Newport, Oregon
Two years ago I fell in love with the beauty of Yaquina Head Lighthouse. We visited on a cloudy day, and again when the sun was shining. Both were spectacular, and very different.
It was a must-see again this stop, so Friday we drive north to the other side of town. The Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area includes a wonderful visitors' center - probably the best one I've seen.
Covering the geology and ecosystem, plus the history of the lighthouse, the center is full of great information. We enjoy the video about the challenges of building the lighthouse.
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| Daring exploration. |
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| The video is shown inside a "ship". |
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| I love that the VC is set in the reclaimed quarry - much prettier! |
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| Yaquina Head Lighthouse, 1873 |
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| Eroding basalt gives us a black sand beach. |
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| Nesting Cormorants and their chicks. |
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| Fuzzy baby sea gulls and one adult. |
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| High tide hides the secrets of the tide pools. |
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| The tallest of the Oregon lighthouses at 92 feet - she's a beauty. |
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| Two years ago the rocks were covered with Common Muir. This year, only Cormorant. |
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| A Harbor Seal watches the tourists on the beach. |
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| Love the freckles. |
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| Basalt caverns. |
New places and surprise discoveries are a wonderful part of this life - AND revisiting special places is just as much fun.
Our next location is one of those special places - Saturday we move to beautiful Astoria for our last stop in Oregon for a few weeks.
I love how you travel. It's usually slow, you see so much, photograph as much and enjoy the scenery around you.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jeri, I love it too - too much to see to spend our time driving past it!
DeleteWe really enjoy a well planned out VC. How neat to watch the movie in a "ship!" We watched a movie in a covered wagon once with all the rocking and rolling as we traveled. Really added to the experience. You are getting me so excited to move around to Forks and get back to the coast. Love those photos on the cliff!
ReplyDeleteThe wagon sounds fun! I'm bummed to be leaving the coast, and when we return to Oregon we'll be in the hot central area :-( We do have the islands to visit though, so yay more water and cool temps!
DeleteIf you haven't been to Astoria yet, you're going to love it! Lots to see in and around that town. The Maritime Museum is a must.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, we do love it there! Didn't give us enough time to see everything so we'll be back for sure.
DeleteWhat a fabulous lighthouse. Wonderful to have seen it in all weathers although I suspect you might love it even more with fewer people – like maybe 2 and a dog?? I think they should call the rocks Guano Rocks. Oh boy, Astoria. I’ve been reading a lot about it lately on various blogs. Lots of the folks I follow are obviously on the same route. Looking forward to your eyes.
ReplyDeleteIt does seem like several of us are along this route. It's definitely a great-weather area of the country to be in during this hot summer. The number of people is a negative, we've been lucky to find some quiet spots, but not all. 2+dog is perfect :-) Guano Rocks would be the right name!!
DeleteWe never made it to Yaquina Head, but that gives us a good reason to come back! She sure is a beauty!
ReplyDeleteYou will love the beauty and history of the spot. We felt very smart because we already knew what her signal is :-)))
DeleteLOVE lighthouses and this one is a beauty. I am new to your blog and the life on the road and am not sure what a VC is. Can you explain?
ReplyDeleteShort for Visitors Center :-) Glad to have you along for the ride! We've seen some beautiful lighthouses in our travels along the coast, they're all very special.
DeleteYaquina Head is one of our favorite areas, too. How fun to see your photos of the Cormorant chicks! We've seen them nesting, but I don't think we've ever gotten photos of the chicks. Freckles on the seal, that's a good description. :-)) That black basalt beach below is one of the most unique we've encountered -- it's made up of smooth kiwi-sized round slippery rocks. Beautiful tidepools, but a treacherous beach!
ReplyDeleteI looked up the tide when we arrived and was bummed there was only one really low tide the whole time we were there - and I didn't want to get up that early :-) I love the sound of those basalt rocks when they roll with the tides. I was excited to see the chicks :-))))
DeleteWe love lighthouses...Yaquina is a beauty. Hope to see it in person one day! Love the coastline there. So interesting with all its rocks and caverns. I can see why you wants to return!
ReplyDeleteLove the entire Oregon coast, especially Yaquina Head. Between you, Pam & John I'm so enjoying revisiting the PNW where I haven't been in way too long.
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