Little Oregon Coast Cove Where Humans Are Outnumbered, Between Florence, Yachats

Published 10/06/23 at 4:22 a.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Yachats, Oregon) – Somewhere in that undefined beachy wilderness between Yachats and Florence, where the central Oregon coastline gets all wiggly and winding, there's a spot that typifies the area. A place where tidepools and their denizens far outnumber the humans wandering around; where sandy mixes with rocky and jagged, and where surprises lurk in every nook and cranny – because there are a lot of nooks and crannies.

Bob Creek Wayside is, believe it or not, technically part of a state park, as Neptune State Scenic Wayside encompasses it, along with wo parts of what are labeled Neptune Beach, and then Strawberry Hill. [Bob Creek Wayside Cove and Access]

Bob Creek is unique in its set of amenities and surprises, as are the others around it. This part of the central Oregon coast, essentially northern Lane County, is chock full of little pocket beaches with vastly different rocky layouts, yet all mixed with some amounts of sandy beach.

Insanely cool.

What's extra-engaging about Bob Creek is the abundance of agates – when they're around. When those gravel beds appear, be prepared to fight others for territory. OK, that part is a joke. No one ever goes all Customer Wars on you for agates, but there are people aplenty at times.

At Bob Creek Wayside, it's an obscure but fascinating place. Mounds of tidepool life really emerge at lower tides, clinging to odd, mushroom-shaped rocky blobs at the southern end.

At this section, a couple of sea caves are a highlight. [Bob Creek Wayside Secret Cave] One isn't so much a sea cave as it is an arch created by a huge boulder leaning up against the rockface. On the other side of the arch, there's a sizable sea cave that allows you to walk inside and check out the freaky debris deposited there by the tides. Water is dripping from the top and it gets a little dark, so watch the slippery stuff. You probably don't want to amble around the weird shapes at the very end of the cave, because things can get dangerous.

There's a lot of rocky surrealism at Bob Creek Wayside, where varied landscapes abound, including those rather difficult cobblestones. Then there's chunks of basalt that are flat-ish, with green goo-covered pools that are chock full of colonies of colorful lifeforms.

When high sand levels of summer hit, it keeps the tide much farther out. This mini-cove becomes unusually still at times, with really small wave action more akin to a lake. It's rather startling but beautiful.

At the north end, you'll find plenty of mussels - but you'll have to cross the creek to do so. During the winter that's difficult, if not impossible and certainly unwise. During the summer months, it's much easier. Start the Bob Creek Virtual Tour

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Andre' GW Hagestedt is editor, owner and primary photographer / videographer of Oregon Coast Beach Connection, an online publication that sees over 1 million pageviews per month. He is also author of several books about the coast.

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