Cape Meares State Scenic Viewpoint

Laid back start to the day - run along the beach & back for brekkie. Heading up to Cape Meares Lighthouse & wildlife reserve - going to be a misty one again so waterproofs to hand. A world away from walks in the South West but bizarrely we had more rain there than in Oregon. Parked up at the lighthouse area first and ambled down - plenty of info about the local wildlife - most of which had passed through prior to August. Still a few gobby birds could be heard. For once bins had been remembered so Liz was scouring the surroundings for anything of interest. The lighthouse is, apparently, the shortest in Oregon but is one of only 2 to have an 8 faced mirror crafted in France. It's a special little lighthouse in a nutshell. Back up the hill to the Octopus tree - a tree shaped like an octopus & it kind of was but no-one knows quite why it turned out that way. Drove back to the main trailhead and walked down to the big spruce - no explanation needed. Quietness would have been nice though - 2 overly loud families were dominating the surroundings - singing songs for gods sake - how dare they!
It was indeed a big spruce - apparently 750 - 800 years old.
Decided to try & make it down to Cape Meares beach - a 2 mile hike should thin out the noisy masses. It did but with the thick mists & forest, views were limited and it was pretty moist under foot. Made it to where the forest thinned and offered some measure of views. Headed back for lunch at The Blue Agate cafe back at base camp. Epic crab & shrimp sarnie with seafood chowder, Liz had an equally monstrous fish and chips. Light tea tonight me thinks.Read more