Hey Guys!
This post continues our drive along the amazing Oregon Coast!
Today, we would be heading to our next destination, Oceanside.
Oceanside is approx. 1 hr 45 mins from Newport.
But first, we would be spending some time in Newport.
We started our morning with coffee on the balcony.
I’m so glad I made the decision to only book hotels that had ocean views!
Click here for ocean view hotels in Newport
After coffee and a bit of relaxation, we checked out of our room at the Little Creek Cove and headed to the historic bayfront area of Newport to spend some time.
The Newport historic bayfront is a fun part of Newport that has lots of neat shops and restaurants.
It is also an industrial area that processes fish coming in from the ocean. It is home to Ripley’s Believe It or Not, Mo’s Chowder, the Sea Lion Docks, and many other fun stops.
Tip: Sadly, we didn’t see many sea lions here as their docks had been destroyed by a storm…however, the town just recently built them back and the sea lions are back!
There are also some spots where you can buy fish or crab as it is coming off the fishing boats here. It is a fun environment and a great place to explore.
One thing we noticed when driving through this historic bayfront, was all the murals!
So many buildings had beautiful murals painted on them.
After doing more research, I discovered that you can do a self guided mural tour of this area.
Over twenty paintings adorn the sides of structures along the bayfront, ranging in size and subject matter.
Here are some of the murals we spotted in the area
After parking, we walked along the boardwalk with views of Yaquina Bay.
Fun Note: Click here to watch a video of a killer whale spotted in Yaquina Bay a few months prior to our visit
Newport is home to Oregon’s largest commercial fishing fleet.
As we were walking alongside the water, we spotted a sea lion swimming near the Chelsea Rose.
The Chelsea Rose is a multi-generational family business offering fresh sustainable seafood including tuna, halibut, salmon, crab, ling cod & rock fish. All of their fish are hook and line caught.
The historic fishing vessel was built in 1907.
The sea lions like to visit hoping to get a treat from the owners of the boat!
As we continued our walk, we passed this cool looking mural so we just had to take our picture in front of it!
We then checked out some of the docks along the way.
At the end of the dock, there were people fishing for crab.
This is a popular thing to do in this area however, you will need to familiarize yourself with the Oregon Sport Fishing Regulations.
This couple was using chicken to catch crabs!
From the dock, you had awesome views of the historic Yaquina Bay Bridge.
We spotted starfish on the dock’s columns below.
After leaving the dock, we continued our walk.
There are lots of seafood processing plants here and you can definitely smell it!
On our walk, we passed the Newport Tradewinds Deep Sea Fishing Company.
They had pictures hanging in their windows of a few, well known people who had taken tours with them!
A few minutes later, we passed the new Ripley’s Believe it or Not.
I personally think these are cheesy but lots of people love them!
Read reviews here
We passed Mo’s Restaurant and decided it was time for lunch.
Mo’s first opened in 1946 by a lady named Mohava Marie Niemi. Mo passed away in 1992 but the restaurant is still family owned.
The original Mo’s opened here in Newport but there are now eight locations along the Oregon Coast.
Read the history of the restaurant here & read reviews here
We were seated by the window with views of the water.
After looking over the menu, we both settled on the halibut sandwich with a bowl of their famous clam chowder.
The food was delicious!
After lunch, we decided to head to our next stop of the day, the Devil’s Punchbowl State Natural Area.
The drive only took 15 mins from Newport.
After getting parked, we spotted a map of the area.
The most popular thing to see here is Devil’s Punchbowl. However, the park is also a popular whale watching site so bring your camera and binoculars!
Devil’s Punchbowl was created by the collapse of the roof over two sea caves, then shaped by wave action.
It’s called the punchbowl because the waves from the ocean’s waters slams into the hollow rock formation with a powerful roar in winter storms. When the surf churns, foams, and swirls, it produces a violent brew.
The hole is huge!
At low tide, people will take the short trail and hike inside the “bowl”.
It didn’t appear to be an easy hike as you have to walk through huge rocks to get there, so we chose not to hike inside.
Tip: Please be extremely cautious if you hike inside the bowl as people have drowned here because of the tides.
We could see several people inside the “bowl”.
The surrounding area is very scenic!
Tidepooling is also popular here at low tide.
After leaving the punchbowl, we headed to the nearby viewpoint of Otter Rock.
We saw several sea lions in this area but I had to use my camera with a zoom lens to get a good shot.
From here, we walked to the Cape Foulweather Lookout.
The lookout was built in 1937 by Wilbur and Anna Badley. It was originally constructed as a coffee shop and small-scale restaurant however, it became a gift shop early in its history and has remained so ever since.
“The Look-Out” is perched on a knobby promontory 453 feet above the Pacific Ocean.
It has awesome views!
They even have binoculars you can use to spot wildlife.
After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Look-Out was a strategic vantage point from which to watch for enemy invasion. Six men from the Coast Guard resided in The Look-Out to help defend the coast during this period of time.
Make sure to sign the guest book when you visit!
The viewpoint near the historic Ben Jones Bridge are breathtaking!
The Ben Jones Bridge – once known as the Rocky Creek Bridge – is the stunning Conde McCullogh-designed construction that was built in 1927.
We then headed to our next stop, Depoe Bay which was only 5 mins from the bridge.
Depoe Bay has a huge sea wall that runs the length of the downtown area so the ocean is always only a few steps away.
It’s also known as the whale watching capital of the Oregon Coast!
Depoe Bay seems to draw whales to its horizon like clockwork every March through December. The town anticipates those migrations, with a Whale Watch Center, shore observation decks, and charter boats for an up-close view.
After getting parked, we began our walk through the small but very busy town.
We spotted the Depoe Bay Harbor.
Depoe Bay is the world’s smallest natural navigable harbor, currently covering approximately six acres, with a 50-foot wide, 100-foot long rockbound, dog-legged channel connecting to the Pacific Ocean.
We spotted a couple of seals sunning on the rocks below.
There are stairs you can take that lead you under the bridge so you can see where the boats sit in the harbor.
You can get some good shots of the historic Depoe Bay Bridge from under the stairs.
The bridge was built in 1927.
After taking pictures of the harbor, we walked over to a nearby ice cream shop & restaurant called The Sticks, and purchased some ice cream…it was so hot the day we visited!
Click here to see the weather for the Oregon Coast
We then headed for the sea wall so we could enjoy our ice cream by the water!
After our ice cream, we walked to the Whale Watch Center to see if we could spot any whales.
The center is equipped with binoculars for visitors, and displays feature facts about whales and information on what swimming patterns you might see.
The center is also staffed with volunteers and park staff that can help you spot whales.
They also have a huge TV monitor that shows views from the whale watching boats..it was very cool!
We spotted a few but they were so far off that we were unable to get good pictures of them.
We then headed 5 mins down the road to our next stop which was a popular place to spot whales called, Boiler Bay State Scenic Viewpoint.
We spotted several whales in this area and some were much closer to shore!
After watching the whales for about 30 mins, we continued our drive down the coast.
We passed through Lincoln City on the way and spotted these murals.
We also passed the historic Bijou Theater.
The theater was built in 1937 and is still an active theater!
We passed the Nestucca River.
We then drove through Pacific City.
This area was also super crowded! We pulled over at the Pacific City Beach to take a quick shot of the cool looking Haystack Rock!
The rock is a protected wildlife refuge.
After getting my picture of the rock, we continued our drive.
Driving through Cape Lookout State Park….so green!!
As we were driving through the Cape Lookout State Park, we spotted a lookout so decided to pullover.
The views were awesome!
We saw a concrete marker that marked the spot of Dick Gammon’s launch.
Dick Gammon was a hang glider instructor and had launched his hang glider from here many times. It’s a popular launch site for hang gliders.
Nearby, was also a view point called, Andersons View Point.
In the corner of the parking area, there’s a marker in the shape of a surveyor’s tripod, with a plaque explaining that the viewpoint is named in memory of Billy Anderson, a surveyor-engineer for Tillamook County.
After this stop, we continued our drive to our next hotel in Oceanside.
As we got closer to Oceanside, we could see the Three Arch Rocks from a distance.
Arriving to Oceanside.
The houses here are built on a steep, amphitheater-like hillside right on the edge of the Pacific!
After getting parked, we headed to our cabin at the Oceanside Oceanfront Cabins.
The cabins were built many years ago but have been restored over the years.
They sit about 200-250 ft from the ocean.
Our cabin had a full size kitchen, living room, bedroom and a bathroom.
We had a small front porch with views of the ocean!
View from the kitchen window!
Read reviews here
After getting settled into our room, we headed out to find dinner.
My hubby had made a list of restaurants in each of the areas we would be visiting and had a restaurant called Roseanna’s Cafe on the list for Oceanside so we decided to give it a try.
The restaurant was a 2 minute walk from our cabin.
We were seated by the window with incredible views of the ocean and Three Arch Rocks!
After looking over the menu, I decided on the grilled halibut that was served with rice and a salad.
The food and the service was some of the best we had on our trip!!
Read reviews here
After our dinner, we walked around the small town and took pictures of the beach, flowers and the Three Arch Rocks.
That evening, we took some pictures of the amazing sunset!
Later, we relaxed on our front porch for a while before calling it a night!
Thanks for reading!
Stay tuned for Day 9!
Read Day 1 here, Day 2 here, Day 3 here, Day 4 here, Day 5 here, Day 6 here & Day 7 here
Read my 10 Day Oregon Itinerary here & Click here to see links to all of my blog posts over the past 5 years!