We are at South Beach State Park for 5 nights and there is a lot to see and do in the area. The city of Newport supports a fishing industry and therefore has a good variety of stores, restaurants, and specialty shops. There is also an aquarium and marine science centre (which we do not plan to visit). Hoping for some good fresh fish!
Starting our explorations we head back along the Hwy to an interesting sight called ‘Devils Punchbowl’ which is a very cool naturally carved bowl in rock where the ocean enters and swirls and churns. We got there at high tide which was great to see.
Back toward Newport is Yaquina (yah-KWIH-nah) Head Lighthouse (BLM and Coast Guard Land).
At the entrance we are offered an opportunity to purchase a National Parks pass which will come in handy as we travel the states. There is a modern interpretive centre and lighthouse tours. After a short walk to the lighthouse we had a 45 minute tour of the storage and office quarters at the bottom of the lighthouse (the keepers house is no longer standing), and then climbed to the tower (93 ft.) – the tallest on the Oregon Coast. This lighthouse is still operational and we were able to see the Fresnel light up close. Afterwards a short hike up a switchback hill gives great views over the area. This lighthouse replaced the short lived (3 years) Yaquina Bay lighthouse built at the tip of the jetty in Newport as it was deemed to be ineffective. After the tour we climbed Salal Hill – a short but steep switchbacked trail where there are views of the entire headland. Walking back to the parking along a trail we saw some interesting colourful fungi.
In Newport is the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse. There was no available tour when we went, so we did a quick walk around and then drove into Newport to the ‘Old Port’ district which is still very much and active in the fishing industry. The main road is lined with fish warehouses on the water side, and trendy shops and restaurants on the other.
At one pier we stop to watch the hundreds of seals vying for space on platforms beneath the pier and on rocks out in the harbour. There is a marina for fishing vessels where crab and other fresh fish are being offered for sale, and at the other side of the harbour in South Beach is a small vessel marina.
South along Hwy 101 is another lighthouse.
Haceta Head lighthouse sits on a 1000 ft. high headland. We drive in and pay the $5 only to find out after a short walk that the lighthouse is closed for repair (would have been nice to know that at the parking lot). The lightkeepers house has been beautifully maintained here as a B&B which is also open to tours in summer. There was originally a separate house for the assistant lightkeeper which is unusual, but it no longer stands.
Nearby, Cape Perpetua, in the Suislaw National Forest has a visitor centre and parking lot where there is access to several trails. The St. Perpetua Trail (Whispering Spruce Trail ) starts along a creek, passes through a lush moist canopy of trees and ferns, then into a forest of Sitka spruce where the trail climbs continually along switchbacks to a vista 800 ft. above the ocean. Along the trail are many places with scenic views, interesting birds, and great old trees. At the top is a picnic area, benches and restroom (there is a road that accesses top).
Also from the nature centre, another trail takes us to the ocean where the “Trail of Restless Waters” leads to the Captain Cook Trail. Along here are some very interesting coastal sites, unfortunately part of it is closed due to landslides, but we are able to see the Devils Churn, which is a great gap in the rocks carved out by the sea where water rushes in and churns into white froth. There are also tide pools teaming with sea creatures.
