Surreal Sand Levels of Arch Cape

Arch Cape was actually named for a group of arches that were once here. Now, only one arch lurks on the other side of this point and is normally not accessible, except by extreme low tide conditions. However, sometimes sand levels can go the opposite direction as the winter time and still reveal wonders - such as the summer of 2011. Here, sand piled so high along much of the Oregon coast that it actually created a kind of barrier to the tide and created a constant state of low tide-like conditions.

Arch Cape's arch was suddenly quite accessible. The water stayed far from the point, allowing you to walk around it with ease and check out this basalt behemoth.

What Arch Cape's arches once looked like:

Photo courtesy CB History Museum. This is all connected to how Cannon Beach was named. Surprise, Arch Cape WAS once called Cannon Beach. See Quirky Oregon Coast History: How Cannon Beach Got Its Name

Below are more scenes of the wild wonders found.