Oceanside, Oregon: Astounding Examples of Then and Now

Published 08/19/2012

(Oceanside, Oregon) – The one thing that stays the same on the Oregon coast is that it constantly changes. It's a joy to watch, really. And downright mesmerizing. But it often happens so slowly that you don't realize it from day to day, maybe even hour to hour.

Oceanside, on the north coast, is one prime example. Normally, the headland known as Maxwell Point sits in the middle of some precarious tidal melee, and it sometimes even features this weird spouting action, as seen above. Although this firing upward sight is admittedly rare, waves do knock around this spot almost always.

What a difference sand levels can make, however. This summer, seen above, sand levels are unusually high and keep the tide at bay, making for a kind of faux low tide event. You can easily walk around the point now.

Just a tad south of the town, a gravel pullout allows you slightly aerial views of the beach and of Three Arch Rocks in the distance. From here, one winter's day in recent years saw Oceanside in this pale glow at dusk.

This summer, with the high sand levels, there appears to be more beach than usual, and if you closely in the middle of the photo you'll see some unusual spray action at the surfline. Wow.

Up a bit closer to Maxwell Point, there's no mistaking the beauty of Oceanside on a pristine day like this.

A bit closer to sunset, on an equally wondrous day, the sea foam is going a bit bonkers, in spite of the relatively calm conditions. This makes for an engaging scene as well.

On the other side of Oceanside's Maxwell Point, through the mysterious tunnel in the rock cliff, sits this wonderland of pristine beach and fascinating features of basalt blobs and slabs. The small sea stacks in the distance were at one point part of arches of basalt, which were in turn worn down from other sea stacks. One rather dramatic arch fell apart in the early 2000's, leaving just a snaggle-toothed skyline of pointy rocks.

On a slightly less clear day, but one that was no less dramatic, a mist enshrouds these jagged beauties in the distance, while the last rays of the sun poke through the clouds and paint the nearby rocks with intriguing colors.

You'll find Oceanside on the north Oregon coast along the Three Capes Loop, about 15 miles north of Pacific City and nine miles west of Tillamook. About 20 minutes to the north is Rockaway Beach, and another 20 minutes north of there are Cannon Beach and Seaside. Five minutes south of Oceanside is Netarts, and Lincoln City is about a half hour drive away. Find Oceanside and Pacific City lodging below.

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