Newport is a working harbour first and a tourist town second, which is what makes it so likeable. The town sits on Yaquina Bay, where a long, graceful bridge swings across the water on a series of arches, one of the last great works of the engineer Conde McCullough, who designed many of the bridges along the Oregon coast and finished this one in 1936. Underneath, the bay front is crowded with fishing boats, crab pots and processing plants, and the barking of sea lions floats up from the docks, where they sprawl on the pontoons and ignore the visitors.
Fishing and seafood are the heart of the place. Dungeness crab, tuna and shrimp come off the boats, and you can eat them in simple harbour-side restaurants or buy fish to take away. The Oregon Coast Aquarium, on the south side of the bay, is one of the best on the coast, with a walk-through shark tunnel and a seabird aviary. On the north side, Yaquina Head Lighthouse, completed in 1873 and still the tallest on the Oregon coast at about ninety-three feet, stands on a headland that is also a nature reserve, with tidepools, seabird colonies and, in winter, passing grey whales. Nye Beach, the old seaside quarter, has a quieter, arty atmosphere.
Riding along Highway 101 through Newport is a mix of town and coast. South of the bridge, the road continues past Waldport and Yachats, through rainforest and past rocky headlands, one of the best stretches of the Oregon coast, while the way north leads toward Lincoln City and Depoe Bay, with its tiny harbour. The road is smooth and relaxed, and the curves are mostly easy, though traffic in summer can be thick, with campervans and logging trucks. Fog frequently rolls in, wetting the road and cutting visibility, and winter storms can be spectacular, with waves crashing over the headlands.
With around ten thousand people, Newport has all the services a rider might need: fuel, supermarkets, motels and a good selection of restaurants. Toledo, nine kilometres inland, is a small and quaint timber town. The wind can be cold, so wear layers even on sunny days. Try a bowl of clam chowder or a basket of fresh fish and chips, preferably from a place with a view of the boats, and watch the sea lions at their lazy business.