Road Trip Part 3: The Oregon Coast

The Lighthouses

The nine historic lighthouses along the Oregon Coast are as much a part of the coastal scenery as the rugged headlands, beaches and sea stacks.  I photographed six of the classic structures.

Tillamook Rock Lighthouse:  1.2 miles off shore and nicknamed "Terrible Tilly," it has a 62 foot high tower built on a basalt rock islet.  The first photo was taken from Ecola Park; the second from Tolvana Beach with a 400 mm lens.

Cape Mears Lighthouse: The 38 foot tower is the shortest on the Oregon Coast.  The sky was such a bland blue that I converted the photo to black & white (and red). 

Yaquina Head Lighthouse:  Since I stayed the night in Newport, I made two visits to the lighthouse.  The first was mainly to scout a sunset location, but while there I took the tour and climbed the 168 steps up the spiral staircase to peer out the glass dome.

I returned for the sunset, but this photo cries out for some interesting clouds.  The park closes exactly 5 minutes after the sun drops below the horizon, so this was the last shot I could take.  Use your imagination to add a gathering of storm clouds.

 

Yaquina Bay Lighthouse: Also in Newport, this lighthouse is now a museum.

Coquille River Lighthouse:  Just north of Bandon, the lighthouse sits on the north bank of the Coquille River, where the river meets the ocean.  This was my favorite.

I did not include the photo of the Haceta Head Lighthouse because it was under repair and covered by a tarp, which sort of marred its photographic appeal.

Beaches, Sea Stacks & Waves

The Oregon Coast is a playground for photographers.   In addition to lighthouses, it offers rocky headlands, sweeping beaches, picturesque harbors, and iconic sea stacks.  I tried to time my travels so I could photograph early in the day and again from late afternoon to sunset.  I used the bright middle-of-the-day hours to drive to the next location, sight-see, and  scout for sunset/sunrise settings.

Cannon Beach Sea Stacks at Sunrise

 Cannon Beach Sunset

 First light on Haystack Rock on Cannon Beach

I scouted this scene earlier in the day to determine the best spot for a sunset shot of Crescent Beach & Cannon Beach from Ecola State Park.  I returned and claimed my spot an hour before sunset.  Good thing.  Another photographer showed up who tried out positions on either side of me.  He clearly wanted my spot, but had to settle for second best.  Thank you to Don Smith for teaching me to arrive early. 

I so appreciated those wispy clouds.

Seal Rock Beach

I had to scramble back when I saw this wave coming.

 A driftwood strewn beach in Bandon. 

 Finally on my last night at the coast, clouds to reflect 

the sunset light on Bandon Beach.

Bandon Beach Sunrise.  

I spotted this hole in the rock the night before.  This is a 3 second exposure of a wave breaking through the visible hole and pouring through another.

Last Shot from Bandon Beach

This is similar to the shot above from Cannon Beach.  By the time the sun was up all the clouds had disappeared, but the early bands of light created a subtle backdrop to this far off sea stack that was just starting to catch the first rays of sunlight.

I was reluctant to leave.  I thoroughly enjoyed my early mornings on the Oregon beaches and this was my last.  I usually had a beach to myself until the first light appeared, and even then only a few others ventured out to see the sun rise.   My only disappointment in Oregon was not photographing any tide pool creatures.  I tried.  I researched which beaches had the best tide pools.  I timed my visits to low tide.  No luck.  The only critters I found were a dead crab and a dead starfish with with 2 points partially nibbled off.  Pretty pathetic.  But maybe it is a good idea to leave a few photos behind.  They present a good reason to return.