Need a spine chilling Halloween Oregon Coast Adventure?

“Haunted Astoria” celebrates its second year for this annual event including… tours of local historic sites, a psychic and paranormal fair at Pier 11, a great classic scary movie at the Historic Liberty Theater, an open mic for ghost stories, a writing contest and special underground tours of the Liberty Theater and the Clatsop County Heritage Museum.

Astoria lodging accommodations include beautiful Victorian style Bed & Breakfast Inns and Hotels with awesome river views… but if you prefer ocean views… Long Beach is just across the bridge (a 10-15min drive) offering miles of sandy beach and plenty of ocean view and ocean front vacation rentals to choose from!

Here is a partial list of the haunted happenings:

Saturday, October 24 Events

• ~Haunted Astoria Tour 3-7 pm various locations
  ~Psychic & Paranormal Fair 3-7pm Pier 11 mall
  ~Film: Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds 7:30pm Liberty Theater
    and following the film:
  ~Open Mic Story Telling at 9:30pm Pier 11 Lounge

 Tour Sites

• ~Heritage Museum
  ~Liberty Theater
  ~Pier 39 – Astoria / Rogue Ales
  ~The Messenger Building at 9th and Astor

For a complete list of details of these scary events coming to Astoria Oregon for Halloween 2009 at OldOregon.com.  Shiver me timbers… see you there!

~ Thanks & have fun AT THE BEACH!

Heceta Head Lighthouse from HWY 101

We have started in the north and we’re working our way south… exploring the Lighthouses of the Oregon Coast. Up to this point our lighthouse tour has included Tillamook Head, Cape Meares, Yaquina Head and the Yaquina Bay lighthouses.

Our next  stop…  “Heceta Head” lighthouse, located between the cities of Yachats & Waldport which are to the north, and Florence to the south. Plenty of  ocean view vacation getaway options can be found between these cities… Yachats offers vacation rentals with views of the beautiful rocky coastline…  Waldport which is close by has beach front & bay view rentals…  Florence offers new bayfront condos…  and be sure to check out this ocean view home Heceta House  if you are traveling with a family.

Heceta Head lighthouse is located in Heceta Head State Park  in a cove, at the mouth of Cape Creek.  The park offers stunning views of the lighthouse with the Pacific Ocean in the background. You will soon see why it’s one of the most photographed lighthouses on the Oregon Coast!

The Heceta Head lighthouse was illuminated in 1894 and sits on the west side of the 1000 foot high Heceta Head.  It stands 205 feet above sea level with its light on top of a 56 foot high tower. With a first order Fresnel lens containing eight panels and 640 prisms 2 inches thick, this lighthouse has the distinction of having the strongest light on the Oregon Coast which can be seen 21 miles out to sea.

The next stop in our adventure… the “Umpqua River” lighthouse located just south of the beautiful city of Reedsport Oregon.

~ Thanks & have fun AT THE BEACH!

Yaquina Bay Lighthouse ~ Photo by Kat Kellner

So far our lighthouse tour has included Tillamook Head, Cape Meares and Yaquina Head lighthouse…  and just in time for Halloween, our next stop is thought to be haunted… Yaquina “Bay” lighthouse.  It’s only a few miles south of the Yaquina “Head” lighthouse… but if you haven’t spent the night in the area yet, here is a cozy ocean front rental for 2 (not haunted) on a private two acre parcel!

The Yaquina Bay lighthouse is located in the Bay State Recreation site on Hwy 101 at the north end of Yaquina Bay Bridge in Newport Oregon. As the second oldest lighthouse on the Oregon coast its service ran only from 1871 to 1874 when it was replaced by the nearby Yaquina Head lighthouse. The light is 161 feet above sea level and only 42 feet above the ground. Its signature light shines brightly with a steady white light from dusk till dawn. The Oregon State Parks department took over the lighthouse and with the help of many people restored this beauty to its original splendor. In 1996 with the help of the U.S. Coast Guard, the lighthouse was re-lit and is used to maintain aid to private navigation for Yaquina Bay. Its many distinctions include being the oldest structure in Newport, the only existing Oregon lighthouse with the living quarters attached and the only wooden lighthouse in Oregon that is still standing. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places… Haunted? You decide!

Now, let’s head south to Florence Oregon for our next lighthouse adventure…

~Thanks & have fun AT THE BEACH!

Yaquina Head Lighthouse Photo by Stuart Seeger

After visiting the Tillamook Head and Cape Meares lighthouses…  head south on Hwy 101 toward Newport Oregon where you’ll find 2 great lighthouses to explore….  For your overnight accommodations, you will want to check out these privately owned Newport vacation rentals and condos.  You can find anything from a one bedroom condo, to a large home big enough for the entire family…  This small beachfront house is even pet friendly!

Your destination is just three miles north of Newport Oregon, where you will find the first of these two lighthouses. The Bureau of Land Management operates the “Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area” where this stunning lighthouse is located. As the tallest lighthouse in Oregon at 93 feet, this tower stands 162 feet above the ocean on a narrow piece of land jutting into the Pacific Ocean.

This lighthouse started life in 1873 as an oil burning fixed white light that was operated from sunset to sunrise seven days a week. Today it is a fully automated Fresnel lens that is powered by a single 1000 watt globe light producing over 130,000 candlepower… For a passing ship to identify a lighthouse, each one has a unique pattern of flashes called a “signature”.  The Yaquina Head lighthouse uses a 2 seconds on, 2 seconds off, 2 seconds on then14 seconds off pattern that operates 24 hours a day.

Yaquina Head Lighthouse… it’s a beautiful sight to see!

Next up located just a few miles to the south near the entrance to Yaquina Bay…  let’s explore the “Yaquina Bay” lighthouse.

~ Thanks & have fun AT THE BEACH!