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Messages - jbeaston

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Update 2

Sadly, insurance liability concerns torpedoed publicizing the bike-friendly detour route. Sorry. Ask a local about a potential detour.

-John

2
Updated end of closure extended to 9/24.

The county is installing a new bridge. No accommodation for bike/ped around the work area.

https://www.tillamookheadlightherald.com/news/bayocean-road-closure-extended/article_5ec08f58-d518-49c8-99e1-0b98c9cbfb4e.html

The recommended bike detour is the same route used when the new Cape Meares Loop Rd was constructed.

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44358544

-John

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Update: A private land owner is creating a bike-friendly detour around this work zone. It has dirt sections and gates to open/close but it should be rideable. There is a concern about liability to work out before we post the detour route.

We hope to have notices of the bike detour at the closure locations.

-John

4
There is a full closure of Hwy 101 south of Bandon at 9pm Sept 19, 2025 through Sept 21, 2025. There are no planned accommodations for bike/ped around the closure. Here is the ODOT project webpage.

https://www.oregon.gov/odot/projects/pages/project-details.aspx?project=M25032

-John

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FYI - The Nehalem Bay State Park reopened on July 1, 2025.
-John

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Yes, it looks like the Cape Lookout campground will be open in May 2025. It is not scheduled to close until Oct 1, 2025.

If you are riding the Coast Bike Route in May, note that the Nehalem Bay State Park campground outside of Manzanita will still be closed. It does not reopen until July 1, 2025.

-John

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Update 2: The Cape Lookout park superintendent says the park will close on Oct 1, 2025 and potentially be closed an entire year.
-John

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UPDATE: The local newspaper is reporting that the Cape Lookout closure has been delayed and will start in the Fall of 2025 and extend until Spring/Summer 2026. The Cape Lookout website has not yet been updated to reflect this change.
-John

9
Cape Lookout State Park will be closed from June 1, 2025 until June 2026 for renovations. (Note that Nehalem Bay State Park is also closed from November 1, 2024 until June 30, 2025.)

https://stateparks.oregon.gov/index.cfm?do=park.profile&parkId=134

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The Nehalem Bay State Park will be closed from 1 Nov 2024 until 30 June 2025 for infrastructure updates. No hiker/biker or other camping is available. See the "Construction advisory" on the park website.

https://stateparks.oregon.gov/index.cfm?do=park.profile&parkId=142

There are some camping sites available in the area. See the park provided list at

https://bit.ly/m/NehalemBayAlternateAcommodations

There are also a couple of intermittent WarmShowers hosts in the area.

-John

11
Yes, those signs were removed when the new portion opened in Nov2023. They were there since portions of the old road were used for construction vehicle access.

The water tower is just north of the north entrance, on the west side of Bayshore Rd. It is visible on GMaps satellite view.

Yes, it is easy to walk a loaded touring bike around the closed gates.

I contacted the director of Tillamook County roads about signage for the gated-off section and he said, "The old road is an active slide zone and is officially closed.  We don't endorse using the old road (as signs would imply), but we are not forbidding its use."

In a somewhat separate matter, he also happened to mention that Bayocean Rd NW (which connects to Bayshore Rd) will be closed for a month sometime during the summer for a bridge repair. That is a bummer since their vehicle detour will direct folks to Hwy 131 which is awful for biking (high speed, curvy, narrow, no shoulder). I would recommend that cyclists use Elkhoff Rd to bypass the most awful section of Hwy 131. That detour can be seen on

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44349299

-John

12
Ah, I rechecked my RWGPS and found that I had put the south entrance at the wrong location. Sorry about that. I fixed that POI. The south entrance (closed gate) to the old road is at the turn-off into the Cape Meares Lighthouse. The north entrance (closed gates) to the old road is where I've indicated with POIs.

Sadly, the only signage is "No Hunting" on the south and north gates. There are at least two signed hiking trails within the closed portion but there is no indication from outside the gates. The trails are on some maps but are otherwise local knowledge. If you know that you're looking for an old gated road on the right beyond the water tower, it is pretty obvious.

It's a pretty confusing area map-wise. Sometimes the road is referred to as Bayshore Rd and sometimes as Cape Meares Loop. (And there are still some small detour signs indicating the road is closed.) I'll check with the county road folks to see if there are any plans to sign the old road and clean up the detour signage.

-John

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Hello Amy. Here's a RWGPS route that includes POI marking the north entrances to the old road, the landslide area, and the south entrance. You can see the new road adjacent. The old road is open for hiking and there are no restriction signs. Here's an image of the landslide area. It has been filled in with a section of rideable/walkable gravel about 50 yards wide. The rest of the old road is old asphalt paving with several years worth of forest debris. It should be rideable for most loaded touring bikes.

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/44326655

Cheers! If you need more info, let me know. I'm down that way frequently.
-John
Manzanita, OR

14
After a long closure of the Three Capes route between Cape Meares and Oceanside due to a landslide, the new re-routed road (called Cape Meares Loop on GMaps) is open. The new road is nicely paved but has 12% grades. The good news is that the old road (now called Bayshore Dr on GMaps) is also open but for bikes/peds only. The landslide is still there but it is easily passable by bike. The old road is not signed but is accessible via the 2nd yellow gate beyond the water tower. I would recommend the old road since it is car-free, less steep and is more direct to visit the Cape Meares lighthouse.
-John
Manzanita WarmShowers

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