Pets allowed
Allowed
Elevation Gain
400.00 ft (121.92 m)
Trail type
There-and-back
Distance
2.00 mi (3.22 km)
Please respect the outdoors by practicing Leave No Trace. Learn more about how to apply the principles of Leave No Trace on your next outdoor adventure here.

Wildlife refuges and preserves offer a tremendous opportunity to step back in time and see a place as it may have appeared hundreds of years earlier.  Cape Meares offers those opportunities in abundance, and they are just a short hike from the entrance at the parking area.

Some 500 years before Captain Cook first saw the Oregon Coast and gave an English name to Cape Foulweather, a humble Sitka spruce began to grow in the shade of the surrounding foliage.  This spruce was around 600 years old when Oregon became a state on Valentine’s Day in 1859.  Today, Big Spruce is Oregon's largest Sitka spruce, and at 9,030 cubic feet it's the 10th largest spruce in the world when measured by volume.  To see it, take the short hike to the left as the trail forks just outside the parking area.

The pleasures of the refuge don't stop there.  Continue down the trail as it winds through more of the coastal old-growth, and keep your eyes and ears alert for wildlife. Listen for deer and elk in the woods, and as you walk along the beach look for murres and the occasional puffin.  High tide definitely limits your options as you near the beach, so plan around it if you want to spend any time on the shore.

Once you catch your breath after the climb back to your car, continue down the road to the Cape Meares State Park, where there are excellent opportunities to view more of the wildlife from the headlands.  If you are visiting in the spring, watch for local Peregrine Falcons that maintain an eyrie on the seaside cliffs.

Logistics + Planning

Preferable season(s)

Winter
Spring
Summer
Fall

Congestion

Low

Parking Pass

Not Required

Pros

Big Spruce historic tree. Lush costal forest. Beach access at low tide.

Cons

Steep return from the beach. Trail is washed out in sections. High tide prevents beach access.

Trailhead Elevation

436.00 ft (132.89 m)

Features

Historically significant
Big vistas
Old-growth forest

Location

Nearby Lodging + Camping

Comments

01/02/2016
January 02, 2016. Cape Mears Loop Road is closed due to a slide just below the trailhead. But if you come from the south end or Oceanside end (it is a "loop"), it will take you right to the trailhead. Whale activity today. Rainbows on the surf spray. And sun!

Not sure how long the the loop road will be closed coming from the north side.
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