"We want to see an ocean," the kids requested when we started talking about a vacation. While I think they had in mind the tropical beaches of the Caribbean, I could think of no more beautiful coastline than Oregon, which I'd visited in 1977 while college-age. The helpful suggestions of friends pointed us to Newport. A few calls yielded reservations at The Whaler Motel on the oceanfront.
After a long countdown, Heceta Beach, Florence, on Thursday about 4:30 p.m., marked our first visit to the ocean. After a dip in the surf, headed for Newport, I noted these places to see: Devil's Elbow State Park-Heceta Head lighthouse; Cape Perpetua; Gov. Pratt State Park just south of Waldport. That night live music drew us into Mo's Annex on Newport’s bay front.
Friday morning was foggy. I went running on the beach while the kids walked the water. About midmorning our friends the Boldts arrived from the Portland area. At their suggestion, we toured the Hatfield Marine Science Center off Highway 101, at the south end of the Yaquina Bay bridge. The docents provided answers to kids’ questions about octopuses and why the ocean is salty. We were also acquainted with chaos theory, plus the famous whale explosion. Nearby is the Oregon Coast Aquarium and Rogue Brewery. As the afternoon sun warmed the air, we drove up to the impressive Yaquina Head lighthouse and investigated the tidepool nearby. That night we walked into town for ice cream at a friendly shop along Highway 101.
Saturday afternoon, I took a walk in the vicinity of the motel to some shops and bookstores, Tea and Tomes being most appealing, then tried the beach but the weather was windy and chilly, so the family reconvened in the Whaler's inside pool. That night, the stark weather proved to be an attraction, so my wife and I braced for a walk at incoming high tide in the fog.
Without any clear direction for church, on Sunday morning we ate breakfast in the lower half of an appropriately homey B&B named ARR Place. In the afternoon, thanks to some rented nets and free advice from Harry's Bait and Tackle, my son went crabbing off the docks. Later we toured the well-endowed Oregon Coast Aquarium. Extending the day, we headed for the Historic Nye Beach during a warm, sunny late afternoon at low tide. The suds of the day was dinner at the Rogue Ales Public House.
Before leaving the Whaler and Newport, my son recovered a Jolly Roger kite in a field, which we took as an omen to gas and go. Southbound on the coast below Florence, we played on the Tahkenitch dunes; Ben had the kite high up in the breeze long enough for all of us to pass the string around.
If you go
Newport Chamber of Commerce
800-COAST-44
The Whaler Motel
155 S.W. Elizabeth Street
Newport, Oregon 97365
800-433-9444
541-265-9261
Rates $75-139
AAA
Rogue Ales Public House
748 S.W. Bay Blvd.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-3188
Mo's Original Restaurant
622 S.W. Bay Blvd.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-2979
Mo's Annex
657 S.W. Bay Blvd.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-7512
Newport Tradewinds Fishing
653 S.W. Bay Blvd.
Newport, Oregon 97365
800-676-7819
$60 for five-hour trip
Harry's Bait & Tackle
Sport and Commerical Bait and Tackle
404 S.W. Bay Blvd.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-2407
Marine Discovery Tours
345 S.W. Bay Blvd.
Newport, Oregon 97365
800-903-BOAT
Mariner Square
Wax Works, Undersea Gardens, Ripley's Believe It or Not!
250 S.W. Bay Blvd.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-2206
www.marinersquare.com
Rogue Ales Brewery
2320 OSU Drive
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-867-3663
Newport Recreation Center
110 S.E. 2nd St.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-7783
Newport Visual Arts Center
839 N.W. Beach Dr.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-6540
Oregon Coast History Center
545 S.W. 9th St.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-7509
Yaquina Bay Lighthouse
541-265-5679
Yaquina Head Natural Area BLM
P. O. Box 936
541-574-3100
Newport, Oregon 97365
Interpretive Center and Lighthouse Tours
Oregon Coast Aquarium
2820 S.E. Ferry Slip Road
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-867-3474
www.aquarium.org
Hatfield Marine Science Center
2030 S.E. Marine Science Drive
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-867-0271
Green Gables Bookstore
Bed and Breakfast
156 S.W. Coast St.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-9141
www.greengablesbb.com
Tea and Tomes
716 N.W. Beach Dr.
Newport, Oregon 97365
541-265-2867
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