Coos Bay Spot Guide

South of the dunes and moated by a complex system of bays and estuaries, the North Bend/Coos Bay area is the epicenter of surfing in south-central Oregon, thanks to a complex system of rocky headlands and coves leading out to Cape Arago. First stop on the Cape Arago Highway is the popular Bastendorff Beach, a wide, sandy cove flanked by Yoakam Head and the south jetty at the entrance to Coos Bay. Offshore on winter S winds, the various peaks are loosely divided into spots like South End, Gray Houses, Middles, Crappers (a.k.a. Shitters), and North End. All tides except extreme high and low. Rips at point or jetty ends, depending on swell direction. There are several regularly-surfed spots further out on the Cape, including Simpson’s Reef, which one regular describes as “a hard-breaking, rocky-climb-down-the-bluff, time-your-entry, sucking wave right inside the largest concentrated sea-mammal haulout in the Pacific Northwest.”

Bastendorff is one of the most polluted spots in the NW; some local regulars report skin problems. Paul George, who used to run the now closed Rocky Point Surf Shop in Coos has worked hard to cultivate aloha spirit among the surfers here, so bring a smile. Waxer's surf shop has supplies. Sharky area with strong rips when the swell is large.