Gearhart: Beach, Dunes and History

Gearhart lies among the dunes on Oregon’s North Coast and features a pristine, expansive stretch of beach. The beach, golf, other sports, art and local history offer different focal points for a stay. If you’re looking for a hotel in Gearhart, you can start by considering which of these interests will shape your trip. The places and activities below offer specific ideas for shaping your stay in Gearhart.

Beach Access and Ocean Activities

The access to Gearhart Beach near the Gearhart Condominiums allows vehicles to drive onto the beach. Vehicle access extends north to Warrenton and south only as far as the beach access at 10th Street. If you plan to drive on the beach, check the conditions for beach driving before your trip.

Gearhart offers free beach wheelchair rentals for public use. Check the current status of this service before your trip. During the spring and fall whale migrations, you can look out for the animals in Gearhart; digging for razor clams is another possible activity.

Golf and Other Activities

A walking path runs all the way around the Gearhart Public Golf Course, an 18-hole course. The loop and the 18 holes describe different options: the path circles the entire facility, while the 18-hole designation refers to the golf course itself. This distinguishes golf from a round of walking as separate types of activity.

Tennis, pickleball, basketball and handball are played at the Gearhart Tennis and Pickleball Courts and Basketball Hoop. So, in addition to tennis and pickleball, basketball and handball are also among the sports played there. The Trail's End Park Playground in Centennial Garden is a municipal playground for children.

Art and Local History

Throughout the year, the Trail's End Art Association offers low-cost classes, workshops and community groups open to the public, covering a variety of artistic media. Exhibitions in the main gallery change monthly. Classes and workshops give you the chance to create your own work, while the main gallery showcases changing exhibitions. Check the current program and gallery exhibitions before your visit.

Gearhart Park was the first planned resort community on the Oregon coast. Gearhart’s original plan, dated 1890, designated the Ridge Path as a footpath. Another kind of historical account concerns golf: according to tradition, Gearhart Golf Links began around 1888 as a three-hole course for true links golf in the coastal meadows of the northern Oregon Coast. Thus, a dated plan specifying the footpath’s function sits alongside a golf story expressly presented as tradition.

Discover more destinations: Warrenton, Cannon Beach, Astoria, Seaside, Arch Cape.

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