Oregon Coast Summer 2018: Lincoln City, Newport, and Pacific Beach: Summer getaway with friends to the beautiful Oregon Coast. Attractions and Activities from Astoria to Newport on Highway 101.
We are part of a small group of friends who like to do a 5 day group vacation together every summer. The last few years we have all rented a house somewhere in driving distance from Seattle, and this year the Oregon Coast was suggested as a destination.
I’m the planner in the group, so I scouted out rental houses in our budget up and down the northern Oregon coast on HomeAway, VRBO.com, AirBNB, etc. Our budget wasn’t huge, and the time of year was peak season. We wanted something close to the beach if not on the beach, and found nothing that fit our budget and required house size in Cannon Beach, Seaside, or the northern coast areas.
We finally found a nice house one block from the beach in the Roads End area in Lincoln City, Oregon. It was a little bit further of a drive than we had hoped for, but since none of us were super familiar with that part of the coast, we decided to make an adventure out of it. Turns out, there are a lot of fun things to do up and down the northern Oregon coast, and we had a great time.
*Tip: As we quickly discovered, the temperatures on the coast are a lot lower than further inland. While it was between 85-95 degrees in Seattle and Portland, the temperatures on the coast stayed between 65-69 as a daytime high. Pack lots of layers!
Day 1:
We all set off from the Seattle area around 8:30 AM, breezing down I-5 to Olympia, where we branched off heading west on highway 8 towards the 101 south. We all planned to meet in Cannon Beach for lunch at Mo’s Chowder. There were wistful and well-intentioned thoughts of poking around the town and shops in Cannon Beach as well.
Paddy and I made it to Cannon Beach first, and made the mistake of heading into town. It was complete tourist insanity and there was absolutely nowhere to park. It took us about 15-20 minutes just to get back to the highway 101 driving through the main drag. We texted the rest of our party and advised them not to stop in town.
Having been to Cannon Beach a few times, I had suggested Mo’s Chowder in Tolovana Park just south of Cannon Beach town for three reasons:
1. It’s not in downtown Cannon Beach, so it is easy to get to and there is ample parking
2. It is large and caters to large families and groups–easier to get a table for 8
3. Beach views!!
As I had hoped, getting a table for 8 was no problem next to windows with lovely beach views. The temperature was a bit of a shock when we stepped out of the car. It was quite windy and only 62 degrees. It was also pretty foggy over the water, so our views of Haystack Rock up the coast were obscured. Either way, we were at the coast and it was awesome.
The rest of our group trickled in shortly after us. Paddy and I shared some oysters as an appetizer, and then I had fish and chips and Paddy had the clam chowder in a bread bowl with bay shrimp. Mo’s isn’t the best seafood I’ve ever had, but it’s pretty good and eating it on the beach is what makes it delicious. The prices aren’t bad either.
After lunch we drove another hour down the 101 to Tillamook, and all made a stop at the newly re-vamped Tillimook Creamery (formerly known as the Tillimook Cheese Factory).
If you’re not from the Northwest, Tillimook cheese (particularly their cheddar cheeses) are a staple in Pacific Northwest grocery stores. They also produce ice cream, yogurt, and sour cream.
The Tillimook Creamery had just gone through a remodel and had recently re-opened a few weeks prior, and it was crazy busy. Our original plan was to check out the creamery and gift shop, and get some ice cream. However, the ice cream line was complete insanity and none of us felt it was worth the wait for a cone.
Instead, we went upstairs for the self “tour,” viewing the cheese logs being made in the factory below, and purchased a few cheeses and specialty food items in their gift shop.
Thoroughly cheesed out, we continued one last hour down the coast to our Lincoln City beach house.
We had rented the house through Meredith Lodging, and everything was as described in the listing. There was beach access just a very short ways down the road across the street, and the beach was beautiful.
We spent the evening BBQing, walking on the beach, and enjoying the house’s hot tub after a long day of driving.
Day 2:
On our first full day on the coast, we opted to drive another 45 minutes south of Lincoln City to the town of Newport to check out the local attractions that Newport had to offer. Newport is a bit more touristy than Lincoln City, and has a lot of silly beach town things to do such as a Ripley’s Believe It Or Not, and a wax museum. There is also plenty of fudge, salt water taffy, and fish and chips if you feel so inclined.
The main event for us was the Oregon Coast Aquarium, one of the top aquariums in the US. Admission is $22.95 per adult, and there are quite a few exhibits to look at.
My favorite exhibits were the jellyfish (they have two different species–the pacific sea nettle, and moon jellies) and the colorful tidal tanks of sea stars and sea anemones. It can be quite relaxing watching the jellies pulsate and swirl around in the tanks. Jellyfish are one of the most fascinating creatures on the planet to me. They are beautiful and terrifying, and I I have a sort of respect for a creature who has stubbornly refused to evolve since the dinosaur days.
After the aquarium we were ready for lunch, so we drove a short ways from the aquarium to the Rogue Brewery and headquarters. You might be familiar with their beers such as the famous Dead Guy Ale.
There was a bit of a wait but not too bad. The upstairs bar and restaurant has a view of Yaquina Bay and a nice lunch menu. I had their clam chowder which was very tasty. You can order a beer sampler if you want to taste a variety of their beers, or just order a full pint if you like.
After lunch we split up a bit to explore the town. Paddy and I are always looking for more unique treasures to add to our home Tiki Bar, so we ducked into an antique shop nearby called Pirate’s Plunder with another couple from our group. Pirate’s Plunder had a huge amount of random items and antiques, many nautical in theme. We didn’t find any perfect treasures for our Tiki bar, but it was fun to browse and there were some good photo ops outside the building.
Before heading back to the beach house, I wanted to see downtown Newport and the Sea Lion Docks. The Sea Lion Docks are literally just a small collection of docks that sea lions enjoy laying on in piles at the downtown Newport marina. Sadly, the sea lions were elsewhere for the afternoon and all that we saw on the docks were crab carcasses. The marina was nice though.
Day 3:
On our second full day, half our group wanted to check out the nearby outlet mall, and the other half (including me) wanted to go check out the beach at Pacific City and the Pelican Brewery.
Pacific City is about 30 minutes north of Lincoln City, and it is a gorgeous sandy beach. It seemed pretty popular with surfers and families. There are sand dunes adjacent to the beach that looked cool but climbing uphill in sand is not my idea of fun.
We decided to stop into Pelican Brewing on the beach to sample their beers before having a picnic in the sand. There was a bit of a wait for a table as it was peak season. Cass and I each had a sampler, which to our delight came in an impressive little spin tray with a large pelican. None of the beers blew my mind, but they were good. Except the IPAs, but I hate IPAs in general. Devin and Heather just had a couple pints.
After sampling all those beers we had a buzzy beach picnic and enjoyed watching the surfers and laying in the sun. It wasn’t hot, but it was pleasant. Just about everyone in the water was wearing a wetsuit except for a few kids splashing around on the shore.
We relaxed, ate sandwiches, and watched a seagull feeding frenzy over someone’s unattended bag of potato chips.
Later that evening after we all cooked dinner together, five of us decided to go check out the nearby Chinook Winds Casino. The Chinook Winds website advertised dancing in their upstairs lounge after 10:00 PM.
We arrived around 9:00, and walked around the casino playing a few slots. There were quite a few bachelorette parties roaming around, as well as the usual sad gambling scene amidst a cloud of cigarette smoke.
We went up to the lounge just after 10:00 and were somewhat surprised to see almost all men on the dance floor. A few couples and a few bachelorette parties joined in eventually. The music was standard boring top 40, the demographic mostly caucasian. We danced a little, drank a little, people watched a little, and opted not to eat the penis candy given to us by a bachelorette party.
Day 4:
On our last day, we decided we should probably actually check out the town of Lincoln City, since we were staying there and all. Paddy and I wanted to go “antiquing” to search for treasures for our home Tiki bar, so we split up from the rest of the group, who walked around a little bit and ended up spending a while at the Game Over Arcade in town.
Paddy and I enjoyed treasure hunting at Granny’s Attic and the Rocking Horse Mall. Rocking Horse Mall had two floors of antiques combined with some newer nautical items such as mermaid Christmas ornaments and new glass floats.
There seemed to be no shortage of creepy Santas.
We ended our antiquing excursion at the Little Antique Mall in the north part of town, where we found an awesome mint-condition mid-century glass lamp and a Tiki mug.
Our last stop of the day was at Barnacle Bill’s for some fresh seafood for our seafood boil/clam bake that evening.
Barnacle Bill’s is probably your best bet for fresh seafood in town, although it is cash only so be sure to hit the ATM before you go there.
We had hoped to get some crab, but their dungeness crabs were $20-$25 each which was a lot more than we wanted to spend. We ended up getting some fresh jumbo prawns instead. A couple other seafood-loving members of our group picked up some lobster tails, mussels, and clams at Safeway.
Our seafood boil was a success, and included corn on the cob, andouille sausage, and potatoes in addition to seafood. Kind of a hybrid Northwest/Cajun style clambake. It was delicious.
We had hoped the fog would lift to enjoy a beach sunset for our last night, but it did not. That didn’t stop us from taking a last stroll on the beach before heading home the next day. It was breezy and peaceful, and we were the only people on the beach.
Day 5:
Sunday morning we got a somewhat early start heading back to Seattle. Traffic was unfortunately not as smooth as on the trip down.
We stopped for a photo op with a giant inflatable crab in Garibaldi, and lunch at the Fort George Brewery in Astoria, Oregon near the Oregon-Washington border.
Parking in Astoria turned out to be a little crazy, as were the hills. Astoria could give San Francisco challenge for the most hilly West Coast village. The Fort George Brewery turned out to be pretty busy too, but we didn’t have to wait too long for a table for four. The food was tasty, I didn’t try the beer but was told by the rest of the group that it was good as well. There is a nice upstairs area and deck with a view, but the full menu is not available upstairs.
Astoria is famous for being the town that the Goonies movie was filmed in back in the 1980’s. Don’t try to visit the Goonies house, however. The people who live there are very tired of curious tourists and will call the police if you try to enter their driveway for a photo. There are new strict parking fines for improperly parked cars near the house as well.
Afternoon traffic was less than fun heading back to Seattle, and we didn’t make it home until 6:00 PM. It was a great trip though and worth the long drive. There were a lot of things to do and see on the way down.
The Oregon Coast is one of my favorite places in the US. It is big, beautiful, and wild. The rocky Washington beaches don’t live up to the beauty of Oregon’s coast by a long shot. Oregon beaches aren’t going to be a hot, sunny, beach vacation like the East Coast, but their raw natural beauty and the sunsets can’t be beat. I never get tired of watching the sun set behind Haystack Rock in Cannon Beach, or looking at bright-colored sea stars and anemones at it’s base during the day at low tide. It is fun and lively in the summer, but Paddy and I like to visit by ourselves in the winter when it is calm and quiet. Watching the stormy waves or the sunset from a room with a fireplace is one of our favorite winter getaway activities.
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