Cape Meares: Oregon’s Shortest Lighthouse & Largest Spruce Tree

Join us at Cape Meares, a headland on the Oregon Coast that boasts a coastal rainforest with Oregon’s largest Sitka Spruce tree and the mysterious “Octopus Tree.”

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This isn’t only a place of giant trees, but also of wild, windswept coast and very small lighthouses. Oregon’s shortest lighthouse is found here! Sea birds nest in the striking sea stacks offshore.

Cape Meares is on the northern Oregon Coast, about an hour and 40 minutes’ drive west of Portland. We visited on a moody February day, and started with the Octopus tree. The Octopus tree is a very short walk from the Cape Meares State Scenic Viewpoint parking lot.

Nobody quite knows what gave the Octopus Tree its bizarre shape, so it’s one of those intriguing mysteries of nature.

Back at the parking area, it’s another short walk out to the Cape Meares lighthouse, Oregon’s shortest lighthouse. Look out to your right for great views and sea birds.

The Cape Meares lighthouse interior and gift shop are closed in the winter, but the outside of the park is open year-round.

On the way back, you can take a different trail to make it a more interesting loop with views of the other side of the Cape Meares headland.

To learn more about the Cape Meares ecology, check out the interpretive displays at the parking area.

So far we’ve been at the Cape Meares State Scenic Viewpoint, but now we’ll head to the adjacent Cape Meares National Wildlife Refuge to see Oregon’s largest spruce tree and take the trail through old-growth forest to the beach. This was my favorite part of visiting Cape Meares. I love all the mist, moss, and giant trees!

The Big Spruce tree itself is estimated at 750 - 800 years old. It’s amazing to picture that it’s been growing here since the 1200s!

The trail down to the beach travels through more fern-and-moss-filled coastal rainforest.

It gets pretty muddy in the rainy season, so pack hiking poles and high-traction shoes if you’re concerned about slipping.

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