Yachats Scenes

Last Thursday in Yachats, rain fell most of the morning, with strong winds before dawn.  It was a cozy storm that made for good sleeping.  By midmorning the rain had decreased to showers and the wind was abating.  The light was good on the shore.

Wind and water have eroded a gap in the soft rock along the 804 Trail, a shoreline path that runs for several miles in Yachats.  The soil above the rock, anchored by thick vegetation, has resisted the erosion.

Onshore winds sculpt the trees...here and along most of the Pacific coast from central California north into British Columbia.

A stream rushes across the beach as clouds billow offshore.

A blowhole fires up.

This Sitka spruce is almost 200 feet tall...it was taller until the Columbus Day Storm in 1962, which blew off the top 30 feet or so.  It is around a thousand years old.

A stream gurgles through the rainforest.

The view from Cape Perpetua, 800 feet above the sea.  No, I didn't hike...there's a road to the top.  Though the south winds had diminished at sea level from overnight gusts of 35 mph or so, here they were still blowing at least that strong.  I imagine they were really rowdy overnight.

Another view from the cape, looking far down the coast toward the south.  A grand spot!

This view from the cape looks toward the northwest.

While the sun shone frequently along the shore last Thursday afternoon, interior mountains were still swathed in clouds and mist.  The wonders of orographics!

Classic shot of Heceta Head lighthouse.  I met an Australian cyclist here who was also shooting this scene.  We started talking about fine coasts we had seen...he said the Oregon Coast was like the Great Ocean Road on steroids!  That's a beautiful coastal drive in the Australian state of Victoria, west of Melbourne.  I've seen it too...it's pretty and spectacular but the Aussie was spot on.

A coastal estuary at Neptune State Park, just south of Cape Perpetua.  The Oregon Coast has countless beauty spots preserved as state parks and waysides, the large majority of them with free access.  It's truly one of the world's fine seashores.