Oregon Coast

there are private state and county parks many with in an hour of each other or less

Wavesprite wrote:
I know my response is late, but I would stick to all State parks, they are AWESOME in Oregon and absolutely beautiful with full hook ups!!! We travel up there eve summer for 3 weeks and it never gets old!

Just a note, most Oregon state Park campsites only have water/electric.
Full hookups are less common.

I know my response is late, but I would stick to all State parks, they are AWESOME in Oregon and absolutely beautiful with full hook ups!!! We travel up there eve summer for 3 weeks and it never gets old!

Most of the State Parks along the Oregon Coast are open all year and they are all pretty wonderful. We just drove down the coast last fall and while it rained every single day but one, we still enjoyed ourselves. Just figure out how many miles you would like to travel each day and then look for a park in that area.

Yeah, specifically for Longview that is the Lewis and Clark Bridge. Then head west on Hwy 30. The big bridge in Astoria over the Columbia River to Ilwaco is the Megler Bridge, Hwy 101.

A more scenic drive would be off in Olympia and head west on Hwy 8 towards Aberdeen. Before Aberdeen, take Hwy 107 which will then connect to Hwy 101 in WA, head south on Hwy 101. Just make sure to respect the slow town speed limits, both OR and WA as those are monitored quite well.

The Oregon state parks are great. We've stayed at many of them and not found one we didn't like. Going southbound, as you will be, most of the parks will be right turns off the highway.

Unless you plan on doing the WA coast as well, I'd recommend going off I-5 at Longview and going west to the high river bridge that connects Ilwaco to Astoria. Otherwise it's a bit of a drag coming northwards again from Portland to get to Astoria.

Well I have also seen one of the nicest camping spots on the Oregon Coast.

RedRocket204 wrote:

MERudniski wrote:
What is the weather 'usually' like in April?

Expect rain and wind! Possibly sideways rain.


9 years living 2 blocks from the ocean on the north Oregon coast allows me to state the above with extreme confidence. :)



But, in all seriousness, if you do decide to hang out on any of the beaches, always keep yourself faced towards the ocean and be on guard if the swells are large. Spring can still produce large swell events and MANY people have been swept off their feet from an unexpected rouge wave... never to be seen from again. I grew up around oceans, surfing most of my life and have seen many, many people who do not treat the ocean as though it can be a killer.

Additionally, there is a reason the Columbia River Bar is called the Graveyard of the West.

Pretty much like the rest of the year, could be sunny and into the 60's, or could be windy, maybe a little drizzle, or a nice storm with the rain and wind together. Today just south of Newport it is 49 degrees, with a Gail warning with mixed periods of rain and sunshine.

allen8106 wrote:
I highly recommend Cape Blanco State Park. We spent 4 nights there this past July and it's an excellent place to stay for a few days. Only issue is that they don't take reservations. First come first serve but in April I would doubt that is a problem

RedRocket204 wrote:
Expect rain and wind! Possibly sideways rain.


9 years living 2 blocks from the ocean on the north Oregon coast allows me to state the above with extreme confidence.



But, in all seriousness, if you do decide to hang out on any of the beaches, always keep yourself faced towards the ocean and be on guard if the swells are large. Spring can still produce large swell events and MANY people have been swept off their feet from an unexpected rouge wave... never to be seen from again. I grew up around oceans, surfing most of my life and have seen many, many people who do not treat the ocean as though it can be a killer.

Yep, it can be very windy at Cape Blanco. And do watch out for the waves. A week or so ago a man and young child were washed out to sea. The Coast Guard and sheriff's department never did find them.

RamWilderness wrote:
This is a great place to stay towards the southern end of the coast.

I am a morning person, as such I make a pot of coffee and sit in my recliner with my laptop while the DW sleeps for a couple more hours. It is my favorite time of the day, sort of like having a beautiful spring day everyday. Winchester Bay Resort is one of my favorite places to do this and last June we were visiting and I sat there in my chair and watched a Greater Blue Heron land down in front of us and hunt for breakfast.

He was very good at finding those little black crabs that are in most tidal pools up there and small fish in the grasses and he just kept eating and eating. The DW woke up and sat there with me and watched him with me. To me something like that is so serene and quieting, it sort of makes it hard to ever get upset during the rest of the day. There are several drive to spots around the Bay that are quiet and beautiful places to watch the Bay and Harbor wake up.

The town is really nice, very small but lots of great friendly folks. The little store is one of those places that have a little of a lot of things. While Reedsport is just a little North and Coos Bay is a little South, those little stores are a fill in place and carry so many necessities it is amazing.

If you happen to see a tall, slender gray haired guy around a house with a ton of STUFF in the yards, stop and ask him what he's working on. He is a real friendly guy and the exact opposite of his wife, looks wise.

Go drive around and visit the light house, lovely spot, lots of things to look at. Nice gifty shop downstairs. Going to 101 from the lighthouse, use the back road, a couple really nice campgrounds there.

After a week there I'm so recharged, I just want to do things. Maybe find a place in the woods where the view from my recliner is as peacefully exciting as Winchester Bay.