Today was PERFECT! Sunshine, the ocean, fresh air, beautiful surroundings, great company – it just can’t get any better than that!
I was invited by a fellow kayaker to drive over to the coast and kayak with her and another friend. This was a first time visit for me and so I was very excited before I even arrived.
Today’s kayaking adventure took place on Beaver Creek. The creek flows into the ocean at Ona Beach, located between Newport and Waldport near Seal Rock. Here is a map showing its location.
The creek is located within the confines of Brian Booth State Park.
I have lived in Oregon for the last 36 years and I had never heard of any of these places. That is why I was so excited to go kayak here. I love exploring places I haven’t been before.
The kayak launch is located right off of Hwy 101 on N. Beaver Creek Rd. (just north of Seal Rock). Once you turn on to Beaver Creek Rd., it’s an immediate right turn into the park. The wide, paved boat ramp slopes gently to the water, which makes for a safe and accessible launch. The creek is a three-mile, flat water paddle which meanders through the marshes and wetlands of the Beaver Creek estuary.
However, one of the greatest features of this launch – quick access to the ocean. Once you enter the water, you turn right from the boat ramp and it’s a quick paddle to the ocean. Just before you see the ocean, you’ll pass underneath Hwy 101 and then a pedestrian bridge. Keep an eye open underneath both as I saw quite a few pigeons!
For me, there’s something so calming and relaxing about hearing and seeing the ocean. We missed high tide by about an hour and so we weren’t able to paddle out into the ocean water. But, I could have sat there in my kayak for hours just watching and listening!
This video really doesn’t capture just how blue everything was – the sky and the water! However, I love it anyway. And this is my last view after I turned around and began to head back underneath the pedestrian bridge.
From the boat launch, you can kayak just over 3 miles heading east and you can do that all year long. Today, seeing as though we just received a lot of rain last week, the creek was deep and wide. I’m definitely going to go back this summer so I can see what it’s like then. But, as I said, it’s doable no matter when you go!
Despite being winter time, the view was absolutely stunning. As I mentioned before, the sun was shining brightly and casting off some truly awesome reflections.
I love this photo because you can barely see the water as it is reflecting everything so intently! Truly beautiful.
Beaver Creek is located within a vast fielded area which consists mostly of grass and a whole bunch of Cattails.
The scenery was absolutely stunning. I loved the vast wood logs we encountered in the water and they were each covered with various plants! Everything was just so beautiful. I kept stopping to take more photos.
One of the things we encountered was a “fish camp.” At least I think that’s what our knowledgeable kayaker called it. It’s a man-made building which the owners use to fish from. It looked abandoned and neglected, but that may just be during the winter time. I don’t know. But, it was interesting to look at.
We continued our journey along the creek and we came upon this small sign posted on the left side of the creek on the edge of the water line. It was letting us know that there is another kayak launch. We turned here to go check it out.
So, this kayak launch is about a mile east on North Beaver Creek Road, where there is also access for those who want to hike the trails within the park.
At this point, knowing I had an hour and a half drive home, I decided it was time to turn around. I didn’t want to end my kayaking adventure, but I was actually looking forward to turning around because I knew I would be able to capture some great photos with the sun behind me. I was not disappointed!
This is a bridge we went under on our way to see the kayak launch, but it was a better picture taken on the return trip. The picture makes it look like there’s barely enough room to kayak underneath, but that was not the case.
When I returned home, I realized I had taken a ton of pictures. Worse than that, it was nearly impossible to choose the ones I liked the best. But, at the same time, I also wanted to make sure I had a good variety showing all of the different views along my kayaking adventure.
Everything was just so incredible. Even the sky was worth photographing!
This was just an awesome kayaking adventure! I will most definitely return in the near future as all the plants, bushes, and trees begin to grow and show their brilliant bright green colors.
As a side note, I learned that Beaver Creek is very popular on the weekends and especially during the summer time. So, my advice – go during the week if you can!
Here is a map of our journey!
Thank you for reading! Go check out Beaver Creek!
2025 – Kayak Trip #4
