So I took a break from writing for a while to finish up with college and find work here in Oregon. But since that is taking a bit of time I decided to begin writing again. I have also been getting in a lot of great hikes, including this one.
Netart’s Spit is probably one of the least appealingly named hikes I’ve ever tried. But don’t let that fool you. It’s an 8 mile out and back hike along a large stretch of sand, a spit, that protects Netart’s Bay from the Pacific Ocean. If you like looking for clams and shellfish, Netart’s Bay is apparently one of the best spots in the state for it. This is also close to the locally famous Jacobsen Salt Co. so that’s worth checking out too.
The hike itself starts in a public park along the beach and goes all the way up the spit to the north. If you stick to it, which is a rather long 5 mile hike, you can get all the way to the point of the spit and see the entire bay. I recommend doing that as well since it is such a nice stop right on the way. It’s also very close to Cape Lookout which is regarded as one of the most scenic hikes in the entire area. It’s also significantly shorter if somewhat more hilly hike if you’re looking for something a bit more forested.
I however was just looking for a nice long walk and I got that. Netart’s Spit is really just a nice long walk along a beach. If you’re like me and from California, that could sound like a long crowded affair. But since this beach becomes relatively difficult to access, as soon as you get about a mile down the spit there’s almost no one. Granted this was on a more cold windy day. But I can’t see it getting a lot worse than this even in the summer months. In more typical Oregon fashion the beach is very wide. It also has a lot of ocean debris which I happen to like because I can find stuff like sand dollars there. It was very long at around 8 miles if you go all the way out but there’s no reason to go all the way if you don’t want to. Over all a great hike and I’ll be going back in better weather.
