Hiking expert and travel guidebook author Adam Sawyer shares his choices for the best hikes on Oregon’s Tillamook Coast. From a thigh-pumping trek to the top of Neahkahnie Mountain to a leisurely stroll through Kilchis Point Reserve, hikers will find the trail just right for their adventure in this 90-page guide. Order yours at today here.
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Neahkahnie Mountain
This thigh-thumping hike starts at Oswald West State Park (look for hiker-symbol between milepost 41-42 on Highway 101), but rewards you with a breath-taking view of the long stretch of beach below near Manzanita.
Munson Creek Falls
Tillamook’s perhaps shortest hike (at just one-quarter mile) takes you to its tallest waterfall, at 319 feet. Go in the rainy season when the falls are gushing and ferns are dripping with dew. Located seven miles south of Tillamook.
Kings Mountain
Five miles of rugged trail with a 2,500-foot gain in elevation (and some of it steep), this hike starts at a trail head off the Wilson River Highway (Highway 6, milepost 25). From the summit, take in the awe of the Lester Creek Valley.
Nestucca Spit
Start at the Bob Straub State Park Trailhead in Pacific City (off Sunset Drive) and walk across the dunes towards the ocean. At spit’s end, harbor seals and fishermen vie for the Nestucca River’s legendary salmon and steelhead.
Take the short jaunt to the lighthouse or Octopus Tree (at the end of the Cape Meares Loop), or lace up your boots and hike the 885-foot trail down to the beach, passing by the 144-foot tall Big Spruce that’s 4-feet in diameter.
Cape Lookout
The 5-plus mile round-trip trail offers one of the best whale-watching perches on the Oregon Coast. Trail starts out flat, then drops slightly toward the tip of the cape, with steep cliffs. The Trailhead is 8 miles south of Netarts.
The hike up the sandy, 230-foot dune of Cape Kiwanda in Pacific City is relatively easy, and it rewards with views of dory launches and landings, and crashing waves aloft with surfers. Coming down is easy – just slide on your butt.
Mt. Hebo
The tallest peak in the Coast Range, a hike up this mountain starts at Hebo Lake Campground. Look for Indian Trail. You’ll pass through two forest meadows before reaching the peak and a glimpse of the ocean.