Harris Beach State Park: Brookings, OR
Top Image: One of many nice sunsets at Harris Beach.
by M. D. Vaden of Oregon
If you enjoy forests, see my page about Titan Redwoods - Maybe this will inspire you to explore some trails nearby. These are very close to Harris Beach State Park: The Grove of Titans & Atlas Grove
We are not involved with reservations. This is a thumbs-up page. Reservation number and link are below. Harris Beach State Park is on par with my other favorite, Nehalem Bay State Park. Harris Beach State Park has fine scenery, and campsites on the beach side of A loop have ocean views. This is near the Oregon border and Redwood Forests of Oregon & California. The top left image was taken while standing in an A loop campsite. To sample the ocean scenery, look for Harris Beach photos and captions in my Oregon Coast Album.
For local hiking, consider Jedediah Smith redwoods, about 25 miles south. There is a nice trail with Oregon redwoods nearby, but the most dramatic redwood trails, begin just over the border about 1/2 hour to the south. See my album Redwood Forest.
Harris Beach was named after Scottish pioneer George Harris who settled there in the 1880s to raise sheep and cattle. The park offers sandy beaches with eroded sea stacks, and it' beauty changes with the seasons. Many people are drawn to the green and fragrant spring (download a brochure about common area plants). Summer brings warm days and sunlit beaches. Fall brings clear cool days and awesome sunsets. Wildlife viewing opportunities are abundant - download brochure about area animals - with gray whales on their winter and spring migrations.
Brookings Harbor is a nice community - more or less a full service small city providing Harris Beach State Park with stores and restaurants. GPS link to intitiate Google Earth > 42.065982, -124.304967
Park Brochure or Campground Map
36 full hookup, 50 electrical, 63 tent (maximum site 50 feet, cable TV hookups in selected campsites); 6 yurts; hiker/biker camp. For information only, call the park office at 541 - 469-2021. To make reservations, call...
Reserve @ 1-800-452-5687 / Reservation Link
Here are a few basics about Harris Beach State Park campground and the vicinity. And keep in mind that A-loop may be hard to reserve in advance for one of the limited ocean view campsites on the ocean side of the campground A-loop is first come first serve in winter.
The big Redwoods are very close. Here's a casual video I made to share with other arborists who hadn't visited the redwoods yet - Video: Jedediah Smith Redwoods
Just a few miles up Hy. 199 from Jedediah Smith Redwoods, is a lovely canyon cut by Smith River, which also flows through the forest.
Also in the Redwoods album link above, is the Darlingtonia plant known as Cobra Lily or Pitcher Plant - available to see near mile marker 18 of Hy. 199. Look for signs to the botanical trail.
Check out Lone Ranch Beach a few miles north. If you need some clothing, or basic household items, Fred Meyer may be your best bet. I've found nice shirts and shoes there myself. Groceries included. Ray's grocery store is smaller, but nicely stocked - along with videos. Next to Ray's, is a Java stand for coffee in the parking lot, a video store, and a liquor store.
On the south side of the bridge that crosses the Chetco River at Highway 101, a road turns off toward the ocean harbor waterfront. Down there, is fine dining at Smuggler's Cove restaurant - probably the best Prime Rib steak that I've ever had. A smaller place, called The Hungry Clam, had excellent Fish & Chips.
It was nice to find a good Pizza restaraunt - Zola's Pizzaria, referred by The Hungry Clam. Zola's Pizzaria is close to the Chetco River on Lower Harbor Drive. Phone and hours on Zola's website.
There is one small movie theater, a few other restaraunts, taverns and stores in the town, but it's a fairly "low key" atmostphere in the town - not buzzing like Seaside. The Ace Hardware store is substantial for hardware needs: not a rinky dink outfit. If you need tweak some RV or camp equipment, they may have something to do the job.
As for computer wireless, you can access it from the Rest Area across Hy. 101 from the park, as well as in part of Harris Beach State Park, at the end nearer the rest area. The wireless internet ranges in cost, but is relatively inexpensive.
There are a few gift shops, and studios of artist sculptors along Highway 101. Also, there is a veterinarian on the main highway in case you have a pet emergency.
About 1/2 hour north, you may enjoy a jet boat tour up the Rogue River, from Gold Beach. About 1/2 hour south, you will begin to find some very large redwoods. Stout Grove in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park has some big trees, but the Simpson Reed Discovery Trail along Hy. 199, a few miles east of Crescent City, has some remarkable trees as well as enormous logs and stumps loaded with vegetation.
A last word about Brookings - its so close to the park, that you have an easy choice between total campfire and campstove cooking, or opting to bring back meals from town. Especially if you are just arriving and need a quick meal as you prepare to set-up camp.
There are well-known fast food places like KFC, Taco Bell and Subway within a minute of each other. If you need tire repair, Les Schwab, one of the Pacific Northwest's best, is close by.