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Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock
My daughter, granddaughter and great-grandson were here from Chicago last week to celebrate family birthdays and we spent a few days at the Oregon coast. We are real beach lovers and head to Cannon Beach every chance we get. It isn’t unusual to get a couple of good weather weeks in February and we hit it just right…blue skies and no wind. Haystack Rock is one of Oregon’s most famous landmarks and is second only to Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge as Oregon’s most visited location.
Cannon Beach ~ Main Street
Cannon Beach is a very small town with typical touristy shops, a candy store where you can watch salt water taffy being made on a machine that is almost 100 years old, and a generous number of excellent little restaurants and cafes. The halibut fish and chips at Bill’s Tavern are the best on the coast. It looks deserted because it’s a week day in February. In the summer it can be difficult to walk down the crowded streets.
- Cannon Beach ~ A great place to beach walk
Beach walking is a favorite pastime here. Even at high tide the beach is wide, flat and long. When the season is right you can see hundreds of people digging razor clams along this stretch of beach.
Cannon Beach ~ Beach Homes
My children and I used to dream of having a house here, but Cannon Beach has become one of Oregon’s high rent districts and we are content to visit as often as we can. Wouldn’t you just LOVE to have one of these gorgeous beach homes. I make myself feel better about not having one by imagining what the property taxes must be!
Cannon Beach – Schooner’s Cove
We do have a great place to stay a half block from the main street of the town and just a few feet from the sand.
Cannon Beach – Schooner’s Cove Ocean Side
The beach is 50 feet from the deck’s of the comfortable rooms. When my children were small I could sit on the deck and watch them play on the grass in front of the apartment or sit on the bench along the wall and see them playing in the sand. Those days are some of our most precious memories.
Crab and Shrimp Cocktails Ready to Go
Oregon coast seafood is as good as it gets from little ready made cocktails to fish and shellfish right off the boats.
Salmon Smoked Several Ways
A piece of smoked salmon, some crackers and a nice bottle of Oregon white wine are a perfect late afternoon snack.
Seafood at It’s Best – Salmon and Halibut Filets
Dungeness Crab ~ All Ready to Eat
It isn’t unusual to find stores closed several days a week during the winter months. Locals walk the beach in any weather but tourists like the warmer and drier months from April through October.
Cannon Beach History
If you drive north up Highway 101 just a few miles from Cannon Beach you will find the old historically important towns of Seaside and Astoria. They are the locations of the end of the Oregon Trail and the site of Lewis and Clark’s last encampments after an 18 month, 4,000 mile journey from St. Louis to the Oregon coast. Learn more about this amazing part of American history here.
Cannon Beach at Sunset
I hope you will visit our wonderful state someday and have the chance to walk along the beach at sunset. It’s an experience you won’t forget.
This post is linked to OH, THE PLACES I HAVE BEEN at The Tablescaper
Cathy, I have written down the areas you highlighted. Really, really hope we can make it there this summer. sigh…..
Susan recently posted..My surprise gift
What a great trip. I really think that my non-love of seafood is because we live in a landlocked state and I have never really enjoyed food caught fresh. I would love to visit Oregon on my trip and you have me putting Cannon Beach on my bucket list.
Eliot recently posted..Angel Biscuits
Gorgeous beach shots! What a sky! What a beach! It looks like a really fantastic day at a most amazing place!
Carol @There’s Always Thyme to Cook recently posted..What to do with leftover roast chicken?
Looks like the perfect vacation to me! I’ve always wanted to visit the northwest-someday! Thanks for the tour.
-Lynn
Thanks for taking me on this gorgeous picture vacation. I booked a flight to Oregon a few days a go and wish I could go today.
Kirsten@My German Kitchen…in the Rockies recently posted..Prune and Port Bread
So jealous!
Sue/the view from great island recently posted..Soupe Flamande with Creme Fraiche and Frizzled Brussels Sprouts: #35 on Gourmet’s List of the 50 Women Game Changers
Good morning Cathy. What a fun visit to your favorite town. My friend Teresa lives near there, and is a docent at Multnomah Falls. (I may have butchered the spelling of that..sorry) and posts lots of fabulous photos from there. Oh how I want to visit!!! Your beach town looks very quaint.
I hope to see it one day!
Kris
Talk about having the ocean in your back yard.
Wow, all that food…..I’m so jealous.
Ramona recently posted..Globes and bulbs…
I had the best smoked salmon I’ve ever tasted on the coast of Oregon (can’t remember the name of the town since it was thirty years ago). I’m sure you’re family loved the small town atmosphere–so different from the hustle and bustle of Chicago!!
Best,
Bonnie
Bonnie recently posted..Minestrone My Way
I live in Portland, Cannon Beach is my favorite place to visit.
Hanni recently posted..Beautiful Bunny Giveaway
Hi Cathy, It looks like we were at Cannon Beach on the same weekend. Love those rare sunny weekends we get in February! If you haven’t been a little ways south to Hug Point, you must check it out. Just make sure you’re aware of the tide schedule first. We discovered a waterfall and little caves in there on this trip.
Our Mother’s Day tradition is a weekend at Cannon Beach and we always stay at Schooner’s Cove!
Cindy recently posted..Portlandia’s Portland
I looove Oregon. I lived in Bend for three years until my husband dragged me back down to Southern California. Beautiful pictures of fish and seafood and lucky to have such nice weather.
Virtually Homemade – Liz recently posted..5 Simple Ingredients for Perfect Mini Bagel Reuben Sliders
I would visit in a heartbeat..How lovely!made even lovelier with your company:) 4 generations!! Never seen here!
Monique recently posted..Cache-Pots~
What a great post full of family memories; great photos Cathy.
When you talked about the dungeness crab, I really got excited; we are going to Victoria BC for March and it will be in season. i had never heard of this before; what a treat.
Rita
What a great trip! I miss all of the Oregon seafood but I will be ready in April! Just hope it isn’t too cold.
Kate recently posted..Bar Eggs aka Pickled Eggs
What wonderful photos! I was in Oregon briefly many years ago, and I’ve always wanted to go back for a longer visit.
Beth recently posted..Thursday’s Child: Street Art in Valparaiso, Chile
Beach walking is a favorite pastime of mine too. I’d love to visit Oregon one day.
Barbara @ Barbara Bakes recently posted..Light and Fluffy Whole Wheat Waffles
I really enjoyed this post, Cathy. Craig and I have a Worldmark Timeshare and there are a couple of properties on the Oregon Coastline that intrigues me. I always wondered where that beautiful rock was located, so I’m glad you told me. My only hesitance is that I’m afraid it might be cold, to stay there for a week. Plus, the properties are so popular, I have to book a year in advance! Someday, I’m going to make it up that way. I truly hope to do that.
Foodiewife recently posted..S’Mores Rice Krispie Treats for the Secret Recipe Club
I’ve been on the waiting list for over 3 years for time at one of our coastal time shares, but so far no luck. There is so much to do and see along that coast and it’s a popular tourist destination year around. I do hope you make it up this way, Debby. I’ll be your tour guide when you do.
Cathy recently posted..Travel Notes: Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock
How neat is that Haystack rock?! There’s something SO appealing about houses right on the beach too … You’ve started to make me want to leave OZ and have a look elsewhere!!
Red Nomad OZ recently posted..Only in OZ #19 – Moon Rock-Throwing World Championships, Richmond, Queensland
What a pretty area Cathy. I can almost smell the fresh air. It looks so different from the southern beaches on the east coast. Reminds me a little of Maine. I would love to visit someday.
Sam
Sam @ My Carolina Kitchen recently posted..Crème Brulee – an amazingly elegant French dessert
I so enjoyed your photos, just beautiful. One thing I was surprised about was the price of halibut…more than double what it is on the east coast.
Karen (Back Road Journal) recently posted..Far From The Maddening Crowds Of South Florida
Our seafood is fantastic but it is spendy, a little more at the Cannon Beach market than it might be in the city. But it is so good and we always agree that’s its worth every penny.
Cathy recently posted..Travel Notes: Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock
looks like a terrific place to visit and you got some great shots – I love the rock. The NW coast is so different than what us southerners consider going to the beach – lay on the warm sand, frolic in the water, no drift wood, etc. At $25 a pound for smoked salmon, If I could get fresh fish here, I might have to go into the business.
Larry recently posted..Saturday Humor
Breathtaking, I love Cannon Beach Cathy!!! I want to walk that beach again, nothing like it!
Marie recently posted..Roasted Veggie Pasta for a Crowd
Thanks for taking us along on this beautiful vacation. And all that wonderful seafood! Man! This is north of the Oregon coast beach area we visited on our last trip there. We started at Tillamook Cheese area and then drove south. I swear, if I didn’t have those grand Rocky Mountains in my back yard, I’d live in Oregon in a heartbeat! Just beautiful.
Lea Ann recently posted..Rocky Mountain Steak Salad
I love the Oregon Coast, which is why I moved here. While I dont live right on the beach its ok. You can find some nice homes just a block or so away. I live about 3 blocks from the ocean. At nite on my back deck I can hear it roar and I love it. And anytime I want to go to the beach, I can very easy. Perhaps look at other towns here on the coast if Cannon Beach is too expensive.
Pat recently posted..Simple but good: Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix
It looks beautiful, wonderful you could get away!
I am amazed at the price of the halibut, good thing I don’t like fish!
Kathleen recently posted..Let the Good Times Roll!
It looks like you had great weather and what wonderful pictures. Best place on earth, hands down!!!!
Erin @ Making Memories recently posted..A Fun Birthday Gift When 30 Sucks
i took a trip to the oregon coast when i was a teen and i still remember it being just beautiful and so fun. i loved the pics, i hope i can go back someday!
teresa recently posted..Spicy Chicken-Spinach Lettuce Wraps
Love Cannon Beach, but when we head for the beach it is usually Newport and the Sylvia Beach Hotel. Isn’t it funny how you get a favorite and want to return year after year. We had a lovely time in Newport on Wednesday through Friday.
Marilyn recently posted..Perfumery of Tea
We are so jealous of that Dungeness crab!!! We can never get that here. What a great post!
Chris and Amy recently posted..Roasted Garlic Soup (Secret Recipe Club)
I really enjoyed this post, Cathy! I love seeing more of Oregon through your eyes. I hope to visit beautiful Cannon Beach one day and indulge in some spectacular fresh west coast seafood. I love Dungeness crab when I visit San Francisco and I’d love to try it in your area.
Pat recently posted..Clinton Hill, Brooklyn
love that desolate and beautiful coastline and who can beat trying some local seafood, looks yummy!
noel recently posted..Aloha Friday Smiles
What a beautiful place. I lived in Washington for a few years when I was younger and loved the coast out there. It’s so different then the New England coast where I live. I can see why haystack beach is so well visited.
a gathering of days recently posted..22 July
A place I haven’t seen. Thanks for the tour. The seafood is enough to attract me.
diane b recently posted..HAPPY CAMPERS