Oregon’s coast is known for its beautiful scenery, long beaches, rocky cliffs, and often cold and stormy Pacific waters. It might not be the first place that comes to mind for a traditional beach vacation, but if you’re into hiking, coastal scenery, and exploring small towns, there is plenty to see.
One of the major towns along the northern coast is Seaside. The area has a strong connection to the Lewis and Clark Expedition, which reached the Pacific Coast after crossing the continent. Above is a monument in Seaside commemorating the expedition.
One of the first things I noticed about Seaside was how dog friendly it was. Lots of people had dogs with them, and it seemed like almost every restaurant with outdoor seating had at least one or two dogs hanging out with their owners. The photo on the right was something very specific to the time of my visit: a guy collecting signatures for marijuana legalization in Oregon.
In some ways I didn’t really feel like I was at the beach because the weather was so cold and cloudy, but Seaside itself had many of the things you’d expect from an American beach town. There were plenty of shops, restaurants, candy stores, and attractions aimed at visitors. Above is a small indoor carousel surrounded by shops, along with one of the candy stores selling chocolate truffles.
Ecola and the Oregon Coast
Seaside has a huge sandy beach where I saw people riding bikes, flying kites, and relaxing along the shore. For scenery, however, I preferred the coastline around Ecola. I took the two photos above about six years before my Seaside trip, when I spent more of my time in Oregon hiking. The photos were taken only hours apart, but you can see how quickly a cloudy day along the Pacific can turn into a much bigger storm.
Cannon Beach
Just south of Seaside is Cannon Beach. The two towns are close together, but they felt surprisingly different to me. Seaside seemed more like a traditional tourist destination with its promenade and attractions, while Cannon Beach felt quieter. There was still no shortage of restaurants, candy shops, and other businesses, but I also found used bookstores, quieter streets, and what I thought was better coastal scenery.
Cannon Beach’s most famous landmark is Haystack Rock, the enormous sea stack rising directly from the beach. This was my second trip to Cannon Beach, and my first visit had brought similar weather. The cloudy skies might not have been ideal beach weather, but they somehow seemed appropriate for this part of the Pacific Northwest. Farther along the coast I could see more rock formations rising out of the ocean.
Despite all the people along the beach, I didn’t see anyone eager to enter the chilly water. I visited in May, which is early for beach weather almost anywhere in the United States, but I had also been here during June on an earlier trip and remembered similarly cold conditions. The Pacific stays cold along this part of the coast even during summer. Apparently the dog above didn’t mind.
Exploring Oregon’s Rugged Coast
Farther south along the coast, I made a random stop and followed a short trail through thick vegetation until I reached these dramatic views. At the time I hadn’t yet visited Ireland, but for some reason this was exactly what I imagined the Irish coast would look like: green mountains and rocky cliffs dropping into a stormy ocean beneath a dark overcast sky.
I normally prefer sunlight when I’m traveling, but somehow bright sunshine almost wouldn’t have seemed natural here. The trail I followed appeared to dead-end high above the water, although I could see other trails in the distance and plenty more coastline waiting to be explored. Looking down toward the Pacific, I could see caves, sheer cliffs, and rocky islands scattered offshore.
Offshore were more rocky islands and cliffs, some stained white from the large numbers of seabirds using them as resting and nesting areas. The dark sky and poor visibility made it difficult for me to identify what species I was seeing farther offshore, although there were plenty of gulls circling nearby.
Coming from the much flatter coastal areas of the Mid-Atlantic, Oregon’s coastline was far more dramatic than what I was used to back home. Between the forests, cliffs, sea stacks, beaches, and constantly changing Pacific weather, simply driving the coast and stopping whenever something looked interesting became one of the highlights of traveling through Oregon.
