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Covering 160 miles of Oregon coast travel: Seaside, Cannon Beach, Manzanita, Nehalem, Wheeler, Rockaway, Garibaldi, Tillamook, Oceanside, Pacific City, Lincoln City, Depoe Bay, Newport, Wadport, Yachats & Florence.

The Hidden Oregon Beaches of Memorial Day

(Oregon Coast) – It’s hard to find a beach on which to be alone during the big three-day weekend that kicks off the summer tourist season. Memorial Day Weekend means crowds, busy roads and lots of “no vacancy” signs.

So where to go if you want to experience the Oregon coast at its most pristine and solitary? The average tourist is not without hope. There are plenty of hidden spots, and plenty of strands less traveled – although even the most secretive of spots can have a few people.

Here are some suggestions for getting away from it all on the Oregon coast during the busy weekend.

Nehalem Bay and Beaches

Wheeler, on Nehalem Bay

What seems to be a bit of a coastal secret is the cozy, friendly, Nehalem Bay area. Often, it's overlooked because it's not exactly "the beach" in the most widely understood meaning of the word, but there's a little bit of paradise lurking in this corner of the coast with a backwoodsy, relaxed and slightly rugged feel. And while it has no sand per se, it is a hop, skip and a jump from some of Oregon's most beautiful and pristine beaches - and right in the middle of gorgeous forestland.

Cruise up 101 from Rockaway, past pastoral glimpses of the bay, the spit and a host of pilings and you'll soon come to the deceptively tiny town of Wheeler. Old saloon-like architecture and chunks of Americana populate this colorful place. In fact, some of these old buildings are decorated quite colorfully themselves, such as the wondrously fun and funky Guido’s Ristorante (503-368-7778) or the gorgeous Old Wheeler Hotel.

This placid little place is packed full of a decent amount of delights. There's a train stop here, the full breadth of the bay sprawls out before you, and its array of shopping opportunities and restaurants is amazing for the mere four blocks that seem to comprise it fully.

It's also an antique treasure hunter's joy, with delightfully oddball shops featuring all sorts of interesting, sometimes kitchy and goofy finds.

Then, just a few miles away, you have the mysterious and stunning beaches of Manzanita. You’ll still find plenty of people inundating this comfy, atmospheric burgh on the big weekend, but you won’t find as many as in nearby Cannon Beach or Seaside. And there are some hidden beach accesses at the very southern end of town, in between some homes, where there are bound to be less folks than at the main part of Manzanita or at the Nehalem Bay State Park to the south.

Clandestine Cliffs of Lincoln County

If you're driving south on 101 just after Depoe Bay, you may notice a tiny, nondescript road called Otter Crest Road - one that may not peak your interest.

Wrong.

As it meanders below 101, it becomes a one way going south less than a mile down, at a spot just before where a big landslide tore the road away a few years ago. It's never been the same since - thankfully - as officials have turned it into a pleasant, canopied one-way road that hovers above beautiful, rather secretive cliffs.

The road ends up at Cape Foulweather, where you can also park to make this small but mesmerizing journey.

You can wander down to these secret cliffs just below the Otter Crest Loop’s one-way section and take in some incredible views.

The main entrance is where the one-way road starts, at a little gravel turn off. Hop the fence and you’ll find a steep trail meandering as you abruptly enter a dark forest area (which sometimes boasts really huge, wildly-colored mushrooms). The scenery explodes in front of you with a sense of the dramatic and grandiose as you step out of the forest to big ocean vistas.

It’s an amazing labyrinth of rocky cliffs, pointy things and smooth things. Parts of these basalt slabs actually form flat seats overlooking some incredibly dramatic wave action.

A trail running along side of the hill let’s you access a second cliff just south of it.

Oceanside's Beaches and Treasures

"Hatbox Rock," one of many interesting structures at Oceanside

During most of the year, there are often very few people here (although it’s gradually increasing in popularity every year as more and more make the discovery).

The beaches here are often shielded from the wind by the headland called Maxwell Point - about 100 yards north of the parking lot - looming above like a tall, dark, watchful god (which also boasts the noteworthy House On The Hill Motel). To the south, it's about three miles of sandy beach leading straight to Netarts Bay, with not much else other than rocks, boulders and driftwood piled up next to the vegetation line. About a mile down, you'll find some minor trails meandering through the brush underneath the Three Capes residential development, and if you're lucky, oddly colored slabs of rock become visible if the tide is low enough.

Tunnel to the other side

The real fun of Oceanside's beach lies inside Maxwell Point, however. The concrete tunnel here is a gateway to a stunning, secret world. Entrance into the tunnel is somewhat unadvisable in rainy weather, because of falling rocks from the cliffs.

But if conditions are calm, on the other side sits a stunning beach where enormous boulders and weirdly shaped sea stacks give the entire area a feel like something out of the old ``Star Trek'' series.

The entire area is cluttered with stuff to play on as well as a sense of the serene and the surreal.

Super Secret South of Yachats

One of many hidden beaches along the stretch between Yachats and Florence

Between Yachats and Florence, you might as well be on the show “Lost.” There are no hatches, creepy people called “the others” or plane crashes, but it’s often hard to find a soul on these beaches. Even on high density weekends, this 25-mile stretch has many less beachcombers than the rest of the Oregon coast.

One such spot is near Ten Mile Creek. Just a stone’s throw north of Stonefield Beach and the small bridge over the creek, you’ll find a tiny, unmarked beach access lying behind a patch of gravel on the side of the road. Take this to find a small hidden beach featuring all sorts of bubble-like and craggy basalt shapes lying in the water and on the shore.

Within a few feet sits the striking Ziggurat – an unusual bed and breakfast that looks like a Rubik’s Cube all twisted up into a strange but wonderful shape.

Basalt weirdness at Stonefield

Just after the bridge you’ll find a spot of parking and access to a lovely little beach called Stonefield Beach, populated by stones and lots of logs. Once out there, you’ll find a long stretch of sandy strand.

Some goofy bits of roadside Americana lurk nearby in the form of whimsical wood-carved statues of whales and mermaids and such. (About MP 172.) Another unmarked path to the beach sits less than an eighth of a mile south, granting you access to a strand of sand and large basalt slabs.

For more clandestine fun, look for MP 175 and the Big Creek Bridge is nearby. There are unmarked beach accesses on either side, where creekside sandy spots give way to more cobblestones, large logs and small tracts of sand. The southern access is an easier walk as it’s less covered in driftwood obstacles.

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