Cape Blanco / Port Orford

Driving from Reedsport to Port Orford, OR | Umpqua Lighthouse | Cape Blanco State Park | Thanksgiving in Port Orford | November 2025

When we awoke in Reedsport, we hurried to complete our morning routine so as not to overstay our welcome in the parking lot where they so kindly allow overnight parking. We made a quick stop at the ranger station (where we learned the correct pronunciation for names of the rivers and forests we were traveling through) and then continued our drive South.

Today’s main goal was to find a place where we could settle for a few days. Thanksgiving was coming up, and we didn’t want to have to be traveling and trying to find places to stay during the holiday weekend. I did some research, and found a dispersed camping area near Port Orford that looked like it would meet our needs for the week.

We made a few stops on our way South, with the theme of the stops being lighthouses. The first one was Umpqua Lighthouse, which is manned by the Coast Guard, and which was already decorated for Christmas. When we arrived, we got out and read the signs, and learned that we actually had a chance at seeing whales here — approximately 1 per hour, as a matter of fact. However, from the view next to the lighthouse, the ocean is rather far away, and the view would probably only be a whale spout here or there, and we weren’t patient enough to wait for our hourly chance at a sighting. Instead, we walked down the hill to a little trail that made a loop around a small lake. It was lovely and peaceful, just what we needed before continuing our drive.

Our next stop was at Cape Blanco State Park, which is where Charlotte and I camped back in 2017. It was crazy to think that on that day, I drove us from Portland (where we dropped Curtis off at the airport) all the way here, making many stops on the coast along the way. Of course, we had much more daylight during that trip, and we weren’t doing long walks everywhere. We also had a much shorter timeline and many places I wanted to visit before leaving the mainland. But at this point, Curtis and I had managed to spend 6 days traveling slowly down the coast in comparison. I’m thankful that we had the opportunity this time to really take our time and enjoy it!

When we arrived at Cape Blanco, we had lunch in the van as it was rather windy outside, and then set out for a chilly walk out to the lighthouse. It was all much like I remembered it, with gorgeous views of the coast in both directions. When we made it back to the parking area, we decided to spend some more time here, and followed the Oregon Coastal Trail down to the shore. We rock hopped, looked for shells or cool rocks, and spotted a couple of seals enjoying the waves. Then we walked a long ways to the North, watching the seals and admiring the waves crashing into the rocks. Sure, the sand dunes were unique and beautiful in their own way, but for us, nothing beats a rocky and dramatic coastline!

After we were finished with our walk, we continued on to Port Orford, where we took China Mountain Road up into the hills until we found an open dispersed site on the public land. For our first night here, we drove pretty far back and ended up with an amazing view of the sea and Humbug Mountain, but for the next two nights we found someplace a bit closer and tucked away on the road.

While we could have maybe stayed put for the entire rest of the week, we actually drove down to the town of Port Orford a few more times just to have a little more activity in our day, and to charge up the house battery. On our first full day in the area, I discovered that the port of Port Orford had showers open to the public, so we were able to take hot, 7 minute showers for only $1.25! We also enjoyed walking around a couple different coastal parks in town. On our first day, we parked at the Port Orford Visitor Center next to Battle Rock Wayside Park, and went for a long walk on the beach. That afternoon, we drove over to Port Orford Heads State Park and went for a hike that took us to several different view points to the South and North. We returned the next day to hike there again, this time with moodier views that made the water a gorgeous shade of blue.

Our Thanksgiving spent here was pretty low-key, with the only element of a traditional Thanksgiving meal being a mashed potato mix from a bag to go with our chicken nuggets. We were thankful for this beautiful, quiet place where we could enjoy the simple pleasures of life on the road, and the freedom we enjoy by living this way. And while we missed our family, we just weren’t in the mood for celebrating holidays the traditional way this year, so being alone together in this beautiful spot felt right.