Sunday, October 19, 2014 (South Beach State Park, Newport, Oregon)

After our usual start to the day, we got ourselves cleaned up, had breakfast and I packed a lunch. It was about 10:00 when we headed out...our sightseeing route would take us back up the coast to Depoe Bay and back.

(Click on photos to enlarge)

We took a drive through Beverly Beach State Park.  Highway 101 bridge and access to the beach...


The campground is heavily treed and I think we'd have difficulty getting into most of the sites...

The "pull-through's" are actually "pull-off's"...
 A cool stump...

 We're pulling back onto the highway...

Depoe Bay...the world's smallest navigable harbour...

We found a parking spot along the side of the highway at the north end of town and started our wander along the main street (Hwy 101). There is a pedestrian walkway that goes under the bridge to the other side of the road...




We went into the Whale Watching Center, located at the south end of the seawall...there are park rangers ready to answer your questions and help you spot gray whales. Whale watching takes place almost year-round along the Oregon Coast.


Depoe Bay is known as the Whale Watching Capital of the Oregon coast. A Grey Whale spout was seen by a staff member while we were there but with all the white caps we never saw it.





A little history on Depoe Bay...

It was very windy today and Steve took tons of pictures trying to catch the perfect wave picture...






A few street shots...



Spouting Horns...Geysers are sometimes as high as 60'...






A shot of the Spouting Horn Geyser from the other side...


Our next stop was at Cape Foulweather...the wind up here was incredible!




Distant view of our next destination...Devils Punchbowl..

                                     


Devil's Punchbowl State Natural Area was our next stop. We sat in the cab of the truck and ate our lunch before braving the blustery wind. It was very hard to look into the wind at Punchbowl because of blowing sand.

Distant view of our last stop...


Devil's Punchbowl is a unique geological formation...you peer down into the sandstone cauldron, likely once a sea cave whose roof collapsed. When surf is up, waves roll into the cave opening, swirl and froth like a devlish brew.



 Surfers...



Our final stop was at the Historic Nye Beach in Newport. "Nye Beach, historically, is one of the finest vacation spots on the Oregon Coast. For over 100 years, people from Portland and the Willamette Valley have been coming to this favourite place to seek solace in and alongside the waters of the Pacific Ocean."




There are trendy shops, cafes and restaurants in the area...
 
 Looking back from the waterfront...
 And, of course, the beach!

Seagulls lined up into the wind...

Blowing sand and Yaquina Head Lighthouse in the distance...


Nana's Irish Pub...tempting...



We were back home shortly after 2:30...another lovely day out and about, exploring the area.

Our original plan had been to leave tomorrow but after checking the weather forecast, we decided to delay it by a day. There's a 100% chance of rain tomorrow and only 40% Tuesday...so we'll carry on a little further down the coast then.



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