Yaquina Bay State Park & Lighthouse
Sitting atop a bluff at the mouth of the Yaquina River, the historic Yaquina Bay Lighthouse is believed to be the oldest building in Newport, Oregon. It is the only wooden lighthouse on the Oregon Coast, and the only one with living quarters attached. It was only lit from 1871 to 1874 before the brighter Yaquina Head Lighthouse replaced it. But, in 1996 it was re-lit and recognized as a privately maintained aid to navigation by the U.S. Coast Guard. It is the second-oldest standing lighthouse on the Oregon coast.
The lighthouse is the earliest aid to navigation, standing within the range of the first recorded landfall made from a ship to the shores of the Pacific Northwest. Captain James Cook made this landfall on March 7, 1778. At noon he named Cape Foulweather. On account of the heavy weather, he was compelled to stand out at sea at night and only approach the land in the afternoon so that he was unable to find any harbor along the Oregon Coast. News of Cooks voyage to the Pacific Northwest stimulated the American interest in this region and aroused in Thomas Jefferson an interest that led to the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and the dispatch of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
Oregon Coast Sights
North & South Jetty
Yaquina Head Lighthouse
Yaquina Bay Bridge
Picnic Area
Lookout tower