Haystack Rock Canon Beach
Cannon Beach with the distinctive Haystack Rock and Needles marking its shoreline. Cannon Beach is one of Oregon’s quaintest and most picturesque destinations. Nine miles of beach make a perfect setting for strolling along the seaside, watching diverse wildlife in its natural habitat and building a sand castle in the annual sand castle building contest.
The Rock is located near Cannon Beach on the North coast of Oregon, Haystack Rock is a unique monolith that attracts wildlife and tourists alike. Towering 235 feet over the beach, the Rock is home to nesting seabirds in the summer and marine invertebrates all year long. It is one of the largest “sea stacks” on America’s Pacific coast.
The rocky reefs of Haystack Rock and the neighboring Needles have abundant and rich intertidal life. Tidepoolers are drawn to its wonders every day. As many as 200,000 people visit Haystack Rock every year, mostly during the summer months when the tidepools are teeming and the nesting seabirds, proudly showing off breeding plumage, are busy introducing little ones into the world. Haystack Rock is protected under Fish and Wildlife regulations as a Marine Garden and a seabird nesting refuge.
The Haystack Rock Awareness Program (HRAP) provides educational programs on the beach from February – October. Look for environmental educators wearing red jackets on the beach in front of Haystack Rock during low tide. To facilitate your experience they have an interpretive trailer, aquaria displays, and spotting scopes for bird viewing.
What to Photograph
Haystack Rock, the beach and additional rock formations on the beach make great photo subjects. At low tide the tidepools are full of colorful sea life.
Tidepool Etiquette
- Plan your visit around low tide
- Avoid stepping on creatures -Walk only on sand or bare rock
- Avoid harassing or removing plants or animals – Explore using your eyes more than your hands
- Keep dogs on leashes and under control
- Come ready to learn and have fun!
Harassing is any activity where you poke, prod, pry, remove, eat, squash, stomp, kick, lick, collect, crush or otherwise stress or injure plants and animals.
Where it is:
All public streets and alleys which abut the ocean shore are minimally maintained by the Public Works Department as beach access points. There are 44 public beach access points. Ease of access varies depending on the location. Tolovana Wayside is an ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessible beach access point.
Maps:
Interactive Google Map
Use the map + – controls to zoom in and out, click and drag the to move the map, use the Map drop-down to change to “Map”, “Satellite”, “Hybrid”, or “Terrain” views. Drag the little man icon from the upper left corner to a map location for street level view.
GPS:
45°53’6.34″ N 123°57’59.362″ W
Cost:
There is no cost to access Haystack Rock or Cannon Beach.
Hours:
The best time time get close to Haystack Rock and to access the tidepools is at low tide.
Drone Regulations:
Drone pilots must maintain an altitude of over 2000 feet or 1/2 mile lateral distance from Haystack Rock.
Location Contact Information:
All beaches in the State of Oregon are designated public recreation areas, and are jointly managed by both the State of Oregon and the local municipalities whose boundaries encompass portions of the beach.
Haystack Rock Canon Beach Photo Gallery
Click Here for full page gallery
More Photographic Destinations in Oregon:
Interactive Google Map
Use the map + – controls to zoom in and out, use the Map drop-down to change to “Map”, “Satellite”, “Hybrid”, or “Terrain” views. Drag the little man icon from the upper left corner to a map location for street level view. Click on a pushpin for more information about the Photographic Destination, then click on the title to go to the location page.
Click Here for Photographic Destinations by State
Great Places for Great Photos
Let me help you to find a great location for your next photography adventure. I will list many lesser-known destinations, as well as the famous "Icon Locations" for photography. I will provide photos (Lots of Photos), location information, consisting of what there is to photograph as well as other information about the destination. I will give costs, maps, directions, contact information, and other essential information for a successful photo trip. I will only post for locations that I have personally photographed to ensure a quality guide to great locations for photography. If you know of great places that are not posted, please send me the details, I may just decide that is a place I need to go!
Greg Disch is a freelance photographer located in Arkansas. Greg specializes in nature, scenic, wildlife, and other outdoor subjects in Arkansas and other areas of the country. Most of the images on this site are available for sale as prints, personal use, or rights managed stock photos.
Greg offers both classroom instruction and in the field hands on photographic workshops. Classroom sessions are normally held in Fort Smith Arkansas, but arrangements can be made to bring a class to your group.
All classes and workshops have small class sizes designed to provide an optimum student to instructor ratio, where you can get the personal attention, you need. Most classes and workshops are limited to a maximum of six participants and will be held with a minimum of only two.
If you are looking for a wonderful opportunity to get personal individual instruction, I do private workshops and classes at a location of your choice, whether doing a location photo shoot, coming to your home or business, traveling across the country on a road trip, or at my classroom. This is a fantastic way to learn digital workflow and be sure that your computer equipment is properly configured for optimum performance.
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