Yachats, Oregon - Seal Cave

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You can't come this far and not see the Pacific Ocean so Sunday, August 19th we headed for the coast. It's so different from home. Much of it unsettled and forested. Driving from Corvallis to the coast on the back roads it was also startling to see the vast areas of clear cut forest. Some areas had just recently been cut and other areas were in various stages of re-growth. The ocean was beautiful but the beaches are not ones that you actually see people sunbathing and swimming. Today was cool and mostly cloudy with showers but even on good days the air and water temperatures are just too cold. We took in the Sea Lion Caves. It was actually pretty amazing. The land is privately owned and operated. You take an elevator down about 200 feet and you find yourself in the largest underwater cave in the world. You can look out from behind a chain link fence and see the sea lions swimming in the cave and sleeping on the rocks along with birds that inhabit the cave. It's actually very well done with a lot of information on the sea lions and history of the cave. Until 1961 you would have had to hike down to the entrance and then climb many stairs down and and then back up. A drive up a steep road in one of the National Parks rewarded us with incredible views of the coast. It seems like we are always eating but it was getting late and we had not had lunch so we stopped at the Drift Inn in Newport for a bite. Good food, reasonable prices. We continued back up the coast and then headed back to Corvallis.

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Photos

Oregon Coast
Heceta Head Light

Oregon Coast
Heceta Head Light

Sylvan, Karen, Jane & Billy
Sea Lion Cave

Newport, Oregon
Drift Inn