Arcadia Beach State Recreation Site
A shady grove just off the highway and a few feet from the sandy ocean beach below, Arcadia State Recreation Site is located a mile south of Cannon Beach. Take a lunch break on your way north or south, or plan for a day at the beach. Bring your blanket, kick off your shoes and feel the waves lapping at your ankles. Explore the beach and its tidepool areas to the north and south. Or watch for surfers just off shore. Please remember to keep an eye on the ocean, know if the tide is coming in or going out and explore tidepool areas gently and safely.
Arcadia’s beach stretches for more than a mile between two headlands. Just a short distance to the north is Humbug Point, with Lion Rock just off the point. To the south is Hug Point. Both headlands can only be passed at low tide. Humbug Point was named by pioneers because it was often confused with Hug Point, the next headland south and the most difficult headland to round when traveling south along this stretch of coast. If you have the luck to explore during low tide, .6 mile further north, past an off shore rock called Jockey Cap, is Silver Point, so named for the color of the weathered spruce trees on the bluff.
Notice the sandstone bluffs to the east and in cut-away places off the bluffs. These sandstone areas were once underwater and only recently uplifted. The pressures exerted on them from the uplift can be observed in the tilted and twisted patterns of layered rock. In addition, wind, sea and rain have eroded the landscape and continue to do so today.
The Rock is located in Cannon Beach on the North coast of Oregon. Haystack Rock is a unique monolith that attracts wildlife and tourists alike. Towering 235 feet over the beach, the Rock is home to nesting seabirds in the summer and marine invertebrates all year long. It is one of the largest “sea stacks” on America’s Pacific coast.
The rocky reefs of Haystack Rock and the neighboring Needles have abundant and rich intertidal life. Tidepoolers are drawn to its wonders every day. As many as 200,000 people visit Haystack Rock every year, mostly during the summer months when the tidepools are teeming and the nesting seabirds, proudly showing off breeding plumage, are busy introducing little ones into the world. Haystack Rock is protected under Fish and Wildlife regulations as a Marine Garden and a seabird nesting refuge.
Hug Point State Recreation Site
Hug Point State Recreation Site offers an easy access to the beach, a peek at some interesting local history and loads of scenic beauty. Just 5 miles south of Cannon Beach, this little wayside includes forested picnic areas, a restroom and a short walkway to the beach.
The lovely sandy cove beach just off the park is backed by hills vegetated by salal, ferns and sitka spruce. Located between Austin Point to the south and Hug Point to the north, a short walk north reveals a seasonal waterfall, caves carved into sandstone cliffs and tidepools accessible during low tide.
Imagine traveling by stagecoach along the beach. Before the highway was built, the beach was the only way to travel along this stretch of coast. North of the parking area at low tide you may walk along the original stagecoach road, still harboring the wheel ruts carved into the rock. Pioneers traveling around this headland had to hug this particular point even at low tide and so the point and the park both take the name hug point.
Del Rey Beach State Recreation Site
The ocean is a just a short walk from Del Rey’s quiet, secluded parking area. If ever there was a place to play, fly a kite, build a sand castle or picnic, this is it. The sunsets can be spectacular, too.
Sunset Beach State Recreation Site
Sunset Beach State Recreation Site comes with a very famous past. The park marks the west trailhead of the historic Fort-to-Sea Trail – a 6.5 mile route that recreates the experience Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery encountered as they traveled between Fort Clatsop and the Pacific Ocean during the famous winter of 1805-6.
Sunset Beach provides visitors with direct access to the Pacific Ocean with expansive views from Cape Disappointment to the north and Ecola State Park to the south.
This 120-acre park offers paved parking for 21 vehicles; an information station and an ADA accessible boardwalk leading to the beach.
Tolovana Beach State Recreation Site
Tolovana State Recreation Site is conveniently located on the ocean front of one of Oregon’s most scenic beaches, Cannon Beach. Situated at the south end of Cannon Beach, Tolovana offers a place to play, fly a kite, build a sand castle, picnic or take in a sunset. Less than a mile away to the north you won’t miss Haystack Rock, the icon of Cannon Beach. Haystack Rock is a towering 235 foot basalt sea stack that is home to tidepool creatures and nesting seabirds, such as the Tufted Puffin. Enjoy this protected area with care. Cannon Beach is known for its miles of sandy shoreline and breathtaking scenery. Don’t miss the town’s boutiques and local eateries, found in the nearby areas of Tolovana Park and Cannon Beach’s midtown and downtown. In addition to providing access to the ocean shore, Tolovana State Recreation Site has a playground located on the north side of the parking lot.
