Dog-Friendly Cannon Beach
Alice catches a treat on the very dog-friendly Cannon Beach!
I am very firmly a mountains-over-beach type of person. I grew up in Colorado, so it makes sense that mountains bring me peace and happiness - especially trails high up in the Rockies, sans other hikers! My Colorado roots also cause me to be absolutely miserable in humid climates (NYC summers nearly kill me every year). Therefore, a day at the beach is not something I usually look forward to, especially in the Northeast US. The heat, the sweat, the crowds… no, thank you.
However, this August, I found my perfect beach! Cannon Beach is a large, extremely dog-friendly beach with beautiful hills and large trees behind it and the huge Haystack Rock coming out from the ocean in front of it. The rocks and trees made the landscape so much more interesting to me than other beaches I have visited. The town itself is very small, so even on a peak summer weekend, the beach itself is so vast that you can easily keep your distance from other humans and find a spot of your own to enjoy a sunset. Best of all, the Oregon Coast weather is ideal for me, with highs in the 60s all three days we were there.
What to Do, Where to Eat in Cannon Beach
The sunsets at Cannon Beach are absolutely magical. The beach is dog-friendly all day, year-round, and there are no open container laws! Grab yourself a bottle of wine from Laurel’s Wine Shop, some cheese and crackers from Mariner Market, and find a spot to take in the sunset with your dog (Laurel’s also has treatos!).
If your pup likes playing with other doggos, you’ll find playmates for her on the beach just about any time of day. The beach is also quite long, so you can wear your dog out with a long, beautiful walk every day. Low tide and high tide are dramatically different, with low tide allowing you to get much closer to Haystack Rock, and the other rocks nearby. No climbing is allowed on the rocks, though!
While there are plenty of local restaurants along, and just off of, Hemlock St, many places were closed while were were in Cannon Beach! Some of them were closed because of the labor shortage, some seemed to be taking a family vacation of their own, and some restaurants’ normal hours have them off two days during the week. If you are in Cannon Beach on a weekend, you’ll have better luck! But I wasn’t able to go to a few places I was most looking forward to because they were closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays! Restaurants also close quite early and fill up quickly. For dinner, I recommend getting to a restaurant by 6:00. Or, order take-out and eat on the beach!
Many restaurants do have dog-friendly patios, but more than I expected do not. The state of Oregon has very strict laws regarding pets at restaurants, and some restaurants seem to have taken those annoyingly seriously. For instance, Mo’s kept coming up in my Google searches for dog-friendly places to eat in Cannon Beach. But my experience there was quite negative, and I left only a few minutes after finally being seated (the wait for a table was also ridiculous).
There are lots of cute shops in town - some are dog-friendly and some are not! A few have very clear signs on the door, some I had to ask when I walked in. There were also a couple of very cute pet stores!
These are the spots that welcomed Alice on their patio:
I had to climb over the patio barrier with Alice because they would not let me carry her through the restaurant for 10 feet… but otherwise, they were very pleased to have a pup there! The food was pretty good, and they are open far later than most restaurants in Cannon Beach.
This local spot has plenty of tables on the patio, and I didn’t have to wait when I arrived at about 2:00pm. It’s a solid choice for good, simple lunch options.
This place is super popular, so expect to wait in line! It’s also closed Wednesdays and Thursdays, so plan accordingly so you don’t miss it! I’m not sure if they noticed that I brought Alice in with me to order, it was so busy. But there are several chairs and tables out front where you can sit and enjoy your decadent latte and bakery items!
You can order ahead on their app, which I did so I could tie Alice up right outside the door and keep an eye on her while I ran in to grab my coffee and pastry!
I really wanted to try Pelican Brewing and Public Coast Brewing, but both were closed while I was there. I actually tried to go to Public Coast on a day when they were open, but I arrived at 7:30 (their website says they close at 8:00) and the doors were already locked.
Nearby Attractions - Hiking & Beaches
View of Crescent Beach and Cannon Beach from Ecola Point
This park is absolutely beautiful, about a ten-minute drive from Cannon Beach. Ecola Point is a great spot for watching sunset and views of Cannon Beach to the south. If you’re there around dusk, you may also see a troop of elk - we spotted ten!
There are several hiking trails in this park. Alice and I did the Clatsop Loop Trail - you’ll find the trailhead at the Indian Beach lot. You do have to pay to park, and there were a lot of surfers there. We didn’t have any trouble finding a spot in the afternoon, but I imagine it might be more crowded in the morning. This trail is pretty easy, if a bit steep. You’ll have some beautiful views of the Tillamook Rock Lighthouse and Indian Beach on the hike down. I cannot get over how weird and interesting the trees are in the Pacific Northwest! They are huge, so tall, with strange-looking moss growing on the bark. They look like they’re straight out of a Dr. Seuss book! So unlike trees in Colorado or on the East Coast.
Definitely spend some time at Indian Beach too! There are so many cool-looking rocks in the water on the southern end of the beach - Alice and I lived out our Little Mermaid dreams here. You may even get to watch some surfers on the water!
The view at the summit of this 2.8-mile hike was one of the highlights of our summer travels! All Trails lists it as “hard”, but I would say it’s moderate until the very end. It’s not clear how to get to the summit, and you end up having to scramble up a pile of rocks - nothing is marked. But you absolutely must get up there! The view is stunning.
The rest of the trail is easy to follow and not very steep, but watch out for slippery moss/roots and snakes! We saw a snake hanging in a tree about six feet off the ground maybe a quarter of a mile in. I didn’t think I had a fear of snakes until I saw one at eye level! Otherwise, we only encountered a few other people on the trail the whole time. The trailhead is about a 20-minute drive from Cannon Beach.
This beautiful, hidden beach in Oswald West State Park is a 15-minute drive south of Cannon Beach. It’s a popular surfing spot and parking is limited. The hike down from the parking lot is short and simple, but the beach itself feels very secluded. There were plenty of dogs off-leash, but I’m not sure what the official rules are.
Where to Stay
Alice and I stayed at the Hearthstone Inn, which is part of the Cannon Beach Hotel Collective. We had the best stay! The person who checked us in was so kind and welcoming, and the hotel itself was adorable. It is perfectly located right in the middle of Cannon beach, about a five-minute walk from the beach itself and a ten-minute walk from where the majority of the restaurants are. There is a parking spot included.
The hotel provided a dog bucket, filled with treats, poop bags, a dog towel, bowls, and a blanket! I would absolutely stay here again!
