This beach elopement on the rugged Oregon coast is everything epic beach elopement dreams are made of. Cozy sea coves, sprawling white sand beaches, towering sea stacks, and a windswept cape that overlooks the Pacific ocean make this Oregon beach elopement one of our favs.
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BEACH ELOPEMENT ON THE RUGGED OREGON COAST
Between Oregon and Washington, the PNW has hundreds of miles of coastline, all of which are pretty insanely breathtaking. Highway 101, which travels the whole Oregon coast all the way down to California, is loaded with roadside views that’ll make the drive take much much longer with all the stopping and gawking you’ll be doing. About a third of the way down 101 is the small beach town of Pacific City. Here, you’ll find Cape Kiwanda, one of the Oregon coast’s most impressive features. Cape Kiwanda is known for its massive sea stack that looms just off the coast, tall sand dunes that form the cape, and rugged shores where waves crash into rocks that have been sculpted by the sea over the years.
Want to see another PNW coast elopement? Check out this elopement on the Olympic Peninsula
Kendall and Brian were planning a road trip around the PNW and wanted to elope in the middle of it somewhere. They were immediately drawn to the idea of a beach elopement on the Oregon coast, so we recommended some of our favorite beaches. It was a tough choice, with Oregon and Washington’s many options for epic beach elopements, but ultimately it was Cape Kiwanda that captured their excitement the most.
We met them down at Cape Kiwanda on a gorgeous summer day in July. The Oregon coast can be a moody and rainy place much of the year (which is cool and beautiful in its own way too), but when you catch a sunny summer day out here it’s pretty tough to beat. As luck would have it, the weather cooperated perfectly for this beach elopement. We kicked things off with a first look on a long stretch of sandy beach that somehow we got completely to ourselves! On the other side of the cape, the main beach of Cape Kiwanda was packed with tourists and beach goers. But we decided to do some last minute exploring the morning of and found this much quieter beach. It was like striking elopement gold!
A BEACH ELOPEMENT CEREMONY IN A ROCKY SEA COVE
While scouting out this new beach, we got even more excited when we found this awesome rocky cove. Better yet, nobody was here either! Finding privacy for elopement ceremonies along with an epic view is always a top priority for us, but it’s not always easy to find. Ideally, we want couples to be wowed by their surroundings without being surrounded by people. So when we found this rugged beach cove with towering rocky cliffs and zero tourists we immediately knew this was the perfect ceremony spot. As a bonus, we got some shade which made shooting in the broad daylight a whole lot nicer too.
Related: Kauai Elopement Guide to Adventure
Kendall and Brian climbed up onto a rock along with their officiant, Erika from The Greatest Adventure Weddings, and began their ceremony. The soothing sound of crashing waves filled the air as they said their vows to each other, and reflective light danced around the red rock walls. We snapped away happily, constantly in awe of this beautiful beach elopement spot and how amazing these two looked in it. After the ceremony, we hung around to take a few more photos, and then set off to the next location: the cape of Cape Kiwanda.
AN EPIC SUNET TO CAP OFF A PERFECT OREGON BEACH ELOPEMENT
After the ceremony, we drove around to the main access point to Cape Kiwanda to explore the area for what promised to be an epic sunset. Before climbing the dunes, we stopped to snap a few shots on the rocks in front of the massive off-shore sea stack. Canon Beach is known for its huge sea stack, but the one at Cape Kiwanda is actually even bigger.
A little before sunset, we climbed the dune to pop some bubbly and soak in the final rays of daylight. Then we popped down to a rocky platform next to the ocean for some blue hour portraits. The incoming tide brought waves crashing nearby in the background, with some spilling water into little pools on the rock. Kendall and Brian listened to the waves and held each other close as their beach elopement came to an end. When the sun was gone below the horizon, we all trekked back to Pelican Brewing (which has one of the best beach bar locations we’ve ever seen) for beers and dinner. It was the perfect end to the perfect beach elopement.
Check out more Coastal Elopement Destinations in the PNW
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PHOTOGRAPHY | THE FOXES PHOTOGRAPHY // OFFICIANT AND FLOWERS | THE GREATEST ADVENTURE WEDDINGS // DRESS | LULUS