I’m tagging along on a business trip at the end of the month and will have only one day to do a day hike along the Oregon Coast. We’ve already been to Tillamook and points north on a previous trip so looking for something south of there, but not too far south. Home base is McMinnville.
On our list of potentials is Cape Lookout State Park, Cape Kiwanda, the Fort to Sea Trail, and Cape Perpetua. Does anyone have any favorites they can personally recommend?
Thanks in advance!
Cape Lookout is beautiful! I haven’t hiked, but I’m surprised at how remote it feels. I’d bring some supplies with you, just in case. The farmland as you drive there is idyllic too. It’s absolutely gorgeous all around there.
Go to The Schooner in Netarts after your hike. It’s a great place!
I’m so jealous. I need to go back to Oregon! That coast is just spectacular. I hope you have great weather!
Thank you!!!
Although I’m partial to that area, as we own a coastal lot there, I wouldn’t be inclined to go as far south as Cape Perpetua for walking. That part of the coast is stunning and there are neat things to see like Thor’s Well and Heceta Head Lighthouse. The access to the beach is spotty though. The walk at Perpetua is an old, unused road through the trees to a lookout point. It’s not worth the drive.
I’d be inclined to go to Netarts and walk the spit, eat some oysters, and see if Jacobsen Salt is open for tours again.
Have fun!
I got you! My sis lives in McMinnville and we often visit the Tillamook area.
Cape Lookout is a mostly flat, almost always muddy (although if there was a time it wouldn’t be muddy this is it) hike with amazing views at the end. It is a 5 mile loop so takes some time.
Cape Kiwanda isn’t so much a hike as a massive sand hill that is fun to run up and down. It is VERY popular and crowded in the summer. View from the top is cool but not what I would call a hike.
The only hike I would put on par with Cape Lookout is Cascade Head (Nature Conservancy.). It ends at an open meadow at the sea which is unusual and amazing.
Message me if you want more info. McMinnville is cool itself and the wineries nearby are lots of fun to visit.
There is an App called “All Trails”. You can put in the location and it will tell you the trails in the area, the length, difficulty etc. For a fee it will give you a map of the hike. Have fun.
Not on the coast, but This trail was recommended on some website that I can’t recall when we visited Lincoln City several years ago. We really enjoyed it. Has a waterfall, a suspension bridge and gorgeous forests along the way. We saw a mink when we hiked it!
https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/siuslaw/recreation/recarea/?recid=42683
https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/siuslaw/recreation/recarea/?recid=42681
This was a very popular hike but I’ve been told the road in is really sketchy and rough. Might be tough unless a person had the right vehicle.
Yes, on the website I Linked, I saw that the road had been damaged in 2021 so a portion is one way. They can call the USFS for updates on the road.
