Once you travel the Cape Arago Highway that skirts a lonesome and lovely section of the Southern Oregon coast, it may become a road once taken that you’ll never want to leave! It leads you past so many intriguing sights that you may well wonder, “Why have I never come this way before.”

Fourteen miles southwest of Coos Bay, drop in at Sunset Bay State Park and meet Oregon State Park’s Manager, Preson Phillips, who told me: “It’s one of those trails that just keeps beckoning you on – it’s just a matter of how much you want to hike or do at the time.” Make time to wander Sunset Bay State Park, a jewel of a campground that offers 139 sites for tent, trailer or R.V. – plus eight yurts. People who come to camp enjoy a spectacular beachfront that seems framed for the movies – it has been a special destination park since 1942.

If you own a spirit of adventure, you’ll no doubt relish the hiking trail that leads little more than a mile to nearby Cape Arago State Park. Many visitors are surprised to find a front row seat of sorts – a wooden balcony that overlooks Shell Island. Marty Giles, who owns an eco-tourism business called, Wavecrest Discoveries is often on hand to explain the behavior of hundreds of seals and seal lions that just plain loaf across the rocky island and Simpson Reef.

You will want to make time to travel five miles further up the Seven Devils Road to visit a piece of Oregon coastal paradise that’s been preserved since 1974. The South Slough Estuarine Research Preserve offers a visitor center that introduces you to the area with varied multi-media and hands on exhibits. There’s more than 5,000 acres in South Slough Preserve – approximately 1,000 of that is the slough itself, then the rest is protected upland forest or marshland. There is plenty of elbowroom to explore at South Slough Preserve and there are lots of trails that take you out and about.

One of my favorites is called the Hidden Creek Trail – a little over a mile in length that offers a wonderful wooden boardwalk that takes you out over a wetland area where the freshwater creek meets the sea. In addition, there are many stunning views along the trail, including those from atop a two level deck that looks across a marsh area to the Winchester Arm of the slough.

The preserve is open throughout the calendar year, but South Slough Preserve Education Director, Tom Gaskill, says some seasons offer unique surprises for the hearty traveler.

“I’m a birder, so for me this time of year in fall is the beginning of the most exciting part of the season. We have flocks of waterfowl that pass through here and a lot of the over wintering forest birds too – there are many species that we never see here during the summer, so it’s exciting in the winter months to see some of these migratory species that spend summers in Alaska and Canada but they’re here for the winter.”

Grant’s Getaways – Three for One Vacation from Travel Oregon on Vimeo.

This is the time of year when I refuse to let the grass grow under my feet because there is simply so much to see and do across Oregon. That’s especially true along a unique section of the Oregon coastline where you’ll find three glorious Oregon State Parks called Sunset Bay, Shore Acres and Cape Arago.

I am thrilled with each visit to this region. You actually get three state parks for the price of one vacation and each is within two miles of each other and connected by road, bike trail, and hiking path. Each park is distinct, easy to reach and offers unique perspectives on the coastal Oregon’s recreation experience.

Sunset Bay is a small overnight campground, with seventy-two tent sites and sixty-three trailer sites. The park also features a hiker/biker camp, plus ten group tent camps. Hot showers and flush toilets are available to all campers and provide a welcome comfort zone. Legend has it Sunset Bay was also used by pirates, and a glance toward the ocean suggests the reason: The small bay is set inside steep sandstone bluffs and has a narrow passage to the sea that’s difficult to discern from the ocean.

A mile away, a much different environment waits for you at Shore Acres State Park. Here, the wildness is tamed at a park land that puts a smile on your face. You see, Shore Acres is the state park system’s only botanical garden. Shore Acres, built in 1906, was once a private estate famed for gardens of flowering trees, plants, and shrubs brought from around the world aboard the sailing ships of pioneer lumberman and shipbuilder Louis B. Simpson, as well as a one-acre pond and shimmering waterfall. Simpson developed the summer home into a showplace capped by the towering presence of a three-story mansion. The grounds originally contained five acres of formal gardens, but fire destroyed the mansion in 1921.

A short but easy one-mile hike south takes you to Cape Arago, famous as a resort for Steller sea lions. Well, perhaps “resort” is a bit of a stretch, but the fact is that Shell Island (adjacent to the cape) is the largest Steller haul-out and calving site along the entire West Coast. Any time is a fine time to visit the many viewpoints along Cape Arago’s main hiking path overlooking Shell Island, but keep in mind that the offshore rocks, islands, and reefs are part of the Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge system, which is closed to public access. So here’s a tip: Bring binoculars or a spotting scope so you’ll have a front-row seat into the refuge proper and a chance to view fascinating wildlife behaviors.

I try to make this collection of wonderful parks a three- or four-day stay–I like to linger and just loaf around the trails, viewpoints, and colorful gardens that this unique Oregon destination offers.