Just north of Florence on Hwy 101, the Heceta Head lighthouse is often referred to as the most photographed lighthouse in the United States, but a search shows several lighthouses claim the same thing. 🙂 All I know is that the proximity of the Sea Lion Caves and the view of the lighthouse from there means A LOT of folks take photographs with cameras or cel phones, even if they never actually visit the lighthouse or the beach below it.
Heceta Head Lighthouse State Scenic Viewpoint
The Heceta Head Lighthouse State Scenic Viewpoint is easily one of the most popular areas in the Oregon State Parks system on the coast. We were lucky that we arrived while there were still parking spaces available in the main parking lot. By the time we finished getting our gear out of the Jeep, we had turned away multiple drivers wanting our spot and only the overflow area by the bridge had any parking left. A day use parking fee of $5 is required for this viewpoint.
From the parking lot, it is a .5 mile trek up a mostly paved/packed down trail to the lighthouse. Plenty to see along the way, like this photo or the next one.
Currently, you cannot go inside the lighthouse due to maintenance, but the outside is still pretty spectacular.
Most of the crowd visiting the lighthouse was watching the gray whale down below, so we got a few seconds to take pictures without other folks. 🙂
There’s a trail behind the lighthouse, so we took the trail to get a better viewpoint.
Oregon coast is stunningly beautiful and all the lighthouses just add more charm to it
All the lighthouses are amazing on the Oregon coast. We try to see lighthouses in other areas, but are always drawn back to Oregon.