Manzanita is what Cannon Beach was before Cannon Beach became a destination: seven miles of hard-packed sand, a village of a few hundred people, and a 1,600-foot headland standing at the north end of the beach. It is twenty minutes down Highway 101 from the crowds and it feels like considerably more.
The things to do in Manzanita, Oregon divide cleanly into the beach, the mountain behind it, the bay south of it, and the drive that takes you down to Pacific City.
Hike Neahkahnie Mountain
The best hike on this stretch of coast. The south trailhead is less than ten minutes from town, and it is about 3.4 miles round trip with roughly 1,000 feet of climbing to a summit at 1,631 feet. From the top you look straight down on Manzanita, the full seven-mile beach, Nehalem Bay and open Pacific.
It is a moderate hike rather than a hard one and it is fine with older kids and dogs. Go on a clear day or do not go: in fog the summit is a wall of gray and the whole point is the view.
Walk the beach
Seven miles of it, and the sand is hard-packed enough to walk or ride a bike on for a long way. It is the least crowded major beach on the north Oregon coast, which is the reason people who know it keep coming back.
Two things to respect. Sneaker waves are real on this coast and they kill people every year, so never turn your back on the water. And logs on the sand roll when a wave lifts them, so do not sit on them.
Nehalem Bay State Park
The sand spit south of town, with a campground, a horse camp, an airstrip and about 1.5 miles of beach access. The bay side is the calm water: paddleboards and kayaks, crabbing, harbor seals, and herons in the estuary. If the ocean is too rough to get on, the bay usually is not.
Drive the Three Capes Scenic Loop
About 40 miles running south from Tillamook and taking in three headlands, and it is the day trip from Manzanita. Cape Meares has a short walk to the lighthouse and the Octopus Tree. Cape Lookout has a 4.7-mile round trip trail out along a ridge that ends 400 feet above the water, and it is one of the better whale-watching spots on the coast in migration season. Cape Kiwanda is the last one.
Pacific City and Cape Kiwanda
Cape Kiwanda is the sandstone headland at Pacific City with the enormous dune beside it. The dune climb is short, steep and much harder than it looks, and the view from the top over Haystack Rock offshore is what people come for.
Pacific City is also the last place in the country where dory boats are launched straight off the beach through the surf. If you are on the sand in the morning during the season you will see it happen. Pelican Brewing sits right on the beach, which is where most people end up afterward.
Oswald West State Park
Just north of Manzanita, and it holds Short Sand Beach, a cove reached by a half-mile walk through rainforest. It is the local surf break and it is protected enough to be swimmable by Oregon standards, which still means cold. The Cape Falcon trail runs out from the same parking area for about 5 miles round trip to a headland view.
When to go
September is the best month on the Oregon coast and it is not particularly close: the summer fog has burned off, the crowds are gone, and it is the clearest stretch of the year. August is warm and busy. Winter is storm season, which some people come for on purpose, and it is genuinely dramatic. Spring is wet.
Whale migration runs roughly late December through January going south, and March through June going north.
How many days do you need?
Two nights covers Neahkahnie, the beach and the bay. Three lets you do the Three Capes drive down to Pacific City properly rather than as a rush.
Things to Do in Manzanita, Oregon FAQs
Quieter, cheaper and with a longer beach. Cannon Beach has more restaurants, more galleries and Haystack Rock. If you are coming for the beach and a hike, Manzanita. If you want a town to wander in the evening, Cannon Beach.
Moderate. From the south trailhead it is about 3.4 miles round trip with roughly 1,000 feet of climbing to a 1,631-foot summit. Most reasonably fit people manage it in under two hours. Skip it in fog, because the view is the entire reason to go up.
About an hour and fifteen minutes south, or longer if you take the Three Capes Scenic Loop, which is the better way to do it. Treat it as a day trip rather than a stop.
You can go in, and people do, but the Pacific here stays cold year round and most people wear a wetsuit. Sneaker waves are a genuine hazard on this coast, so do not turn your back on the water and keep children well up the sand.
September. The summer fog has cleared, the crowds have gone home and it is the most reliably clear month of the year. Winter storm watching is the other good answer if you want the coast at its most dramatic.
