Located at the state's westernmost tip, and perched over the Pacific Ocean, Cape Blanco features a 19th-century lighthouse and an early Irish settler's home. Use our private, sheltered campsites as your base camp while you enjoy the park's history, trails and rugged coastline.
More than eight miles of hiking trails lead to the beach, viewpoints of ocean vistas, fishing spots along the Sixes River, and the lighthouse. On horseback, follow a seven-mile trail or enjoy a 150-acre open riding area across from the horse camp.
Cape Blanco Lighthouse
Built in 1870, Cape Blanco Lighthouse is the oldest standing lighthouse on the Oregon coast. Managed by the Bureau of Land Management, tours cost $2 for adults (free for youth 15 and younger). Tours: April-Oct. 31, Wednesday - Monday, 10 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Last tour ticket sold at 3:15 p.m. Gates close at 3:30 p.m. (Closed Tuesdays)
Historic Hughes House
Constructed in 1898 for ranchers Patrick and Jane Hughes, the 3,000-square foot farmhouse retains its Victorian charm. Tour the home to learn about early 20th century farm life from knowledgeable volunteers. Tours are free; donations help fund restoration and maintenance of the home. Tours: May 1-Sept 30, Wednesday-Monday, 10 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. (Closed Tuesdays).
Both sites are listed on the National Register of Historic Places and supported by the Cape Blanco Heritage Society in cooperation with Oregon State Parks.
Horse campers will enjoy twelve new pipe corrals, installed in early 2018 in partnership with Oregon Equestrian Trails. These corrals are available first-come, first-served for Cape Blanco horse campers. Those with additional horses can trailer-tie them or use portable corrals.
Cape Blanco was named in 1603 by the Spanish explorer Martin D'Aguilar because of the chalky appearance of the headland. The park land was purchased from the Joseph N. Hughes Estate in 1971. At the westernmost tip of the cape is a U. S. Coast Guard lighthouse reservation including an 1870 lighthouse. The headland is 245 feet above the sea and the light is visible for 22 miles at sea. Because of many past shipwrecks at this point, a powerful radio beacon for navigators was placed at Cape Blanco. The park land historically was settled by Patrick Hughes, a native of Ireland, who came to the place in 1860 and developed an extensive dairy farm, which spread into bottom land along the Sixes River on the north side of the cape. The spacious house that Hughes built for his large family overlooking the Sixes estuary in 1898 is all that remains of the ranch complex.
