Lighthouses in April or May

Was hoping to visit the Oregon coast for a lighthouse tour in November, but couldn%26#39;t get away. Now we%26#39;re hoping to do it in April or May.

Many of you were very helpful with suggestions for the November journey and I%26#39;d sure appreciate your help with this one. Again, it%26#39;s me and my grandmother (who is crazy for lighthouses, but has never seen one in person.)

We%26#39;ll likely be flying into Portland on a Tuesday, leaving on Saturday morning. So we%26#39;ll have full days on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Certainly planning on Yaquina Head and Heceta Head-- suggestions on what else we can reasonably add on?

Thanks!

Lighthouses in April or May

Since you are flying into Portland, it%26#39;s makes sense to drive hwy 26/6 to Tillamook and visit Cape Meares Lighthouse (LH). From there it%26#39;s an easy jaunt down hwy 101 to Newport and Yaquina Head and Yaquina Bay LH. From Newport, it%26#39;s less than an hour drive to Heceta Head LH and from Heceta Head to Umpqua LH, Heceta%26#39;s sister LH, is only another 45 minutes or so.

After Umpqua is Cape Arago LH, near Coos Bay. It can only be seen from a distance but it%26#39;s worth the trip. It%26#39;ll take you another 45 muntes to get there from Umpqua. From Cape Arago, it%26#39;s about a 30 minute drive down to Bandon and the Coquille River LH and from Bandon, another 45 minutes south will get you to Cape Blanco LH, the southern most of Oregon%26#39;s lighthouses.

Keep in mind, the driving times I list are approximate and are without stopping. You%26#39;ll certainly be stopping along the way and will want to take this into account.

For more information, visit www.oregonstateparks.org.

Hope this helps.

~Den~

Lighthouses in April or May

Den has good layout of time to see Oregon lighthouses, however his point of how much you stop can really affect that.

If she starts getting interested in all the other things on the Oregon coast, suggest you limit it to Cape Meares to Umpua. Yaquina Head and Heceta are the best. though I like them all.

There are two lighthouses in Wash at Ilwaco, north side of entrance to Columbia R.

I think it would be good to figure out which lighthouses you want to definetly see. If you want the trip to be just a lighthouse trip, Den%26#39;s trip would probably take you at least 2 of your 3 days-if you want it to be somewhat relaxing, i. e. explore/walk around the lighthouse areas, etc. Last time I went Heceta Head had a tour where you could walk up to the top of the lighthouse. I think it was a weekend-so Im not sure if they would be available during the week-just check on the State Parks website.

Sounds like you will be near Newport-the standard tourist stuff near here would be the Oregon Coast Aquarium, Cape Perpetua and don%26#39;t forget to make time to walk on the beach! :)

We do tours at Heceta daily, March through October and by request the rest of the year.

~Den~

And hey, if you decide to go through Tillamook, your going to have to visit the cheese factory and at least take a peak at the huge wooden blimp hangar.

And in Newport, you%26#39;ll need to go to the bayfront to get saltwater taffy and some remembrance item from your lighthouse visit. There a several eateries with fresh seafood down this way.

I don%26#39;t know if I mentioned that Cape Blanco gets some serious wind year round. Some would consider this to be the windiest area of the coast. If its rainy on the southcoast, I wouldn%26#39;t make the trip all the way down to be sand and salt blasted.

Good point Julauf. we were there one Oct day and it was very windy, but other stops we made on south coast were not too bad. We walked on beach evening and morning in Bandon.

We were traveling up the coast from Crescent City so was along the way except for the dozen or so miles it is off 101. .My wife is trying to got top of every lighthouse she can. I don%26#39;t do well coming down those stairs. I picked up a problem with heights somewhere along the way.

The Tillamook Cheese Factory is a fun and there is also the Blue Heron that we enjoy. You can wine taste at Blue Heron, their Brie cheese is really good here. The Tillamook Air Museum is also worth a look, very educational and fun also.

You may also want to consider a stop at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. Stop in Gleneden Beach for lunch at the Salishan Lodge %26amp; Spa, a very nice resort with pretty grounds and good food.

Enjoy your time at the coast, we will also be in this area for several days in early April staying in the Astoria/Seaside area of the northern coast. :)

The keeper%26#39;s house at Heceta Head Lighthouse has a bed and breakfast. Do a google search on ';Heceta Head'; and you%26#39;ll find information. Since your grandmother is crazy for lighthouses, spending a night there could be the highlight of the trip.

These suggestions are just fantastic and I really appreciate them. I should have mentioned that I%26#39;ve been to the coast once before and seen several of these things, many of which I%26#39;m anxious to see again.

Let me ask this. I鈥檇 like to work in a bit of nature variety, perhaps in the form of waterfalls (ie. Multnomah Falls) and/or Mt. St. Helen鈥檚. I鈥檓 thinking if we only go as far south as Florence, that would allow a bit more time for something else. But it might just be too much wasted driving time to see the volcano.

Thoughts?

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