We stayed in Newport a couple of years ago in December and despite the cold, gray, soggy weather, thoroughly enjoyed our visit. But it was even better this time, with plenty of sunshine and delightful temperatures in late May.
A Beautiful Few Days In May
Weatherwise, the Oregon Coast is always a crapshoot. But lucky us, the rhododendrons were in full glory, the birds at the aquarium in fancy breeding plumage, and we even scored a tour at the Yaquina Head Lighthouse, although it wasn’t supposed to be open until July. I think we’re back in the groove. It’s a good thing, because seriously, we don’t need any more bumps in the road right now.
We stayed five nights at South Beach State Park, the perfect location for setting up camp to explore Newport. The sites are spacious and wooded, with paths leading over the dunes to the beach. More trails wind above the campground through a forest of wild rhododendrons. And yet more trails lead to the jetty, with a wonderful view of the historic Yaquina Bay Bridge, an Art Deco/Gothic beauty.
Yaquina Bay Bridge
Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area
With a treacherous but beautiful beach, mesmerizing tidepools, nesting seabirds, a wonderful interpretive center (with a resident nesting pair of Peregrine Falcons), hiking trails, spectacular views, and the tallest lighthouse on the Oregon Coast, Yaquina Head Outstanding Area truly is outstanding.
Click on any photo for a larger image
Cobblestone Beach
Formed from an ancient lava flow, the headland extends one mile out into the open ocean. Below, Cobblestone Beach—composed entirely of smooth rounded kiwi-sized black rocks—is a slippery, ankle-twisting beach. But it’s worth traversing to get to the prize of some of the best tide pools on the Oregon Coast.
At low tide, the pools are filled with thousands of brilliant purple sea urchins, delicate jade green anemones, and at least a few ochre sea stars. We’re happy to see the sea stars making a comeback (albeit slowly) after almost being extirpated along the entire West Coast by a virus several years ago.
The Lighthouses
Newport boasts not one but two lighthouses, and both are well worth visiting. Yaquina Bay Lighthouse, the only remaining wooden lighthouse on the Oregon Coast, was constructed in 1871 but decommissioned after only three years. Someone apparently made a big boo-boo, built the lighthouse too far inland, and ships couldn’t see the light. It’s a cute little lighthouse, and fully furnished in period decor. (We toured it on our last visit to Newport.)
Yaquina Head Lighthouse was built to replace little Yaquina Bay Lighthouse. This time, the builders got it right. Stuck way out on the tip of Yaquina Head, the lighthouse is an imposing 93 feet tall, the tallest in Oregon.
Yaquina Head Lighthouse on the tip of Yaquina Head
We enjoyed a delightful tour with a ranger in costume, who regaled us with tales of a lighthouse keeper’s life and duties. Hauling heavy buckets of lard up the 114 winding stairs to keep the light burning was one of the many chores. Although the lighthouse was automated in 1966, the original beautiful Paris-made Fresnel lens is still in use, casting a beam of light 20 miles out to sea.
Oregon Coast Aquarium
Many of the exhibits at the Oregon Coast Aquarium are outdoors, and we had a blast watching the antics of the sea otters being fed and the sea birds going about their daily lives in the wonderful sea bird aviary. We love this little aquarium.
I learned that Puffins, Common Murres, Rhinoceros Auklets and Pigeon Guillemots are all members of the same family. They share in common the ability to “fly” underwater. We watched their undersea acrobatics through submerged viewing windows, and they do look like they’re flying.
The walk-through fish tanks are fascinating, and it appeared as though some of the fish were having just as much fun watching us as we were watching them. The sharks and the rays didn’t pay us any mind. But the Pacific Rockfish were doing their best to telepathically communicate with us. (Eric always tells me not to anthropomorphize, but I continue to ignore him.)
The Hatfield Marine Science Center is just across the street from the aquarium, and is well worth a visit. We stopped in last year, but lingered so long at the aquarium this time that we missed our opportunity for a return visit. Part of Oregon State University, their focus is on sustainability, and as they say, “hot topics in contemporary marine science research.” It’s a cool place.
The Waterfront
Newport has managed to remain a working waterfront, while adding some amenities for visitors, and not just t-shirt shops. We wandered the docks, checking out the various trawlers, crabbers, and shrimpers.
Historic boat and historic bridge
There’s great seafood here—last time, we enjoyed a delicious meal at Saffron Salmon. This time, we chose to dine at Local Ocean Dockside Grill and had perfectly prepared fresh caught salmon while perusing the activity of the busy little harbor from our window table. The seafood market downstairs is excellent, too, with every catch labeled with the boat that brought in the haul.
About The Campground
South Beach Campground is just a few miles from Newport. Even if you don’t leave the campground, there’s plenty to do exploring the beach and hiking trails within the park. (Really, though, you don’t want to miss Yaquina Head and the aquarium.) Water and electric hookups, good Verizon, and it’s remarkably peaceful, given that this is such a popular campground. Make your reservations early if you plan to be here between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
Hurray! You are back on the road. The puffins are so cute. We would see them in Alaska. They would eat so much that they could hardly fly above the water.
Debbie, we’re looking forward to seeing the puffins up close in the wild one of these days. I think Alaska is in our future.
So great to see you two back out on the road and doing so well. The distance from the beach at South Beach is more than made up for by the great trails. I especially love that long long long stretch of sand for walking the dog once you get out of the park. Mo’s brother goes there a LOT, so we often join the family there, or at least we did back in the days when we were traveling a bit more. Oh well…once again we will be playing.
Sue, we’re very happy to be back on the road! It’s a bit of a hike over the dunes to the beach at South Beach, but as you said, worth it!
What a great visit to the Oregon coast! I can’t believe all your photos have blue sky…Wow! So glad the sun shined on you and Eric:) Love the tide pools!!! The colors are great. Those puffin are too darn cute. Love the otter!! My all time favorite! You take the cutest photos, Laurel:)
Pam, our weather has been close to perfect. (But you know that’s not always the case on the Oregon Coast!) We’ve been having a blast hiking, with lots of time on the beaches and exploring tide pools. Those puffins really were adorable. And the otters. ;-)
Yay!!! I’m so glad you’re back on the road. It must feel great!! And guess where I just came back from tonight? My sister is in town for graduation and she’s parked her rig at Emigrant Lake. Nellie and I slipped out for a quick, nearly dark walk over to the place where your Horned Owl friend was living. And guess what?!!! He/She swooped past us and we were able to watch him for a while as he drove the Acorn Woodpeckers crazy sitting in their tree. Do they feast on baby birds….? He took a roll in the dust on a pathway and it was getting too dark to see anymore, so we walked back. But it was so cool to see him and I thought of you guys!!
Janet, how fun that you saw the owls! Yes, they would do something like eat baby birds. But they couldn’t fit into the hole to get to the baby woodpeckers. Thanks for keeping us up-to-date on the owl family. :-)
Yay you guys are back!
Your photos are fabulous. Love all the tidepool finds, starfish and other, and the puffin are way cool!
Looks like a great start to a new adventure. Enjoy!!
Peta
Yay, thanks, Peta! So glad you enjoyed the photos. We’re off to a great beginning as we resume our travels. :-)
We managed to miss the aquarium in Newport, something we’ll remedy on our next visit. We love the Oregon beaches even with the ever present exfoliating wind! I’m so glad to hear the sea stars are making a come back, their absence was sad. It’s wonderful to see you two back on the road again and doing what you do best. Happy trails ahead!
Sue, you guys will love the aquarium! We were thrilled to see the ochre sea stars in the tidepools. Thanks so much for your good wishes! :-)
Your post is igniting my excitement to spend 6 weeks on the OR coast this summer! I adore tidepooling and will be watching the tide charts for every possible opportunity!
We’re going to be staying at a mix of private and state parks…even though we booked many months in advance it was almost impossible to get weekends at the state parks! No matter, there are some interesting looking private parks too, and some of them on on the rivers and creeks…making for a good variety of stays this summer!
Thanks for whetting my ocean appetite!
Lisa, I’m looking forward to your six weeks on the coast! We’re spending about three weeks on the Oregon Coast, and there’s so much more to explore. We could never run out of things to do here. You’re right about needing to book far in advance!
The peregrine is stunning. And purple urchins, I bet you would wear them if they were comfortable. All of your Oregon images bring back so many memories.
See you soon.
Sheila, we were thrilled to see the peregrine. It was the closest view we’ve ever had, by far. You’re right, I do love the color of those purple urchins. :-) We’re making our way closer to Lopez!
My very favorite spot on the coast is Yaquina Head and your photos are stunning! So glad we aren’t far behind :-) Love the fish-whisperer. The auklets and puffins must laugh at each other all the time – what silly looking birds they all are. You both look so happy and relaxed, lovely.
Jodee, Yaquina Head is one of our favorite spots, too. Are you stopping here on your way up the coast? (Impossible to resist, right?) We’ve eased back into our travels, and are definitely happy. :-))
So sorry not to have spent more time with you guys when you were “in the hood” but such fun it is to be back on the road with you. As always beautiful pictures and great information. Thanks for letting us go along for the ride. And here’s to smooth sailing!
Sue, we were hoping for more time with you guys, too. We’ll have to remedy that when we return in October! Thanks so much for continuing to travel with us, and for commenting. We always love hearing from you. :-)
Well you are living my dream – the Oregon Coast. So glad you had what seems like perfect weather for such a beautiful place. South Beach State Park looks fantastic and is on my growing list of places I really really want to stay. Any two lighthouse town must be terrific. Though the ankle twisting beach sounds a bit scary to this girl with a left ankle twice broken but boy what beauty. Wow the tide pools!! Your pictures as always – am I a broken record – are outstanding. So very glad to hear the sea stars are making a come back. It made me sad that I might never get to see them, not only because I wouldn’t be there but mostly because they might not be there. This is happy news. Too funny about the lighthouse building mistake. Wonder who was in serious trouble for the expense of that mistake. Seems a no brainer doesn’t it, a lighthouse the ships can see? Your post is getting me very excited for the seafood of Maine and hopefully Puffins in the wild. I was going to try to end this way too long comment with my favorite picture but IMPOSSIBLE. The lighthouse pictures are poster material. Each one unique and so artistically taken, Love you on the rocks, under the Rhodys, on the beach and Eric on the stairs! Can you tell I wish I was there?? Sorry it took me so long to get here. My loss.
Sherry, I really hope you and David will be able to travel the Oregon Coast soon. You will love it! Meanwhile, you’re going to be living one of our dreams this summer, traveling to Maine. I hope you get to see puffins in the wild! That’s another one of my dreams. Thanks for your lovely comments on our photos. :-)
It seems like years since we have visited the Oregon coast. Except for the aquarium, this was a beautiful meandering down memory lane for me. I adore the puffin and otter photos. It makes me smile to see your smiling faces on the road again.
Thanks, LuAnn. We’re happy campers. :-) I love the puffins and otters, too. You guys would enjoy the aquarium.