Ideas for beaches on coast (Medford, Newport: restaurants, shops, beach)

[CitrineRose]

Good morning..I moved to Oregon (Florence) about a month ago and love it! My Mom is coming in for visit from IL Wednesday (must be all the pretty pics I post lol) She asked about swimming in Ocean on her visit I told her here in Florence it is too cold right now, is there anywhere close we could drive to where it might be warm enough to swim at this time of year? If not, she will be fine just walking the shore but with all the wind lately some days I end up eating a lot of sand lol, is there a beach I should take her to that might be a little more "protected" from wind? Would appreciate any thoughts on places...Thanks!

[wolfdog]

I've been on the coast for 26 years, yet I can't think of a good spot. Never have set foot in the water. But I would guess that generally the further south you go, the warmer the water.

[CitrineRose]

knowing my Mom she isn't gonna waste time driving when she can be by the ocean lol

[PNW-type-gal]

Only if by "south" you mean San Diego or Baja. The water generally stays below 60° (year-round) all the way down the Washington and Oregon coasts, finally getting into the 60s south of LA, and the 70s in San Diego during the summer.

https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/dsdt/cwtg/npac.html

[CitrineRose]

That helps PNW Girl...swimming will be out for this visit lol...I am still getting used to driving in OR and yesterday driving to Medford and going through the passes and the summit I thought we might die lol so I am not in a hurry to experience that drive again yet so we will just stay near Florence where I am more comfortable driving lol

[KaaBoom]

Originally Posted by CitrineRose

Good morning..I moved to Oregon (Florence) about a month ago and love it! My Mom is coming in for visit from IL Wednesday (must be all the pretty pics I post lol) She asked about swimming in Ocean on her visit I told her here in Florence it is too cold right now, is there anywhere close we could drive to where it might be warm enough to swim at this time of year? If not, she will be fine just walking the shore but with all the wind lately some days I end up eating a lot of sand lol, is there a beach I should take her to that might be a little more "protected" from wind? Would appreciate any thoughts on places...Thanks!

Try Newport Beach, California. Current water temperature there is about 70 °F. It still pretty cold, but if she doesn’t mind cold water, maybe it would be doable.

[PNW-type-gal]

Unlike the beaches in the Gulf or most of the Atlantic, we do not have much of a coastal shelf on the Pacific, so we get cold water upwelling from deeper parts of the ocean. Plus the long shore current is from north (think: Alaska) to south here. It also means the water gets deep FAST (except in protected bays, like Sunset Bay State Park, just north of Shore Acres) and large waves, including sneaker waves, are quite possible.

Some of the protected bays, where the waves are smaller and the water warmer, also suffer from bacteria and algae blooms in the summer and get closed for swimming. You'll see signs for that if it is the case.

The first time I went to Florida, I was astonished that you could walk out into the ocean maybe 1/4 mile and the water was warm and only came up just past your knees.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

Pacific Ocean for swimming? San Diego or further south, and it is still cold.

There are some beautiful beaches to walk on, though. And beautiful scenery to admire. If you want to go as far as Newport, the harbor is fun, with some interesting shops and the big rock covered with hundreds of seals and sea lions. Just south of Newport is South Beach park and the beach there is marvelous, sandy, and goes on forever.

Closer to you is Yachats, with a few cute shops, a dozen really excellent restaurants, and both a sandy beach to walk on and a rugged rocky scenic coastline.

Florence is big enough to have a community swimming pool, you might look into that.

[bler144]

Kids swim at Neskowin. Not actually out in the open ocean, but in the small estuary that forms south of Proposal Rock where the creek flows down. It's fairly protected and the water is warmer. I've definitely had fun wading in it, but IIRC it's not deep enough for an adult to really swim.

Bit of a drive from Florence (could be the northernmost point of a day trip), but a nice little beach.

In Oregon trivia, there's a Corin Tucker Band song about Neskowin as well. Doubt the song would appeal to your mom though, but the beach might.

[CitrineRose]

Thanks for the input! No, there isn't a community pool here in Florence. Swimming will just have to wait until she comes out for another visit when she is here 10days this trip is just Wed evening to Sunday I know she will be happy just walking along the beaches. Was told by someone to go either South or North (I have to look up what she said) of the heads on coast and offers a bit of protection.