#47 of 79 · coastal
Oregon Coast Highway
Cannon Beach, Oregon → Newport
180 km · May – Oct · Easy
US 101 where the spruce meets a hard Pacific. Haystack Rock, headlands, bridges, and fog that makes the cliffs taller. A coast that does not perform.
Viewpoints
Haystack Rock
Cannon Beach at an outgoing tide. The town is the start, not the day.
2 km
8 m
Cape Perpetua
The headland. A short climb, the whole coast laid out.
140 km
240 m
Heceta Head
The light. Pull off before the bridge, not on it.
155 km
60 m
- Road
- Two-lane, good, slow through towns. Summer fog, winter storms, slides after rain. The Three Capes loop is a worthwhile detour off 101.
Tips
- 01
Fog is the weather
A clear afternoon is a gift. Do not wait for one.
- 02
Leave 101 once
Three Capes or the Perpetua spur. The highway is the spine, not every view.
From the road
2 notes
Field reports from people who have driven this route.
Driven this road? Join as a driver to leave a note from the road.
Nate H.
Sep 2025
Cannon Beach in fog so thick Haystack was a rumour. Cape Perpetua opened for twenty minutes of sun. Heceta at four. 101 is slow. That is the job.
Mira J.
Jun 2025
Left 101 for Three Capes. That was the day. Newport at dusk, the bridge lit. Do not treat Cannon to Newport as a transit — it is the coast.
