We’ve spent the last few days in a park just down the road from our favourite Oregon beach. Friends put us onto this hidden gem years ago. If you don’t know about it, or see the sign, you will drive right by and never see it.

A narrow winding road descends from Hwy 101 away from the ocean. Hidden from view is a large parking lot. A walkway goes under the highway to the beach.

The sand here is different than most beaches. It’s larger grains, and pushed into low piles. When waves wash in much of the water drains into the sand, leaving far less to go back out than came in. 

The beach features high cliffs, large rocks in the surf, and a single long dead tree.  

Image Credit: © Paul H. Byerly