You can’t climb Oregon’s tallest lighthouse right now — but two others up the coast still will
Yaquina Head is still Oregon’s tallest lighthouse, and people still show up in Newport expecting to climb it. Right now, they can’t.
The tower’s interior stairs are closed for restoration work, so tours have been cut down to the ground floor only — offered first-come, first-served, whenever staffing and weather cooperate. It’s still worth the stop for the tide pools and the whale watching. Just don’t build the whole trip around reaching the top.
Psst — we made you a West Coast Adventure Map. Nearly 1,900 of our favorite spots, already pinned, ready to load into Google Maps in two clicks — grab it here.
Yaquina Head Lighthouse, Oregon — the one that’s on pause
At 93 feet, Yaquina Head has lit the central Oregon coast since 1873, and normally the payoff is 114 spiral steps up to the original First Order Fresnel lens. That climb isn’t happening at the moment — the stairs are closed for restoration, so the interpretive tour only covers the ground floor.
📍 GET THE ULTIMATE PNW MAP 🗺️
Get our curated list of the best adventures, things to do, and places to grab a brew loaded onto your maps with just two clicks!
✅ Waterfalls ✅ Hikes ✅ Viewpoints
✅ Craft breweries ✅ National Parks ✅ 1400+ Pins
The headland itself is still open daily for $7 a vehicle (an America the Beautiful pass covers it), and Cobble Beach below the bluff has some of the best tide pools on the coast, restoration or not. If the climb is the entire reason you’re driving out, call ahead first — 541-574-3100 — before you commit to the trip.
New Dungeness Lighthouse, Washington — the one you earn on foot
This is the lighthouse for people who think a shortcut ruins the point. Getting there means walking the length of Dungeness Spit — a 10.3-mile round trip over sand and driftwood into the Strait of Juan de Fuca, with a mild 137 feet of elevation gain that has nothing to do with why your legs are done by mile four.
Once you’re out there, volunteer keepers let you climb all 74 steps to the top for free, daily between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. — donations welcome, not required. Time it around low tide, since the walk gets rough when the water’s up, and there’s a $3 refuge fee per group of four adults at the trailhead kiosk.
Point Arena Lighthouse, California — the one that just lets you in
If Dungeness is the lighthouse you earn, Point Arena is the one that hands you a ticket at the door. It’s the tallest lighthouse on the West Coast you can actually climb to the top of, and the climb itself is 145 steps with zero mileage required to get there first.
Tours run roughly every 20 minutes from about 10:15 a.m. to 3 p.m., for $5 to access the grounds and another $5 for the tower — $10 total, kids under 12 free on the site fee. It sits on Mendocino County’s stretch of Highway 1, close enough to spend the rest of the day wandering Mendocino‘s bluffs afterward.
Three lighthouses, three completely different prices of admission — a five-hour beach walk, a $10 ticket, and a tower that’s simply closed for now. My money’s on the one you have to earn; Dungeness makes you work for the view, and that’s exactly why it hits harder. Which one would actually get you in the car?
Trip tips: grab a rental car to string all three together, lock in a hotel wherever you land first, or skip both and book a camper van instead.
Rules and fees change — always confirm current requirements before you go.
