The dramatic Oregon coast - North

The Oregon coast was one of the main reasons for our road trip in the Pacific Northwest and we were thrilled that it was as awesome as we had expected it to be. It was just a couple of hours from Mt. St. Helens and we drove out of the rain as we approached Astoria, in the northern part of the coast.

Cannon Beach at dusk

We only stopped in Astoria at the northern end of the coast for a short break to stretch our legs along the waterfront. There were a lot of old pier pilings, remnants of Astoria's heyday as a cannery town. Now the old railway running behind the cannery is being used for local tourist transit, complete with conductor and bell.

At the Astoria waterfront

Astoria-Megler Bridge - old pilings at the waterfront from the old cannery

The old rail is now being used by a sightseeing tram

We made it to Tolovana Beach right next to Cannon Beach just before sunset. As luck would have it, the weather had cleared just enough to allow me to take a few pictures with the dramatic clouds still around. We must have walked a mile on the beach when it started to rain. By the time we got back to our waterfront hotel, we were drenched. But then it cleared again giving us a dramatic Pacific sunset - it was all worth it! 

Cannon Beach at the blue hour

Cannon Beach by day

Tillamook Rock Light off Ecola State Park

Ecola State Park

I had been hoping to see some shorebirds at Ecola State Park but there were only surfers! I think we were too early for migration - they are probably still in Canada on their way south. I did see a lonely juvenile spotted sandpiper near a culvert as we left after spending some time watching surfers.

As we headed south towards Yachats, where we were going to spend the following two nights, we came across a beautiful art deco bridge, the Yaquina Bay Bridge built by engineer Conde McCullough. We were to see two more of his bridges in the time we were on the coast.

Yaquina Bay Bridge - note the art deco columns

The Tourist Information office at Cannon Beach gave us "The Original Highway 101 Mile-by-Mile Guide" by the Oregon Coast Magazine - it was extremely helpful for our drive as it covers mile by mile the key sights along the highway. We stopped in Garibaldi to take the iconic photo of the Pier's End, stopped in Bay City to have an oyster snack at The Fish Pedlar - Pacific Oysters, then the obligatory stop at the Tillamook Dairy to try their cheese and line up for ice cream.  All this snacking made the drive longer than we expected, especially when part of the Three Capes Scenic Drive was closed and we had to make a detour, making it so late that we didn't have time to stop on this scenic drive which rather defeated the purpose.

But we made it to Yachats before the dining room at the hotel closed!  Yachats turned out to be a quiet little town, not busy like Cannon Beach. Thanks to the local experts on Tripadvisor for recommending it.

Pier's End, Garibaldi

The surf in front of our hotel in Yachats

Yaquina Head Lighthouse - the whales were right near the promontory

The following morning we drove north again to cover all the places we skipped the day before. The Yaquina Head Lighthouse stood out on a promontory and we lucked out when we joined a small crowd that had gathered to watch the whales frisking around quite close to shore.  When we got to Depoe Bay, they got even closer. We stood on the seawall and they put on a show right in front of us.

Whale spouting - see how little the duck looked beside it!

Here's the head...                               

...and here's the tail

The so-called "Devil's Punchbowl" was a little disappointing, even though we were there at high tide, there wasn't much action there - maybe our timing was wrong. I could see how if there was a huge surf and everything got pushed through the hole, it could be quite spectacular.

Seal Rock State Recreation Area

We managed to get back to our hotel before sunset - it was great that our dining room had the perfect sunset view so I was able to get out to capture the sunset while we were waiting for dinner!  But really, the best sunset was the one at Cannon Beach with the rain clouds.

 PRACTICAL TIPS:
- make sure you visit the tourist information centres at your first stop on the coast to get the publication "The Original HIghway 101 Mile-by-mile Guide". It's free and literally tells you what to see at every mile down the highway.
- allow enough time when you're driving any of the scenic drives because you have to get out of the car and sometimes walk a bit to see the scenery. One of the access to the Three Capes Scenic Drive was closed and google doesn't seem to realize that.



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