7 Unexpected Pleasures: Central Oregon Coast

Looking for a place where the sky touches the sea?

Coastal waters at the little town of Yachats, Oregon

Summer is kicking off, and you may be trying to figure out a good spot for a three-day weekend getaway or a vacation. Here’s an idea: the central Oregon coast.

Until recently I had never spent much time there. But after exploring it a bit, I was pleasantly surprised. It is lovely, there are some really good fresh fish places to eat, and the beaches and shoreline aren’t nearly as crowded as you’ll find almost anywhere in coastal California.

Here are seven unexpected pleasures you’ll find there:

1. A Restaurant With Good Views That Has Good Food

Tidal Raves is truly a seafood restaurant worth raving about. It is perched on a cliffside location on Highway 101 just as you enter the beautiful little cove of Depoe Bay.

I was skeptical at first because I never seem to have any luck with touristy restaurants that advertise great views. Nice view, mediocre food—that has been my experience. But Tidal Raves dashed my preconceptions with terrific scenery paired with very tasty, fresh seafood dishes such as this green curry with Pacific rockfish, wild shrimp, Asian vegetables, onions, peppers, and steamed rice.

2. They Are Pulling It Out of the Water, Right There

The closest city to Depoe Bay is Lincoln, which is just to the north on 101. Lincoln draws lots of tourists because it is home to a gambling resort, but also due to its prime spot on the edge of Siletz Bay.

Siletz Bay has a natural land barrier along its western edge that mostly shields it from the mighty winds blowing in from the Pacific. This makes it a prime spot for crabbing. On the beach you will see fishers of crabs throwing out their lines to bring in the catch (pardon my sound effects):

Commercial fishermen and women on the central coast pull fish right out of local waters and then sell it to seafood restaurants like Tidal Raves. This pleasant fellow wasn’t having any of that, however. He and his equally pleasant wife (who was by his side, helping him out) were there to catch a whole bunch and then have a crab feast at home that night.

3. Crab Shacks!

We all owe a big thank you to those brave, hard-working commercial fishermen who take their boats out virtually every day, often into unruly, inhospitable waters, and risk their lives to bring home the catch. Bravo to them!

Because of them, we can enjoy outstanding fresh fish at the South Beach Fish Market. It is close to Newport Harbor, in the city of Newport, at the bridge for the Yaquina River; the Yaquina empties into the ocean there. The harbor is the home of central Oregon’s commercial fishing fleet and other boats from around the Pacific Northwest.

All the locals know “the Fish Market.” It is the best place in the area for take-out or take-home fish. We bought a slab of halibut, cooked it up at our Airbnb, and it was as delicious as any fish I’ve ever had on Oahu or Maui.

4,5,6. Three Reasons to Go to Newport Harbor

Newport Harbor has a few nice features that make it worth a visit.

For me it was the simple pleasure of being able to walk out on the docks where the boats are moored. In the waterfront city where I live, and in many other California marinas, you can’t do that. The docks are off limits to the public. Things are more casual on the Oregon coast, and that is another thing in its favor.

Along the harbor is a memorial walk dedicated to the fishermen who have lost their lives at sea. It covers sea tragedies from past to present.

When you walk along the sidewalk, the names of the men and the dates they died are engraved on markers at your feet. It is shocking to come across two or three markers placed alongside each other on the sidewalk, signifying that these men all succumbed at the same time on the same boat.

Local Ocean is a restaurant not to be missed when you’re at the harbor. It specializes in Oregon fish. Its website says that 80 percent of the fish consumed on the coast is imported. Which means that even in these coastal areas you need to make sure you’re eating at a place such as Local Ocean. It serves the good stuff like this fisherman’s catch roll with Dungeness crab and pink shrimp salad.

7. Yachats: A Village with Crashing Surf and More

No trip to the central Oregon coast would be complete without sampling the simple pleasures of Yachats (pronounced Yah-hots). It is on 101 south of Newport, but much less citified than either Newport or Lincoln.

Yachats is a stuck-in-time sort of village with quaint little shops and pleasant eccentricities. Yachats Mercantile, for instance, sells bread and pastries that are baked fresh that day, alongside plumbing supplies and other hardware.

Arthur Frommer, the travel guru, once put Yachats on his top ten favorite travel spots. It’s less touristy than other places on the central coast because there are no long stretches of sand for beachcombers. It more resembles the rugged shoreline of the Monterey Peninsula or Big Sur: lots of rocks and crashing waves. But there are trails and walkways on the bluffs above shore, if you don’t like scrambling around rocks.

Either way, down by the water or up top, the views are first-rate.

Next time: Tips on places to eat in Portland and a sweet little neighborhood for a stroll.