Adventures
- Art, History & Culture
- ATV & Motorsports
- Birding & Wildlife
- Clamming
- Crabbing
- Cycling
- Entertainment and Nightlife
- Fishing
- Fishing by Style
- Forest Bathing & Mindfulness
- Gaming
- Golfing
- Hiking & Walking
- Lighthouses
- Ocean Life & Tidepooling
- Running
- Scenic Drives
- Shopping
- State Parks and National Lands
- Storm Watching
- Theatres
- Undeveloped Beaches
- Untamed Dunes
- Water Recreation
Ocean Life & Tidepooling
You’ll find diverse marine habitats on the Southern Oregon Coast. This is because OAC includes rocky and sandy shores, bays and estuaries, isolated coves, sea caves, extensive sand dunes and the open Pacific. And what makes Land’s End here even more awe-inspiring is that the entire ecosystem is framed by picturesque coniferous forest.
Indoor Learning and Family Fun
Located on the edge of the harbor in Charleston, OR, the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology’s Charleston Marine Life Center is an exciting place for discovery. Aquaria highlighting different coastal ecosystems, a tidepool touch tank, whale and sea lion skeletons, underwater video from deep reefs and undersea volcanoes, and a variety of specimens reveal the hidden and remarkable diversity of life off Oregon, from the coast to the deep sea. And that’s all indoors.
Charleston Marine Life Center
63466 Boat Basin Road
Charleston, OR 97420
(541) 888-2581
https://cmlc.uoregon.edu/
Take a Virtual Tour of the Charleston Marine Life Center!
Tidepooling in Nature
When you’re ready to step outside, you couldn’t be in a better spot to continue your marine life exploration.
Charleston is on some of the most spectacular coastline in Oregon. This area is famous for its rugged topography and spectacular scenery. There are daily opportunities to interact with nature in all of her splendor.
Explore the varied seashore and marvel at one-of-a-kind tidepools! Learn about what it is like to live where the waves crash and plants and animals are sometimes left in pools just waiting for the next tide.
Observe and study sea stars, limpets, sea slugs, snails, chitons, mussels, barnacles, crabs, worms, fish and octopods. Explore the different adaptations these animals have for holding on, moving and eating in the busy world at the edge of the sea.
Please remember to treat the area with care. These are living plants and animals in their natural environment.
