Cape Perpetua is a large forested headland projecting into the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the conti ...

on the central

Oregon Coast The Oregon Coast is a coastal region of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to its west and the Oregon Coast Range to the east, and stretches approximately from the California state border in the south to the Colum ...

in Lincoln County,

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

. The land is managed by the

United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 United States National Forest, national forests and 20 United States Nationa ...

as part of the

Siuslaw National Forest The Siuslaw National Forest ( ) is a national forest in western Oregon in the United States. Established in 1908, the Siuslaw is made up of a wide variety of ecosystems, ranging from coastal forests to sand dunes. Geography The Siuslaw Nati ...

Location

Cape Perpetua is located about south of

Yachats, Oregon Yachats ( ) is a small coastal city in the southernmost area of Lincoln County, Oregon, United States. According to ''Oregon Geographic Names'', the name comes from the Siletz language and means "dark water at the foot of the mountain". There is ...

, along

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

. It is a typical

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Thou ...

headland, forming a high steep bluff above the ocean. At its highest point, Cape Perpetua rises to over above sea level. From its crest, an observer can see of Oregon coastline and as far as out to sea on a clear day.Cape Perpetua Scenic Area
USDA Forest Service, Siuslaw National Forest,

History

For at least 6,000 years, Native Americans hunted for mussels, crabs, sea urchins, and clams along the coast near Cape Perpetua. Cape Perpetua was part of the southern territory of the Alsea people. In their language the Cape was named Halqaik, which might mean something like 'exposed place'. Evidence of their lives can still be found in the huge piles of discarded mussel shells that lie along the shore near the Cape Perpetua Visitor Center.Sullivan, William L., ''Hiking Oregon's History'', Navillus Press, Eugene, Oregon, 2000. The cape was named by Captain James Cook on March 7, 1778, as he searched for the Pacific entrance to a Northwest Passage. Cook named the cape Perpetua because it was discovered on

St. Perpetua Perpetua and Felicity ( la, Perpetua et Felicitas) were Christian martyrs of the 3rd century. Vibia Perpetua was a recently married, well-educated noblewoman, said to have been 22 years old at the time of her death, and mother of an infant son s ...

's Day."Yachats History"
City of Yachats, Lincoln County, Oregon, January 12, 2008. The area became part of the

in 1908. In 1914, the

cut a narrow road into the cliff around Cape Perpetua and constructed a wooden bridge across the Yachats River, opening travel between the small community of Yachats and

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...

to the south. The wooden bridge was replaced in 1926 with a steel structure. The Cape Perpetua section of the Roosevelt Memorial Highway (now

Highway 101 Highway 101 was an American country music band founded in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. The initial lineup consisted of Paulette Carlson (lead vocals), Jack Daniels (guitar), Curtis Stone (bass guitar, vocals), and Scott "Cactus" Moser (drum ...

) was built in the 1930s. In 1933, a

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a ...

(CCC) camp was built at the foot of the cape just north of Cape Creek, near where the Cape Perpetua Visitor Center is located today. The CCC constructed the Cape Perpetua campground, a network of trails, and the West Shelter observation point near the top of the cape. During World War II, the West Shelter observation point was used as a coastal watch station, and a large coastal defense gun was temporarily installed. An SCR-270B radar was installed at an undetermined location to take advantage of the height of the promontory. The Cape Perpetua Shelter and Parapet were listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1989.

Cape Perpetua Scenic Area

The Forest Service created the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area and built the Cape Perpetua Visitor Center in the 1960s to highlight the unique beauty of the central

. The scenic area includes of

old growth An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

spruce,

Douglas fir The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Oregon pine, and Columbian pine. There are three v ...

, and

western hemlock ''Tsuga heterophylla'', the western hemlock or western hemlock-spruce, is a species of hemlock native to the west coast of North America, with its northwestern limit on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, and its southeastern limit in northern Sonoma ...

. Camping, picnicking, hiking, sightseeing, whale watching, and a visitor center with daily programs are all available within the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area. There are 26 miles (42 km) of interconnected hiking trails in old growth forests that lead to Pacific Ocean tide pools. One of the trails leads to a 600-year-old giant

Sitka spruce ''Picea sitchensis'', the Sitka spruce, is a large, coniferous, evergreen tree growing to almost tall, with a trunk diameter at breast height that can exceed 5 m (16 ft). It is by far the largest species of spruce and the fifth-lar ...

known as the ''Silent Sentinel of the Siuslaw''. This tree stands more than high, and has a circumference at its base. On September 15, 2007, this ancient spruce was designated an

Oregon Heritage Tree Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. ...

by the State of Oregon to recognize its exceptional age and size and ensure its protection. Along the Cape Perpetua coastline, there are several unique features as well. The

Devils Churn Devils Churn is a narrow inlet of the Pacific Ocean in Lincoln County, Oregon, United States, south of Yachats. It is located in the Siuslaw National Forest and is accessible via the Restless Waters trail from the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area visitor' ...

is a long crack in the coastal rock that fills with each ocean wave, occasionally exploding as incoming and outgoing waves collide. The Spouting Horn at Cook's Chasm and Thor's Well on the plateau nearby are both salt water fountains driven by the power of the ocean tide.Cook’s Chasm – Spouting Horn & Thor’s Well
/ref> Thor's Well is at . Spouting Horn is at . Both Thor's Well and Spouting Horn are best seen approximately an hour before high tide to an hour after high tide. How spectacular the sights are is a function of the height of the high tide and the direction and size of the swells. The wind can also be a factor. Devil's Churn, Spouting Horn and Thor's Well are popular with visitors; however, all three can be dangerous, especially at high tide and during winter storms. The Cape Perpetua Visitor Center is located two miles (3 km) south of Yachats. The visitor center has views of the ocean and coast from its deck. It is also used to watch migrating

gray whale The gray whale (''Eschrichtius robustus''), also known as the grey whale,Britannica Micro.: v. IV, p. 693. gray back whale, Pacific gray whale, Korean gray whale, or California gray whale, is a baleen whale that migrates between feeding and bre ...

s. The visitor center has natural history and cultural exhibits, an interactive children's science area, a theater with nature films, and a bookstore. An SCR-270B radar was installed on the site in 1943 in response to the

bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechanica ...

of Mt. Emily, Brookings, Oregon.

References

External links

Cape Perpetua Visitor CenterSiuslaw National Forest
{{Authority control 1933 establishments in Oregon Civilian Conservation Corps in Oregon Perpetua Hiking trails in Oregon Landforms of Lincoln County, Oregon National Register of Historic Places in Lincoln County, Oregon Oregon Coast Protected areas of Lincoln County, Oregon Protected areas of Oregon Siuslaw National Forest Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Oregon Nature centers in Oregon

Location

History

Cape Perpetua Scenic Area

See also

References

External links