Camping at Beachside & Exploring Cape Perpetua’s Rocky Coastline

During our three-day camping trip at Beachside, we relaxed at the sandy beach and took a short drive to explore Cape Perpetua’s coastline features.

Trip planning resources

• Beachside State Recreation Site & Campground
• Siuslaw National Forest: Cape Perpetua Scenic Area

Beachside campground

I’ve been recovering from a long bout of sciatica, so this was my first outing in over 2 months. While I’m not able to hike again quite yet, I had a great time camping and relaxing at the coast. Instead of camping in a tent, I slept in my Honda CR-V camper.

Beachside campground

I love my Honda CR-V camper!

the campground is right next to the beach

sunset on the beach at low tide

Views from Cape Perpetua

On the first night, we drove to the top of Cape Perpetua for a short hike to views down the coastline.

view through the trees

at the top of Cape Perpetua

Cape Perpetua stone shelter built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s

The Dramatic Coastline of Cape Perpetua

The next day, we returned to Cape Perpetua to explore the area at high tide. Spouting Horn and Thor’s Well were on fine display with the waves crashing onto the rocks.

I sat on a bench and watched the waves while my friends explored the area

crashing waves on the rocks are mesmerizing

Thor’s Well

Beachside Beach

Back at camp, I spent a couple of hours on the beach shooting photos at sunset. I followed the sea gulls around and captured two who were “cawing” to each other in courtship.

When I turned around to head back to camp, the full moon was rising. Wow!