Yaquina Head got two visits from us during our stay in Oregon.  We were in Newport on one of our early days and headed up to see it.  Shortly after paying to get in to the park, the rain started to come down.  I did a quick recce of the place but rapidly became more interested in the interior of a warm car (which Nancy had wisely elected not to leave in the first place).  The entry was good for a few days so, with better weather forecast for later in the week, we decided to come back.

The weather dutifully obeyed and improved and we returned on our next trip to Newport.  When its not raining, things definitely take on a more appealing feel.  We wandered up to the lighthouse and took a look around it and out to see where some gray whales were passing by, if a little distant and happy to stay below the surface most of the time.

From the headland, there were stairs down to the beach which, when the tide was out (as it was while we were there), revealed a lot of rocky tidepools.  People were encouraged to explore the tidepools to see the wildlife that is within.  You could go quite a way across them but, given the number of creatures that were clinging to the rock surfaces, I was a bit reluctant to go trampling across them.  Instead, I maneuvered around on the edges where I could avoid crushing some poor creature.

Plenty of things were living in the pools.  While the crustaceans were everywhere, I was particularly drawn to the anemones.  The way in which they close up when out of the water, keep themselves damp internally and then open up once they are back under water is impressive.  They are also so varied in their colors.  They are quite the interesting creature.