Oregon Coast beta

[Garbowski]

Planning to meet up with an old buddy and his family near Bandon OR in a couple weeks. There will be 4 kids under 10, youngest is 4. We are renting a big AirBNB on the beach, figured goofing on the sand will occupy most of our time but wondering if there are any mag recs (the gold standard) for things to do/see in the area (and for my trip down from Seattle- figured we'd break it up overnight.) Thanks!

[::: :::]

this was in the paper the other day...not sure how applicable to your date (sites listed are all north of Bandon), but maybe of interest for tidepool-type exploring (timing-wise) on the way down (?)...

https://expo.oregonlive.com/life-and...is-summer.html

https://expo.oregonlive.com/life-and..._on_the_o.html

[plugboots]

Maybe KQ can google: "things to do on the Oregon coast" for you.

[4matic]

The wildlife safari in Bandon is awesome for kids and adults. Pet a tiger!
https://www.westcoastgameparksafari.com/

[Danno]

Planning to meet up with an old buddy and his family near Bandon OR in a couple weeks. There will be 4 kids under 10, youngest is 4. We are renting a big AirBNB on the beach, figured goofing on the sand will occupy most of our time but wondering if there are any mag recs (the gold standard) for things to do/see in the area (and for my trip down from Seattle- figured we'd break it up overnight.) Thanks!

I spent a bunch of time in Bandon with my then 4 year old, about 4 years ago. I started a thread, look for that. And listen to any recommendations Buster made (or makes in this thread), because almost all of his advice was $.

• Washed Ashore is a museum/non-profit in town that was very cool.
• We went crabbing while there, you can rent the "equipment" in town. Any crab that is big enough to keep you can cook yourself, or bring it the little place on the beach (Tony's?) and they will cook it for you. Was really fun for my kiddo.
• We also went hunting for mussels on the beach, along the jetty. Don't remember the rules or the "how" but it shouldn't be hard to figure out. Cooked them up. That too was very cool for the kiddo.
• Not too far away (maybe an hour or two?), I think, was some wild safari place that was cool for the kid (edit: not the one posted above, but this one: https://wildlifesafari.net/. No recollection of why we didn't do the one posted above.).
• Redwoods aren't that far away for a day trip, if your kids have never seen them.
• The beach just north of town is great, goes for miles.

I'll see if I can remember anything more.

[fatnslow]

Where on I-5 are you planning on cutting over to the coast ? That will determine where and what you should attack on 101. My brother took his 5yo daughter to Wildlife safari recently and she loved it. Keep in mind it's not actually on the coast, closer to Roseburg than Bandon. Once you get to the southern Oregon coast you can just pick your own private beach, not too many people down there. Pick low tide and ask around for the best, closet tide pools and let the kids explore. If you're a golfer Bandon Dunes courses are world class if you can sneak out for a round.

[Buster Highmen]

An itinerary we used to do is to get off I-5 @Anlauf and get on 38 go through Drain, stop at the Elkton winery for snacks and stocking up on pinot noir.

Continue on 38 along the Umpqua river to the Dean Creek Elk viewing area. There's 2 different herds, always visible from 38.

Head South on 101 to Bandon, take your pick of stops along the way.

Day trip/gourmando dinner:

If your kids are reasonably civil, make a dinner reservation at Anna's By The Sea. It's a tiny fine dining spot run by this madman, Peter Dower, who makes unbelievably good food with one of the best wine lists I have ever seen. Great duck breast, steaks, salmon, local cheeses, his own garden for salad greens & veggies, scallops or shrimp. Memorable.

Head South from Bandon, check out Cape Blanco, easy walking, really windy usually. For more invigorating hike, go to Humbug state park, just a little further south from Blanco. Continuing further South, go through Gold Beach, down to Pistol River beach. Normally really windy there too, but pleasantly empty, lots of play room, cool estuary features and sand dunes. Beach horseback rides are available at Hawks Rest.

Go back to Gold Beach. Eat at Anna's By The Sea. Seriously.

You could just rip down 101 to just before Crescent City and cut off onto 199 up to the Hiouchi Info Center. Either ask there for directions to get to Stout Grove. Really nice, uncrowded redwoods grove.

From Gold Beach, there's obvious beaches, but you can also take a jet boat up the Rogue. Some are quick trips, others for lunch at one of the upriver lodges or an overnighter. The Rogue has a lot of great history. Don't know what fishing season will be on, but it's known for summer steelhead and salmon.

My kids in one of the stumps at the Stout Grove:

[Buster Highmen]

On the way, Oswald West is the classic on Oregon on 101, try Manzanita, it's a little less crowded than Cannon Beach. Too many things to do and see going South from there.

We used to cut over off I-5 at Longview and take the windy roads down through Mist to pick up 26 and head West from there.

Driving 101 all that way from Cannon Beach is a long, long day.

[old goat]

We drove from Sacramento to Seattle taking 1 to 101 the whole way--beautiful drive through Oregon. I'd stay of I5 if you have the time.
Don't speed on 101 with out of state plates. For that matter don't drive the speed limit, no more than 5 under. I got a ticket for doing 35 in a school zone. On a Saturday. Some of the little towns have stop lights with no cross streets, apparently so that the old folks living there can stop and catch their breath driving through town.

[KQ]

Don't be these people. If you go walking on the beach, esp where there are high cliff walls, carry a tide table. This is a phobia or mine <shudder> It can happen so easily when you're out strolling enjoying the day and not thinking about the water/cliffs.

Coast Guard crew rescues couple trapped by high tide at Oregon beach

[billyk]

If you golf, there’s a pretty good course nearby, Bandon Dunes. They also have a par 3 course that’s not too expensive, and worth playing if you don’t have much time or money.

Also, you could swing over to Crater Lake on the way back.

[Buster Highmen]

Also, you could swing over to Crater Lake on the way back.

The road from Roseburg along the Umpqua is gorgeous, around Steamboat, Diamond Lake and Crater Lake. Places to stay are around Glide and Steamboat.

The Steamboat Inn has a fantastic dinner and cool cabins and rooms along the river. Steamboat Creek (closed to fishing) is super cool. Toketee Falls right there is beautiful as is the river all along the Steamboat Inn.

[KQ]

Maybe KQ can google: "things to do on the Oregon coast" for you.

Don't think I haven't considered starting an Oregon thread.

Actually.... I've thought it might be cool to have a thread of every state.

[4matic]

For an easy coastal walk, Bandon Dunes Golf Resort carved a path through the gorse out to the beach. Less than half mile walk to perfect beach with views of three courses. You walk right down hole one of Pacific Trails. Great place for lunch or dinner too.

[MakersTeleMark]

I've thought it might be cool to have a thread of every state.

I nominate iceman for the CT one.

[Gcooker]

There's a really cool forest service road from Gold Beach to Grant's Pass, mind you it was years ago that I drove it and have no idea it's current condition. Made for a nice change of pace to access Central OR.

[::: :::]

this was also in the paper this week
https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2019...y-weekend.html

[fatnslow]

There's a really cool forest service road from Gold Beach to Grant's Pass, mind you it was years ago that I drove it and have no idea it's current condition. Made for a nice change of pace to access Central OR.

That might be the road a guy died during Thanksgiving time awhile back follwing his gps trying to cut over from I5 to the coast.

[OregonDead]

I haven’t checked out the new cheese factory yet. Used to be the thing to do when passing through (eating fresh cheese curds aka squeaky cheese) but then it got torn down.
I’ve only passed through so given the chance I’d just zip right down there and spend all my time exploring that area.

[gravitylover]

If you're driving a decent 4x4 get a beach permit and drive the beach from Lakeside to Coos Bay. It's a 16 mile stretch on the beach and you can get an additional 4 if you go past the southern entrance to the end by the Coos Bay inlet. I did it back in '94 in my Jeep and spent the night about halfway out, it was fantastic.

[RootSkier]

I nominate iceman for the CT one.

And the NC one.

[Danno]

Does this annoy anyone else? Someone starts a thread seeking info, gets lots of great info, and doesn't bother to even acknowledge the replies? Happens a fair amount, and it just seems pretty rude to me.

[plugboots]

^^^ Yup. Once I even bumped asking for an update. Crickets.

[dan_pdx]

If you golf, there’s a pretty good course nearby, Bandon Dunes. They also have a par 3 course that’s not too expensive, and worth playing if you don’t have much time or money.

Not a golfer, but I've had some travel industry contacts mention to me that Bandon Dunes is better than "pretty good". From Wikipedia: "Upon its opening, Golf Odyssey, the preeminent newsletter devoted to golf travel, named Bandon Dunes, The Best Place on the Planet for Golf."

Last time I was through Bandon, (15ish years ago), commercial fishermen did some retail sales at the docks -- if you're going to have cooking facilities, might be fun to buy / cook some really fresh fish. Or maybe look for a deep sea fishing trip?

[billyk]

Not a golfer, but I've had some travel industry contacts mention to me that Bandon Dunes is better than "pretty good". From Wikipedia: "Upon its opening, Golf Odyssey, the preeminent newsletter devoted to golf travel, named Bandon Dunes, The Best Place on the Planet for Golf."

Last time I was through Bandon, (15ish years ago), commercial fishermen did some retail sales at the docks -- if you're going to have cooking facilities, might be fun to buy / cook some really fresh fish. Or maybe look for a deep sea fishing trip?

As 4matic said, they have a nice set of hiking trails overlooking Bandon Dunes that are open to the public. Very scenic, and doesn’t require any golf ability. There are signs in the parking lots pointing out the trails. Here’s more info:
https://www.bandondunesgolf.com/blog...s-bandon-dunes