19 Best Sights in The Oregon Coast, Oregon

At this pristine, slightly off-the-beaten-path property managed by the Nature Conservancy, a dense, green trail winds through a rain forest where 100-inch annual rainfalls nourish 250-year-old Sitka spruces, mosses, and ferns. Emerging from the forest, hikers come upon grassy and treeless Cascade Head, an undulating maritime prairie. There are magnificent views down to the Salmon River and east to the Coast Range. Continuing along the headland, black-tailed deer often graze and turkey vultures soar in the sometimes strong winds. It's a somewhat steep and strenuous but tremendously rewarding hike—allow at least three hours to make the full nearly 7-mile round-trip hike, although you can make it out to the beginning of the headland and back in an hour.

The views from the parking areas, oceanfront trails, and beaches at this popular tract of craggy rock formations and evergreen forest are some of the prettiest along the southern Oregon Coast. The proximity to downtown Brookings makes this an easy place to head for morning beachcombing or a sunset stroll. You might see gray whales migrate in spring and winter. Just offshore, Bird Island, also called Goat Island, is a National Wildlife Sanctuary and a breeding site for rare birds. The campground here, with tent and RV sites, is very popular.

Towering over the broad, sandy beach is a gorgeous, 235-foot-high dome that is one of the most photographed natural wonders on the Oregon Coast. For safety and to protect birding habitats, people are not allowed to climb on the rock, but you can walk right up to its base at low tide.

This secluded, 1,850-acre park, especially popular with campers, usually has warm weather, thanks to the nearby mountains that shelter it from ocean breezes. A 6-mile loop leads to the top of 1,765-foot Humbug Mountain, one of the highest points along the state's coastline. It's a pretty, moderately challenging hike, but the summit is fairly overgrown and doesn't provide especially panoramic views. The campground has tent and RV sites.

Adventurous travelers will enjoy a sojourn at one of the best-kept secrets on the Pacific coast, at the base of Neahkahnie Mountain. Park in one of the two free lots on U.S. 101 and hike a half-mile trail to dramatic Short Sand Beach, aka "Shorty's," one of the top spots along the Oregon Coast for surfing. It's a spectacular beach with caves and tidal pools. There are several trails from the beach, all offering impressive scenery; the relatively easy 2½-mile trail to Cape Falcon overlook joins with the Oregon Coast Trail and offers impressive views back toward Shorty's Beach. The arduous 5½-mile trail to the 1,680-foot summit of Neahkahnie Mountain (access the trailhead about 2 miles south of the parking lots marked only by a "Hikers" sign, or get there via Short Sand Beach) provides jaw-dropping views south for many miles toward the surf, sand, and mountains fringing Manzanita and, in the distance, Tillamook. Come in December or March and you might spot pods of gray whales.

Cheese and ice cream lovers of all ages have long made a stop by the largest cheese-making plant on the West Coast, as much to enjoy free samples and snack on delicious ice cream (try the marionberry pie flavor). At the striking, contemporary visitor center, learn about cheese making through informative signs and by watching the process from a glassed-in mezzanine. The impressive gourmet market stocks Tillamook's many varieties of cheddar, produced in part with milk from thousands of local Holstein and brown Swiss cows, as well as chocolates, charcuterie, and other mostly Oregon-made snacks and beverages, including wine and craft beer. Additionally, a huge food hall with soaring windows and ample seating dispenses Tillamook cheeseburgers, pizzas, mac and cheese, and sweets.

Drive this 1-mile loop just across the Yachats River from downtown Yachats, and discover one of the most scenic viewpoints on the Oregon Coast. Park along Yachats Ocean Road and scamper out along the broad swath of sand where the Yachats River meets the Pacific Ocean. There's fun to be had playing on the beach, poking around tide pools, and watching blowholes, summer sunsets, and whales spouting.

Some fine hiking trails, one leading to a hidden redwood grove, along with a nice selection of campsites, make up this park a little inland from Brookings. There's also a grove of myrtlewood trees, which you'll find only in southwest Oregon and northern California.

Seven miles north of Newport, this beachfront park extends from Yaquina Head, where you can see the lighthouse, to the headlands of Otter Rock. It's a great place to fly a kite, surf the waves, or hunt for fossils. The campground is well equipped, with a wind-protected picnic area.

The distant barking of sea lions echoes in the air at a trio of coves connected by short but steep trails. The park overlooks the Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge, where offshore rocks, beaches, islands, and reefs provide breeding grounds for seabirds and marine mammals, including seal pups (the trail is closed in spring to protect them).

On the northern tip of the Three Capes Loop, this small but spectacular park and vista is the site of the restored Cape Meares Lighthouse, built in 1890 and open to the public May through September (the grounds are open year-round). It provides a sweeping view from a 200-foot-tall cliff to the caves and sea lion rookery on the rocks below, and this is a great perch for seeing whales during their migrations. A many-trunked Sitka spruce known as the Octopus Tree grows near the lighthouse parking lot.

Although it's just over an acre, this beautiful, volunteer-run botanical garden makes for a relaxing, colorful, and fragrant encounter with nature—it's hard to believe you can find such a quiet spot just a block off Lincoln City's busy main drag. Visit with the artfully arranged rhododendrons, magnolias, Sitka spruce, and flowering perennials, or take a guided tour. You're also welcome to come enjoy a picnic lunch on the grounds. There's a cute on-site gift shop that's open March through November. Although admission is free, the garden thrives thanks to donations.

A few miles north of Florence, you'll find this interesting example of the rich plant life found in the marshy terrain near the coast. It's also a surefire kid pleaser. A short paved nature trail leads through clumps of insect-catching cobra lilies, so named because they look like spotted cobras ready to strike. This 18-acre park is most interesting in May, when the lilies are in bloom.

Drive or walk over the rickety-seeming (but sturdy) bridge onto historic Pier 39, which juts out into the Columbia River on the east side of downtown, to visit this small but interesting museum that occupies the oldest extant cannery building in Astoria. It was once operated by Bumble Bee Seafood, and some 30,000 cans of salmon were processed here annually during the plant's late-19th-century heyday. Exhibits and artifacts, including three vintage gill-net boats, some wonderful old photos, and equipment and cans tell the story of the town's—and facility's—canning history. Also on the pier is Coffee Girl café and Rogue Ales Public House.

This relatively small, sandy cove is a great stop at the midpoint along the Three Capes Loop. It's especially popular with beachcombers and kids for both its shallow, gentle surf and the low-tide bowls and tide pools. When the water recedes, a tunnel appears through the north rock face, allowing passage to a second, rocky cove. There are a few fun, casual spots for ice cream and light bites steps from the beach. In summer, the small parking lot fills quickly, and a walk through the hilly side streets is sometimes required. Amenities: none. Best for: walking; partiers.

Atop the bluff that is Port Orford Heads, a trail loops the rocky outcropping between the Pacific and the Port Orford Lifeboat Station, taking in the hillside below, from which crews once mounted daring rescues on the fierce sea. From May through September, the lifeboat station and adjoining museum is open for free tours Wednesday–Monday, 10–3:30. Their motto? "You have to go out . . . you don't have to come back."

This nearly 7,000-acre reserve's fragile ecosystem supports everything from algae to bald eagles and black bears. More than 300 species of birds have been sighted at the reserve, which has an interpretive center with interesting nature exhibits, guided walks (summer only), and 11 nature trails that give you a chance to see things up close.

The public beach in downtown Yachats is more like the surface of the moon than your typical beach. A wooden platform overlooks the coastline, where the waves roll in sideways and splash over the rocks at high tide. The beach is paralleled by an upland walking trail and dotted with picnic tables, benches, and interpretive signs. Visit to spot the sea lions that frequent this stretch of coast. Or join the intrepid beachcombers who climb the rocks for a closer look at tide pools populated by sea urchins, hermit crabs, barnacles, snails, and sea stars. Amenities: parking; toilets. Best for: walking; sunset.

The state's oldest wooden lighthouse was only in commission for three years (1871–74), because it was determined that it was built in the wrong location. Today the well-restored lighthouse with a candy-apple-red top shines a steady white light from dusk to dawn. Open to the public, it's the only Oregon lighthouse with living quarters attached.