My favorite meal of the day is breakfast and I like to eat it at a local diner when in smaller towns, such as Seaside. Normally this works well and I find interesting places that offer a local twist on the traditional breakfast fare. Today, however, was an exception. The cafe looked great and there was a fire burning in the fireplace but the food was poor, with extremely salty potatoes and dry sausage, the service was almost non-existent as the waitresses literally disappeared for 10 or 15 minutes at a time and the check was much bigger than it had any right to be. Apart from that, I liked Seaside. It is Oregon’s oldest beach town, and has many traditional features that are not seen elsewhere in the area, so I spent a while walking along the promenade, checking out the “famous” turnaround at the beach (see photo on the map) and enjoying the warm sun and gentle Pacific breeze before getting on my way.

The promenade and view at SeasideThe weather forecast called for showers but  it was fairly sunny for most of the day. However, the sun was not strong enough to burn off a persistent ocean mist – leading to poor visibility all day as evident in the photos.

The route hugged the coast almost all of the way from Seaside to Lincoln City and there were numerous state parks and viewpoints along the way. For the map and video click here. The one issue I encountered was that the Three Cape Scenic Loop that normally connects three state parks was closed at Cape Meare and I had to retrace my path but, otherwise, the route was scenic most of the way and included beaches, rugged coastline, calm waters and fishing boats, wildlife, forests and small communities. If only the air had been clear it would have been perfect.

Views from Ecola State Park.

One feature of the Pacific coast is the number of huge rocks that lie a mile or so off the coast. Here are some at Cannon Beach.and another at Kiwanda, just north of Lincoln City.

The wildlife on the wide, flat beaches
and the rugged coastline that Oregon is known for.