A Manzanita sunset is not a rare event. The beach faces due west, there's nothing between you and Japan, and the sun goes down over open water pretty much every clear night of the year. The trick is choosing where to stand. Here are the spots we actually use, roughly in order of effort.
The end of Laneda Avenue
Zero effort, maximum reliability. Walk Laneda west until the pavement ends and the sand starts. The beach opens up wide, Neahkahnie Mountain rises to your right, and the dog can go off leash the second you hit the sand (Manzanita's whole beach is dog-friendly; just watch for nesting-season signs near the creek). Bring a blanket, sit on the dry sand above the wrack line, and let it happen. Afterward you're two minutes from a drink at the Manzanita pub scene or a late ice cream.
From Puffin Lane, the beach access is a two-block walk, so this is the default. Cedar hot tub after, obviously.
The Neahkahnie viewpoints on 101
Drive north on Highway 101 out of town and up the shoulder of Neahkahnie Mountain. Within a few minutes there are several paved pull-outs with stone walls built by the WPA in the 1930s. From up there the whole beach lays out below you, the town lights come on behind, and the sun drops into the Pacific in a straight line. This is the postcard shot. Get there 30 minutes early on summer weekends; the pull-outs hold maybe a dozen cars each. Watch for people crossing the highway in the dusk.
Neahkahnie Mountain summit
The big one. The south trailhead is off 101 north of town on a gravel spur; the hike is about a mile and a half up with switchbacks, around 900 feet of gain, to a rocky summit at 1,680 feet with a view from Cannon Beach to Tillamook. Sunset from up here is spectacular. It is also a real hike down in the dark. Bring a headlamp per person, not one for the group, and start down as soon as the sun is gone, not after the afterglow. Dogs on leash do fine on the trail.
Nehalem Bay State Park spit
Drive or bike five minutes south to Nehalem Bay State Park, park at the day-use lot, and walk over the dunes to the beach. It's the same seven-mile beach, but this end is emptier, and the spit gives you the bay glowing pink on one side and the ocean on the other. In summer the park runs late enough for sunset; in winter check the gate hours. Day-use fee applies. Horses use this beach too, which adds a certain drama to the silhouette situation.
Short Sand Beach at Oswald West
Ten minutes north, a half-mile forest walk from the 101 parking lot to a cove where surfers stay out until the light is gone. The cove faces west-northwest and the headlands frame the sun in late spring and summer. It's a moody, gorgeous spot, and the walk back through old-growth spruce in the dusk is half the fun. Headlamp again. The lot doesn't lock but it's a long, dark walk if you dawdle.
Timing it
- Summer: sunset is around 9pm in late June, so eat early or plan a late dinner. Most Laneda kitchens close by 8 or 9; check before you assume.
- Fall: the best season. Clear evenings, sunset around 7 in September sliding to 5 by November, and the light gets warmer as the sun moves south.
- Winter: sunset before 5pm, often behind clouds, occasionally the best one you've ever seen between storms. Bring the good jacket.
- Always: arrive 20 minutes early. The colors peak 10 to 15 minutes after the sun is actually gone.
The fog disclaimer
Summer afternoons on the north coast sometimes bring a fog bank that sits offshore and swallows the sun about a hand's width above the horizon. There's nothing to be done. Go anyway; the fog turns orange and the beach goes quiet and it's still better than your phone. If you want the odds in your favor, September and early October are the clearest weeks.
We're a little obsessed with this topic. Our Eugene team wrote up the best sunset spots in Eugene, which is a different sport entirely (buttes instead of beaches). On the coast, it's simpler: walk west. For everything else within a short drive, from Cannon Beach to Tillamook, see our Manzanita things-to-do page, and if you're comparing homes, the Manzanita rentals page has the details.