trip my friend Amber and I took from LA to Portland up the Pacific Coast, but this very well may be it.

Curious about what it feels like to walk through a place that looks like something out of a dream? Come relive the magical journey with me:

The view to the left shortly after entering the forest. This second trail goes to the Heceta Head Lighthouse. I was immediately overwhelmed with the lush surroundings.

The path is soft with things that look like pine needles, and you can barely hear your own footsteps. You immediately feel a sense of being so small in such a magnificent place.

The trail starts to take on the feeling of being inside of a tunnel, where the sides and top are made from plants, trees, and moss.

The entire time you are following the path, you can hear the crashing waves from the ocean.

Moss covers everything. I have never seen so much green in my life.

Trees take on a whole new life with their mossy coverings.

Plants growing recklessly. So beautiful.

After a very gently ascent at the beginning of the trail, you start to descend once you get closer to Hobbit Beach. I was pretty much waiting for a hobbit to come down this staircase after me.

Sunlight peeking through the towering trees.

The path starts to open up, revealing spectacular mossy landscapes.

More light starts to shine onto the trail as you near where the edge of the forest hits the beach.

A crazy, gnarly tree that sits right in the middle of the path.

Very close to the beach, more and more light starts to leak in.

Once the path opens up, you can really explore the forest. We found this spot, where someone had camped the night before. Not a bad view.

There are a couple of ways to get to the beach that we saw... both of which involve jumping into little ditches lined by tree roots and covered with bramble, like a little tunnel. Seriously, where are the hobbits?!

You turn around to see the little hole you just exited from real quick, and it looks like this.

Then you turn to the beach and see this.

And this.

Then you turn to your right and see this.

When you get up close to explore the cliffs, they are completely covered with living little words. There are waterfalls everywhere. The sound is unimaginably beautiful.

I was so sad to leave the beach, but wandering back into this magical forest and walking the trail all over again fixed that pretty quick :)

If you are going to be on the Oregon Coast any time soon, please, do yourself a favor, and stop by this magical place. The hike is super easy and would be great for kids or dogs, and is fairly short... which gives you lots of time to explore. It's kind of tricky to find, so here are some tips:

-The Hobbit Trail is located off of Highway 101 about six miles north of Florence, Oregon.

- The trail head is on the west side of Highway 101. There is a parking pull-out on the east side of the highway, so just park there, cross the road, and you will find it.

-The Carl C. Washburne State Park sign is a great landmark to use. The Hobbit Trail is just south of the sign; you can see the sign from the parking pull out. If you pass the sign in your car heading north, you have gone too far. If you are heading south, you will see the parking pull out on your left shortly after the sign.

-After you take a few steps into the forest, you will see signs for Hobbit Beach and the Heceta Head lighthouse. This means you are in the right place.

My last tip is to bring a camera or at least bring your cell phone so you can take pictures. You will not be disappointed: this place is like a little slice of heaven :)