Fabulous Day at the Coast

I'm a mountain gal.  Even though the Oregon coast is an hour's drive away, most of my time is spent traveling in the opposite direction to high, snowy places.  But every once and awhile I get a hankering for sea breezes.  The first full weekend in January was one of those times.  So I recruited my friend, neighbor, and photo-buddy Cheri for a day of photography at the coast.

Hug Point Beach

Hug Point Beach is one of my favorite places on the northern Oregon Coast.  It looked like we'd hit low tide in the morning, so Cheri and I timed our arrival accordingly.  However, I soon realized low tide in the winter is much different than during the summertime.  The water level was much higher, so high in fact that the old wagon road blasted into a nearby cliff face was still submerged at low tide.  Guess we wouldn't be walking on that!  

Hug Point Falls 

But the previous week's heavy rainfall translated into a wide, roaring waterfall nearby.  Normally just a trickle, I'd never seen Hug Point Falls moving so much water!  Getting to this rushing cascade required Cheri and I to walk across a headland jutting into the sea.  We'd donned our high rubber boots for the occasion and waited for a lull in the waves before venturing out.  But a sneaker wave caught us as we crossed, topping boots and soaking feet.  Oh well, at least we escaped with only wet feet.  That's why you bring extra pairs of socks when you go to the beach.

Moving water close-up

Hug Point Falls was quite beautiful.  The high volume of water racing over its sandstone cliff made this cascade fun to photograph.

Cheri and Stella

Cheri's dog Stella joined us for the day.  She's a purebred Australian Shepherd, smart and very well trained.  Of course all dogs love to run on the beach and find sticks to fetch, and Stella joyfully did both.

Who's a good dog?

Have you ever seen a happier doggo?

Peter Iredale shipwreck

After an hour or so of beach and waterfall photography, we drove further south to Nehalem Bay State Park.  Remembering my elk herd sightings here last fall, Cheri and I were hoping to spot a few of these magnificent animals.  But - alas - there were none to be found.  Not even a bird to photograph!  

Close-up of ship remains

So we headed back north, all the way up to Fort Stevens State Park, where we walked along the beach to find the wreck of the Peter Iredale.  This ship was traveling along the Oregon Coast in 1906 when it ran aground, hitting so hard that three of her masts snapped from the impact.  Since then, the shipwreck has been a popular tourist attraction.  But wind and waves have worn away at the vessel for years, and now only a small portion of her frame remains.  Despite this, it still makes a great photo subject.

Speedy shorebird

Cheri spotted a small flock  of shorebirds racing around the sand.  (I believe they may have been snowy plovers, but I'm still learning my birds, so please correct me if I'm wrong!)  It was fun, but challenging to capture these speedy little buggers.

Surprise elk sighting in Seaside

By now it was late afternoon.  Time to head back to Cannon Beach to catch the sunset.  As we drove towards Cannon Beach, Cheri noticed a bunch of vehicles parked in a gravel pull-out on the outskirts of the town of Seaside.  What had caused all these vehicles to stop?  A huge herd of elk was happily grazing, just a stone's throw away from a residential neighborhood.

Just chillin'

We'd been driving around all day looking for elk, and here they were practically in town!  Who would've thought?  Of course Cheri and I pulled over and jumped out, zoom lenses in hand.  We stuck out in the crowd of people, most only armed with cell phone cameras.

Waiting for sunset at Cannon Beach

As we turned onto the exit for Cannon Beach, Cheri spotted another elk herd happily munching the landscaping in the highway median.  But there wasn't time to photograph these elk - we had a sunset to catch!

Famous Haystack Rock in the distance

It was a long walk from our parking area to Haystack Rock, the huge seastack that Cannon Beach is famous for.  The sun was dropping fast, turning skies and sand a kaleidoscope of colors.  The sunset began before I could make it to the rock, so I plopped my tripod down and captured the show from where I stood.

Sky colors reflected in the water

It wasn't too shabby of a spot.  I was able to get Haystack Rock and its accompanying seastacks from one direction, and the southern coastline from the other.  And right before me the sky colors were reflecting beautifully in the rippled waters of the beach.

Pink skies

Then the clouds to the west turned a vibrant shade of pink.  Oh my!  I didn't think things could get better, but they did!

Nice color to the south too

After the sun finally sank below the horizon, I thought that would be it.  I couldn't have been more wrong.

The show went on and on...

Shades of yellow, orange, red and pink lingered in the sky.  The sunset show was just getting started.

Small creek empties into the sea

This colorful sky persisted for several minutes.  Although Cheri and I were getting cold, and still had a long walk back to our car, it was so amazing we couldn't tear ourselves away.  We'd walk a few steps, and then spot a scene just begging to be photographed.  Such as a small creek flowing towards the ocean,  its rippled boundary lit up beautifully by the sky.  One of my favorite images of the evening.

Final shot

Yes, it was a good day on the coast.  Not only did we catch Hug Point Falls at maximum flow, Cheri and I also got to photograph a vanishing shipwreck and herd of elk, capped off by capturing a stunning sunset.  Mission accomplished!