A slice of Americana on the Oregon Coast

Four of the best summer time activities to experience in Gearhart, Oregon; from a local perspective

A flagpole stands proudly displaying the American flag on the 4th of July in Gearhart, Oregon. Drift logs are spread on the beach in the foreground and in the background tall Douglas fir trees reach up to the bright blue sky. — A quieter section of the Gearhart area, known as Little Beach.

Growing up with the Oregon Coast

Growing up in Scappoose, the Oregon Coast was about 90 minuets away and our family frequented Cannon Beach for a night or two on school breaks. My dad would take us exploring near Haystack Rock, where we’d search the tide pools for starfish and anemones.

This map displays the northwest corner of Oregon State, and in particular the communities on the Oregon Coast. Astoria, Gearhart, Seaside, Cannon Beach, Manzanita, Rockaway Beach and Tillamook. — I was coloring with my nieces and nephews and came up with this map as my art project today. Helps explain the geography of the northern section of the Oregon Coast. Many movies, including Twilight have been filmed in this stretch between Astoria and Cannon Beach. For distance reference, it takes about 90 minutes to drive from Portland to Gearhart and/or Cannon Beach area. Gearhart is about 3 hours driving to/from Seattle.

It was pretty basic in the 80’s, with a Best Western type hotel named Surfsand. The location was excellent; beachfront and steps away from Haystack Rock. We’d build sand castles and swim in the ocean until the 55 degree water left us completely numb. The hotel is still there today and is an upgraded experience from the ’80’s.

Two asian tourists pose for a photo in front of Haystack Rock on Cannon Beach. The Oregon Coast is known for these mile long sandy beaches shown in the foreground and background of this shot. — Cannon Beach, with the iconic Haystack Rock in the background.

For some reason we stopped staying at this hotel once I decided to begin my public art career drawing a beautiful crayon mural on the walls of my room in the hotel at 5 in the morning.

The view of the Oregon Coast from high on a cliff at Ecola State Park. The view shows the wide waves of the Pacific Ocean crashing upon the sandy beaches, with iconic Haystack Rock in the far distance. — Team Jacob or Team Edward? Ecola State Park was featured in the Twilight movies and is nestled on a bluff between Seaside and Cannon Beach (in the distant.). Beautiful views, excellent hiking and even some excellent surfing abound..

Summer fun in Gearhart, Oregon

Through the years, we ventured to different places up and down the coast, and today my family spends most of their coastal vacation time in Gearhart, Oregon.

Gearhart is usually a sleepy little coastal town with a few year round residents and mostly vacation homes and some rentals. There is one hotel, the Gearhart Hotel by McMenamins which overlooks a golf course.

Gearhart is a peaceful alternative to busier and more commercial Seaside, just a mile or so to the south, with a main boardwalk area teeming with video arcades and salt water taffy filled candy stores. To the north is even larger Astoria, perched on the banks of the massive Columbia River entrance to the Pacific Ocean. I love Astoria and have a bit more information in the section Ideas on where to go.

A shot of the 4th of July crowd taken at the main intersection in downtown Gearhart, Oregon. Hundreds of people wearing red white and blue clothing of all types are milling about next to a red stop sign. — Literally a one-stop town. This is the main commerce corner in town, taken at the 4th of July parade celebration.

There used to be a small Main Street USA type grocery store in the center of town but it closed because the larger stores in Seaside and Astoria drained away the business with better pricing and larger inventories of plastic beach toys and bundles of firewood. Too bad, because they made great sandwiches.

Up close photo of a beautiful hydrangea bush blooming bright purple blossoms in private garden adjacent to a home in Gearhart, Oregon. — The constant rush of salt water air is a great growing environment for hydrangeas. Gearhart, Cannon Beach and Manzanita are particularly known for their beautiful plants and flowers, especially in the summer.

In pioneer days, Gearhart was the location of the first beach tourists in the area, with a large hotel named Gearhart by the Sea built at the end of a railroad line that would bring people from Portland. Today the drive is about 90 minutes from Portland on a fairly straight forward highway, albeit two lanes in many places, so summer time traffic can add time to the journey. The drive from Seattle takes about three hours.

The 4 best activities to experience in Gearhart

4. Finding new old things

There are a few great antique stores in Gearhart that sell items from flavored soaps to aprons with nautical themes to old Pennzoil signs and interesting things in between.

It’s fun to imagine owning my own beach house and cramming it top to bottom with beachy themed everything. I’m particular a fan of all the old photos and maps of the area, so there’d definitely be a map room in my cottage by the beach.

Seaside and Astoria also have many more options for your antique desires.

A vintage bicycle is painted powder blue and props up other antique items like a red sign with white lettering that says Antiques and three miniature American flags while a concrete color fountain with a naked goddess pops up behind this scene. In amongst the background are bright pink rose blossoms. — Always fun displays and “found” items mixed amongst other beach nostalgia.

3. Eating from the sea

The area has a few restaurants that are more conventional places, like McMenamins’ Sand Trap Pub and a great corner gourmet pizza and fine dining establishment, Pacific Way Cafe & Bakery. But often the best food comes directly from the sea.

Whether it’s clamming season or a few crab pots get tossed into the bay, there are a lot of fun options for tasty, fresh seafood.

Two men wearing shorts and sandals walk on a stretch of sand on the Oregon Coast freshly washed with salt water from the rushing waves. The men are facing the water and searching for signs of clams. — Looking for signs of razor clams at low tide. The bubbles pop up through the thin glossy salt water after each wave hits. Then it’s time to dig.

A man wearing a light blue hoodie and gray shorts is barefoot in the shallow water creeping up on the beach. He is holding a metal tube container used to dig up clams and there is the sense of movement as he pushes the contraption into the sand in an effort to catch razor clams. — Mostly razor clams live in the ocean around these parts, and they are fairly large and fast getting away. This pipe device helps dig quickly.

Three men, all wearing grayish-blue hoodies and shorts, squat on a sandy beach in Gearhart, Oregon barefoot and smiling after procuring nine large razor clams, which are proudly displayed on the sand in front of a green children's sand pale. The razor clams are yellowish around the oval shaped edges and darker brown internally. — The razor clam harvest. The clam on the far left still has it’s neck out, which is used to quickly dig into the sand to get away from predators. Too slow this time!

If you don’t want to get cold and sandy, or wake up early to hit the fishing boats, there are some great fresh seafood stores in Seaside and Astoria. We’ve had good luck at Bell Buoy of Seaside.

2. Long walks on the beach

This one is a total cliche, I know. But really amazing in Gearhart in particular because the beach seems to infinitely run for miles up the coast with relatively no one else around.

Blue sky peeks through a cloudy evening sunset on the wide expanse of beach in Gearhart Oregon. A flock of about 100 birds are walking on the fresh wash of water from a recent wave while the sun set creates a golden glow in the background. — As if the heavens are opening up. Many a beautiful sunset on the Oregon Coast.

Part of the beach is actually an Oregon State park, and driving on the sand is allowed, which is another interesting aspect of this area of the coast. Luckily, outside of the 4th of July festivities, there really isn’t much traffic.

Matthew Kessi is barefoot on a sandy beach on the Oregon Coast, wearing a red hoodie and smiling like the shark made out of sand to his left. The shark is created from sand but the sharp teeth are made from various pieces of shells and sand dollars found on the beach. In the background, the loud waves crash onto the beach in Gearhart, Oregon. — You never know what you’ll find on the beach.

The serene nature of the sand and dunes and gentle sunsets make Gearhart the perfect place to slow down, put the phone away and explore with my nieces and nephews. Sometimes it’s all about circle of life with animals like Walter fish (below). Other moments of majestic nature feature blue herons popping their beaks into the water while bald eagles swoop overhead.

A child's palm holds a lifeless small fish while the fingers grasp the fish take. Parts of his red shirt can be seen as well as the sandy beach mixed with bright green seaweed below. — Poor Walter Fish. Great place for exploring with the kids in the family.

1. 4th of July parade

Norman Rockwell visiting the Oregon Coast would’ve loved the dog and pony parade, along with the red white and blue of flags hanging in every yard and banners adorning the few commerce buildings in the one main intersection of town. Locals and visitors alike flare it up in their finest version of patriotic colors and everyone IS the parade.

Later in the evening, around 10pm, there is a fantastic firework show on the beach. Since the area is drivable it is a very popular tailgating location and fantastic people watching. America at celebration. Seaside also displays their version of fireworks, so depending upon your beach location both shows are visible.

A scene in the 4th of July parade that features a 6 feet high beach ball with red and blue letters that spell out 'merica. Next to the ball a man wearing all red, white and blue shirt and shorts and shoes with blue socks gently pushes the ball down the parade route. — There are dogs, there are ponies, and there are ‘Merica balls.

A small girl rides her pink bike with training wheels down the route of the Gearhart, Oregon 4th of July parade. She's wearing a blue skirt with white stars and a red and white striped shirt with blue angel wings attached. — Fly free…

A family of unicorns walking down the parade route on the 4th of July in Gearhart Oregon. Two of the unicorn costumes are pink with purple manes and a yellow horn, while the other two, shorter unicorns are white with pink manes and silver horns. — Who doesn’t love a few unicorns.

An old style car from the 1930's drives along the parade route in Gearhart, Oregon for the 4th of July celebration. The car is bright red with simulated wood paneling along the sides. The green license plate has white lettering and says Oregon.

A young blond girl wears a headdress with red white and blue stars, as well as a red and white striped sun dress. She's carrying a purple shopping bag that says, "believe." — My niece Jane going at it hard for the candy.

Happy birthday America!

Steak and fish are on the grill, and the kids put their swimsuits on yet again to enjoy the water before dinner. The huge American flag is flying and cocktail hour is upon us. Thank you for reading and may you and yours have a fun and safe holiday.

A slice of Americana on the Oregon Coast

Four of the best summer time activities to experience in Gearhart, Oregon; from a local perspective

Growing up with the Oregon Coast

Summer fun in Gearhart, Oregon