4 Best Sights in The Oregon Coast, Oregon

A ½-mile trail from the beachside parking lot leads to the oft-photographed Heceta Head Lighthouse built in 1894, whose beacon, visible for more than 21 miles, is the most powerful on the Oregon Coast. More than 7 miles of trails traverse the rocky landscape north and south of the lighthouse, which rises some 200 feet above the ocean. For an incredible photo op of the lighthouse and Heceta Head, pull into the scenic viewpoint just north of Sea Lion Caves.

The largest expanse of coastal sand dunes in North America extends for 40 miles from Florence to Coos Bay. This favorite destination for ATV riding encompasses some 31,500 acres and draws more than 1.5 million visitors annually. Within the recreation area, 515-acre Honeyman Memorial State Park is a base camp for dune-buggy enthusiasts, mountain bikers, hikers, boaters, horseback riders, and dogsledders (the sandy hills are an excellent training ground). There's a campground, too. The dunes are a vast playground for children, particularly the slopes surrounding cool Cleawox Lake. If you have time for just a quick scamper in the sand, stop by the Oregon Dunes Overlook off U.S. 101, 11 miles south of Florence across from Crown Zellerback Campground; or hike the short and easy path to some towering dunes at John Dellenback Dunes Trailhead, which is 11 miles south of Reedsport, just south of Eel Creek Campground.

A few miles north of Florence, you'll find this interesting example of the rich plant life found in the marshy terrain near the coast. It's also a surefire kid pleaser. A short paved nature trail leads through clumps of insect-catching cobra lilies, so named because they look like spotted cobras ready to strike. This 18-acre park is most interesting in May, when the lilies are in bloom.

In 1880 a sea captain rowed a small skiff into a fissure in a 300-foot-high sea cliff. Inside, he was startled to discover a 125-foot-high vaulted rock chamber inhabited by hundreds of massive sea lions—the largest bulls weighing 2,000 pounds or more. Now one of the coast's favorite, if quite touristy, attractions, the caves are reached by an elevator near the cliff-top ticket office and kitschy gift shop; viewing is from behind a wire fence. This is the only known hauling-out area and rookery for wild sea lions on the mainland in the Lower 48, and it's an awesome sight and sound when they're in the cave, typically only in fall and winter (in spring and summer the mammals usually stay on the rocky ledges outside the cave).