Lower Oregon Coast

If you think the California coast is magnificent and you have never been to Oregon, you are in store for a treat. We certainly were. Not only does the Pacific coast in Oregon provide some amazing breathtaking views, but these small friendly harbor towns, super cool bridges and historical lighthouses bring a whole different feel to the coast.

We explored the southern 185 miles of the Oregon coast over about a week (subtracting for some rainy days) and have fell in love with it. I know we both looked at each other a couple of times and said, “this is a place we could live”. The Oregon coast may not have the dramatics that Highway 1 through Big Sur does with the hanging over the edge feel, but with what it lacks in that respect it more than makes up for in other areas.

There are many inland waterways along the Oregon coast from all of the rivers feeding into the ocean. These rivers are larger than in some other areas so make for a natural spot of settlement. Small fishing towns appeared and harbors were built. Magnificent bridges of architectural beauty span over the rivers. Numerous historical lighthouses from the early 19th century still stand tall and proud along the coast. Although their lights are no longer fueled by oil or require a full-time keeper, they are there to remind us of just how important they were from a maritime perspective.

The people in these coastal Oregon small towns are so genuinely friendly. There’s a humble proudness that exudes from them being Oregonians. Whether you’re talking to a local shop owner, or simply passing a stranger on the street, they stop and talk to you! These are hardworking people who have found this slice of the country to call home, or possibly even paradise.

The Oregon shoreline is certainly not short of dramatics and the elevation does change as you drive along the coast. However, these beautiful areas are more accessible. Many of our favorite beaches are now in Oregon. There’s a certain mystic to the beaches here where the magnificent sea stacks make it look like something from another world, especially during low tide.

In this blog I’ll be covering our favorite towns, beaches and other attractions that we explored from the California border to near Yachats, traveling from south to north.

Brooking

We visited Brookings during our Redwoods stop since it was more convenient from there, but this is the first logical Oregon lower coast stop. Brookings is a coastal harbor town on the Chetco River in far southern Oregon. Fresh seafood is plentiful in this town and we had a great early dinner at Catalyst Seafood. The crab cakes, clam chowder and fish and chips were all fantastic.

Azalea Park has a beautiful display of azaleas within a small trail. If you’re used to azaleas in the south, these will blow you away, they are huge! There are several seaside parks in town but we continued the drive north a little further.

North from Brookings is the Samuel H. Boardman State Scenic Corridor, a 12-mile odyssey of one stunning view after another with beaches and hiking trails to explore. There are multiple well marked pull-outs along the way, some providing amazing views right from the parking area and others offering a short hike. The coastline is absolutely gorgeous along the Oregon coast.

Our favorite beaches along the way were Harris Beach and Lone Ranch Beach. Harris Beach offered mystic sea stacks, driftwood and hidden alcoves in the rocks. Very beautiful. The waves crashing into the rocks at the water’s edge at Lone Ranch Beach made for some great photo ops.

The viewpoints that blew us away the most were Natural Bridges and Arch Rock. Natural Bridges is a series of three bridges formed out of rock outcroppings with an amazing viewpoint. There are some rugged trails that lead down but after watching a few folks make their way back up, the unanimous recommendation was, “not worth it”. Arch Rock is an amazing natural rock just offshore with a huge hole in it making an arch. The short trail allows you to see it from all angles as you meander along the coast.

Bandon

This little spot on the southern Oregon coast is a perfect mix of fishing village and cozy little town. It was back to that small town feel with friendly people that we’ve missed for a little while. People are less guarded and are willing to share, like Bob who has been a business owner and resident in Bandon for the past 42 years after he retired from directing old western movies. In the downtown area you can do everything from shop the boutiques and art galleries to hang out at the local pubs. When it’s time to satisfy your hunger, fresh seafood is plentiful like the crab at Tony’s Crab Shack. And be sure to check out the historic Coast Guard Station, now transformed into a business office complex.

The Coquille River Lighthouse, another historic Oregon lighthouse, sits on the point leading into the river. You can drive out to the point on the north side of the river or view it from across the river. Maybe a little less dramatic than some of the other Oregon lighthouses but well worth it if you’re lighthouse junky like we are.

Right down the street is Bandon Beach, an absolutely incredible spot that can’t be missed. Ideally you will want to visit the beach at low tide. You start off at the Face Rock State Scenic Viewpoint overlooking this incredible beach with its dramatic sea stacks and sprawling beach. It looks otherworldly and you can hang out at the viewpoint forever, but it gets even better when you descend down to the beach.

You can get down to the beach directly from the overlook or just north of there at another access point. It is so cool walking out through the sea stacks and there are even some sea caves you can explore. As you venture out to the further sea stacks you enter the tide pools with an amazing display of starfish, clams and anemones. We were even able to see a family of Canadian Geese with their 6 young chicks. If you’re lucky enough to be there on one of the weekends they are doing Circles in the Sand, check that out. Incredible sand artists draw amazing features in the sand, only to get washed away in the tide. Undoubtedly, this is one of our favorite beaches and towns.

Coos Bay

Your first stop in Coos Bay should be Cranberry Sweets & More. This second-generation family owned candy shop has been making homemade candies and other treats since 1963. They have a second retail location in Bandon, but this is the location where their factory is, you can watch the artists sculpt these delectable treats through the windows from the candy shop. When you walk into this place you feel like you’ve just walked into candy heaven! And oh my, they have tasting bowls all over the place! If the guilt of all those free tastes don’t get to you, certainly the amazing flavors of their treats will get you walking out the door with enough sweets to put a kindergarten class into sugar shock. I blame my own sugar shock on forgetting to get pictures from the inside.

Next, continue down the Cape Arago Highway to Shore Acres State Park for a walk through the beautiful Japanese Garden and All-American Rose Garden. It is a gorgeous setting and with the sounds of waves in the distance it is very peaceful. The flowering plants and trees are over the top and I didn’t expect to see palm trees in Oregon. But that’s not all Shore Acres has to offer.

Adjacent to the gardens is an area along the ocean to view the amazing shoreline. This section of shoreline has huge waves and because of the rocky shoreline, it is one of the most dramatic spots on any coastline we have seen (sorry California). It’s looks like a 4th of July fireworks display in water that never quits. But don’t stop there.

While you’re wondering around you might notice a narrow asphalt pathway and possibly a sign with an arrow that says “Beach”. Follow it! It’s a short but fairly steep walk to Simpson Beach, a small protected cove that is one of the most amazing little spots you can imagine. Although the cove is small the depth of the sand beach is quite large, at least it was at low tide. From here you are now at water level, watching these gigantic waves just at the mouth of the cove. From that vantage point you can really appreciate the size and power of these things as the roll in and crash into the rocks. It’s like you’re standing in a little tranquil bubble with shear chaos happening right in from of you. It was epic, and we had the entire beach to ourselves.

Continuing down the road is Simpson Reef and Shell Island, an incredible marine habitat that is home to hundreds of seals and sea lions. The Vista Point allows you to observe (and listen to) these creatures as they sun on the beach and frolic around in the pools of water, this is like a 5-star hotel for sea life! If you have binoculars or a scope, bring them, but you can see them all with the naked eye as well.

At the end of the road is Cape Arago State Park that offers some hiking opportunities and, at low tide, some tide pooling. The trails leading down to the tide pools were in bad shape so we didn’t venture all the way down, but we found several peaceful spots to sit and admire the beauty of the southern Oregon coast.

As you turn around to head back, stop at the Cape Arago, Lighthouse viewpoint. Unfortunately, the road leading to the lighthouse is private, so this distant viewpoint is as close as we found you can get to it. A little disappointing, in an otherwise amazing day, but well worth the stop to snap a photo.

Also, a bit underwhelming was the town of Coos Bay. Minus the short boardwalk along the marina and a few cool shops, there really isn’t a central historic district and it lacked the charm that we have found in other Oregon towns.

Winchester Bay

We used this as our basecamp to explore most of the area since it’s centrally located within an hour either direction of our other stops. Winchester Bay is another harbor town located at the mouth of the Umpqua River. We stayed at Winchester Bay RV Resort which was one of our favorite RV parks. You have a choice of a harbor front spot or one facing the sound. We did the latter and loved the water view… and the seal that would come say hello at 4:00 am every morning. Apparently he doesn’t understand the quiet time rules!

The big attraction in Winchester Bay is the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. This 1,500-acre portion of the Siuslaw National Forest, unique due to its proximity of the ocean, is a Meca for ATV enthusiasts. The Oregon Dunes Overlook area, 11 miles north of Reedsport, is off limits to Off-Highway Vehicles (OHV) and a great place to check out the dunes on foot.

At Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area you are just about guaranteed to see Roosevelt Elk in their natural habitat, as a herd of 60-100 elk call this home year-round. The Bureau of Land Management maintains the area and there is parking and an interior road that parallels the highway, so it’s easy to hang out and see these beautiful creatures.

If you’re in for a short hike with the pups or your human companion, the 1-mile trail around Lake Marie makes for a pleasant afternoon stroll. It’s a quite area and very peaceful. And then it’s time to head over to the Umpqua River Lighthouse and Museum for a cup of coffee.

Adjacent to the Umpqua Lighthouse Museum is a nice little store with freshly made treats and coffee, a great way to start your lighthouse adventure. The Umpqua Lighthouse offers daily tours of the 19th century lighthouse every 30 minutes. This is super cool, as you are able to go all the way up into the prism and learn about the lighthouse from your tour guide. It amazed me how a 12,000-pound structure can rotate effortless with a 1/2 HP motor. Once you’re done at the lighthouse, the museum offers some broader history of area lighthouses and the coastguard.

There are several small dives to eat at the Winchester Bay Harbor, and if you need more conveniences there’s plenty 10 minutes up the road in Reedsport. We thoroughly enjoyed our crab melt sandwiches at Crabby’s Bar & Grill in the harbor so much we went back twice. Think grilled cheese on sourdough with a heap of fresh crab meat!

Florence

This stop includes the town of Florence and the area covering approximately 25 miles to the north. I’ll get back to the town in a moment, but first the beautiful drive through this section of Highway 101. The road winds through tree-lined forests and along the coast and is worth every mile traveled.

Caution: There is a low clearance tunnel just north of Florence. Although it is 14′ in the center, the sides are at 11’6″, so if you have a high rig, you will have to straddle the centerline. This can be very challenging due to the length of the tunnel and oncoming traffic. I do NOT recommend this as an RV route if you are over 11’6″.

The first stop past Florence is Darlingtonia State Natural Site. This is home to the rare native Cobra Lily, a carnivorous plant that eats insects. Yea, I know sounds creepy and I guess it is a little, but these odd plants are quite interesting. We were there just before the bloom but they were still very cool to look at.

Continuing up the road is the popular Sea Lion Caves. This privately owned sanctuary takes you down (in an elevator) to a sea cave to see the sea lions. If you’ve never witnessed these creatures in their natural habitat, this would probably be a worthy, low effort way to do so, but we passed on the $18 a head entry fee since we’ve seen plenty of sea lions and done some sea caving.

As you continue up the road just a little further pay close attention to a pullout right along a big curve in the road, there will likely be several cars parked there. This is one of the best lighthouse viewpoint you can imagine. The Heceta Head Lighthouse can be clearly seen out on the adjacent point just posing for your picture. As a bonus, we saw a couple of sea lions (for free mind you) frolicking around in a little seaside pool of water right below us.

The road that takes you to the lighthouse is just up a little further along. A short (uphill) walk will take you right to the lighthouse. They weren’t doing tours when we were there, but the grounds and views are quite beautiful. The original, restored lightkeepers house is still on the property as well, now used as a bed and breakfast.

Our last stop venturing north, and the grand finale of the day, was Thor’s Well and Spouting Horn. In full disclosure, we thought the two were the same thing and it wasn’t until I was writing this blog that I realized they weren’t and we actually missed Thor’s Well, a sinkhole that fills up at high tide. Spouting Horn, a water geyser, however was amazing. As the waves come in the underground cavity starts to fill up with water and you hear the roar begin. Once full it will spout up from the hole in the ground like a whale’s blow, often quite dramatically. It’s an incredible site to see and you can view it from several different vantage points, including the viewpoint at the road or down below right next to it where you just might get a little wet. It’s best to get there a little before high tide for the best effects of both.

After a full day, and as “hangryness” was setting in, we backtracked to Florence for a bite to eat. I know these words are overused, but this is the cutest little town. The historic area sits right on the Siuslaw River with the historic bridge shadowing over the quaint little village. A wooden boardwalk goes along the harbor and the street is lined with restaurants, shops and a couple little coffee bars. It’s one of those spots where people seem to go for a little retreat, and I can see why. We had an amazing meal at the Waterfront Depot Restaurant. Crab stuffed mushrooms, crab crusted halibut and dungeness crab salad, mmm!

Surprisingly, we covered a lot of ground in a relatively short period of time. We feel we got a good taste of the area but could easily come back and spend more time in many of these spots. A week or so in Bandon or Florence, for example, would make for an amazing getaway. However you do your Oregon coast trip be sure not to miss: Bandon Beach at Face Rock, Simpson Beach and the overlook at Shore Acres State Park and Thor’s Well/Spouting Horn. Oh heck, don’t miss any of it, it’s amazing!

Be sure to check the rest of our pictures from the lower Oregon coast.