Tolovana Beach State Recreation Site — Attraction in Cannon Beach

Yikes. As far as COVID precautions YIKES. SO SO many people. SO many people not wearing masks, not practicing social distancing, not being safe. WAY too many people. We tried this beach THREE separate times before finally getting a parking spot and spending the day.

We have been at several other beaches near Cannon Beach and to say that I was unimpressed with it here is an understatement. At first arrival, parking was a nightmare...we got SUPER lucky and had someone OFFER us their spot...in the shade, right on the end spot. SO we stayed.

It was VERY windy and the waves were super high. At one point they knocked my friend, her 18 year old sister and all 4 of our kids down. Definitely not a good beach to be in the water if you have littles.

The other part of the beach that irked me was that it says on the Parks website that dogs are allowed OFF LEASH WITH owner supervision. Our dog LOVES everyone (and those he doesn't like we usually have GOOD reason to be suspect of.) He also loves all dogs. The only dogs he doesn't like are puppies, and we keep him on a leash around them. He was running (zoomies) in the sand near the shore and a guy was super passive aggressive and said "your dog should be on a leash." No, he was fine but thanks for being rude.

When we found a spot to set up, the people nearest us had a 5 month old puppy. I told them that our dog didn't like puppies and they insisted that he meet their puppy. It was SO stinking cute, but because she was on leash (they didn't trust her not to run off, which is safe and good ownership,) and our dog wasn't she barked a lot because she wanted to play. I was really impressed at our dog because he actually didn't have an issue with her at all.

The beach itself I think is GREAT for tourists who can't get right to Cannon Beach. You can walk to Haystack, get your tourist photos and get out a lot easier (if you can find a spot,) than you can at Cannon usually. But for Oregonians, find the smaller beaches because this place was packed ALL summer. I didn't like the wind, the waves and the crowds. To me, the beach should be relaxing. And we found a small public beach close by that was in a cove area, low wind, low waves and WAY quiet that worked much better for our family!

Tip: there are full bathroom facilities here and they're fairly clean. Just remember your...

Named for a cannon that washed up on the beach in 1846.

With doubts, I finally found the answer in a magazine and shared its history as follows: The ‘Cannons ‘ of Cannon Beach a famous shark also earned a chapter in Cannon Beach history specifically the USS Shark, a storied naval schooner that gave Cannon Beach its name. Launched in 1821, the Shark quickly built up quite a legacy. The ship and its crew claimed Key West for the United States, transported John James Audubon for wildlife study, suppressed the African slave trade in the West Indies, fought pirates and sailed across the Atlantic to defend American interests in the Mediterranean.

In 1839 the USS Shark crossed the pond again to become the first U.S. Navy warship to pass through the Strait of Magellan for duty in the Pacific. Returning from an exploratory survey up the Columbia River, Shark met up with the full fury of the infamous Columbia River Bar. Strong winds, high seas, and a maelstrom of currents and tides at the river's mouth sent Shark into the shoals, where it foundered and sank in Sep 1846.

The crew was saved and, as it turns out, so were some of its cannons. Sightings of the USS Shark cannons in the surf and sand swirled around for years, enough for an early settler to name the area Cannon Beach in 1891. One finally reappeared in the waters of Arch Cape Creek to great excitement in 1898; two more emerged out of the sand more than a century later, in 2008. Today visitors can view the first one at the Cannon Beach History...

A big, open beach, next to many great dine-in restaurants focused on local fare. Great views of Haystack Rock & it's needles just to the north, where you can even walk from the beach access here right to if one desired. Ecola State Park is also visible to the north, and Hug Point, home of Hugman State Park is visible to the south. There is a smaller bathroom facility on site as well in the parking lot.

Bonfires are allowed on the beach, and are loads of fun as well, as if one needs to point that out haha.

All photos I have posted of Tolovana Beach State Wayside as of 6/15/18 were taken on July 22nd, 2013. They each really emphasize just how Pacific Northwestern weather tends to work. It was just a smidge below 80f degrees, yet intensely cloudy for most of the day. In the valley it was Partly Cloudy and in the low to mid 90s. The pictures were taken about 3-3:30pm, and, I was there for a Bonfire with a rather large group. Pardon the excessively detailed description, but I know it can be fun for some people to read these descriptions and then attempt to figure out if they were there that day and possibly even a part of that or...