We spent a few days meandering up the Oregon coast. Not nearly enough time to take it all in, but I've outlined a few of the highlights here.
What I found very interesting was how one minute you couldn't see the ocean, even though you could hear the waves crashing nearby from the road. And then you'd drive a few miles and a few coves further and the sun would beat out the fog and it was a clear day with views stretching out across the blue water. That being said, be prepared for those shifts in weather - both sunglasses and raincoat were needed, alternating several times throughout one day.
Heceta Head - beach and lighthouse
We stopped at Heceta Head beach and lighthouse for lunch and a walk in the sunshine. The beach isn't overly large, and there were people around, but we had plenty of room to ourselves. We wandered the waterline a bit before perching on some driftwood to eat our packed lunches. After lunch we headed up the short, but steep walk up to the lighthouse. The views of the ocean and the coast from up there were stunning. It was so clear you could see out for what felt like miles.
The parking lot directly at the base of the trail up to the lighthouse isn't overly large and neither is the overflow lot. However, people were coming and going at a good rate, and we didn't have any trouble finding parking for 2 cars.
Hobbit Trail and Beach
A few quick miles north of Heceta Head is Hobbit Trail, which leads down to a beach. Be advised, the parking is basically just a pull-off on the side of the road, and we most likely would have gone by it had there not already been cars pulled over. There is a sign, but it was blocked by one of the parked cars.
The trail is only 1 mile, but it is STEEP and narrow, with often room for only 1 person wide at a time. Personally, I think it was way worth it as the beach is wide and open and there were barely any other people on it for the entire hour that we were there. I found multiple sand dollars (although most were in parts) and shells while I wandered the beach. With the sunshine and the breeze and the solitude, it made for a very relaxing beach walk.
We had dinner and stayed the night in Oceanside OR (not far from Tillamook - where we visited the creamery the next day. Their ice cream flight was fantastic!).
Dinner was at a restaurant on the water, where we were able to eat outside and enjoy the fresh air and views. While we waited for our table, we watched a small group of pelicans swooping about. I was entranced, as I've never seen a pelican before (outside of zoos/aquariums/documentaries). We spoke with a local woman who told us we were lucky as these large birds are only around for a few months here. She also told us that the previous day at another beach nearby she watched hundreds of them for a few hours before they moved on. I was awed by a dozen or so, I can't even image watching hundreds of them.
Another sunset on the Pacific did not disappoint, even with the clouds moving in. And there is always something special about stargazing on the beach.
Cape Meares - lighthouse and Octopus Tree
Another cool place to view the coast, a short, steep-ish, paved path from the parking lot down to the lighthouse. It is one of the shorter lighthouses I've seen, but still with a cool view of the ocean, even if most of it was obscured by the fog. From the lighthouse, we walked up a different steep path to the Octopus Tree. A very cool and very large spruce tree, which is believed to be between 250 and 300 years old. What's cool about the tree is that there is wide central base (which is noted to be about 50 feet across), which then has several trunks that split off and grow in different directions, instead of straight up, making it look like it has several arms, like an octopus.
Overall, a nice quick stop and place to stretch your legs and take in the dramatic coastline.
Hug Point
Another interesting stop along the coast, Hug Point is a beach walk with several large holes/cracks in the rocky embankments. Some large enough to walk up inside! At this point, it was drizzling a bit, which deterred many of the other beach goers and there were only a few other groups in addition to ourselves willing to take the short walk from the parking lot down to the beach and explore further.
(side note: the stairs down to the beach are steep and missing several steps at the bottom, which makes the last few feet a big drop for children, elderly, or individuals with mobility challenges. that being said, we were able to get my mother who has had 3 knee replacements down to the beach on a smaller offshoot on the rocks that people have made as a "shortcut")
It was definitely fun exploring the insides of the caverns and cracks, seeing how far back they went. But take care, as the rocky floor are often slippery as well as wobbly footing.
Be aware of the tides, whenever you are along the coast or beach. There are some places where the differences between low and high tides are extreme. And there are some places that you could be stuck if you are there when the tide comes back in. So, always be aware of the tide lines and tide tables. We checked for the week and then each morning for the locations we had on our list to explore that day. It never hurts to be careful. Explore safely!!
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