It goes by many names. Some call it a “gaping sinkhole,” the “drainpipe of the Pacific” even a “gate to hell.” But its official name is Thor’s Well. It is a stunning and treacherous feature of the Oregon Coast located in the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area in Siuslaw National Forest. In the absence of our primary target, migrating shore birds, we were still able to fill our days with photographic challenges including this scenic wonder. At high tide, the waves fill the hole from beneath, bubble through to the top and burst out the hole only to fall back in, appearing to fill and drain in an endless loop. The challenge for me was getting out to Thor’s Well. Inching my way across the barnacle encrusted rocks with Moose’s, Jerry’s, and Eric’s help, I finally realized that my boots were water proof and that I cold actually negotiate the rocks and the shallow puddles. I drew the line at climbing atop the rocky outcrop seen in the lower right of this image. But I did sit on a barnacle encrusted ledge on its edge. The waves surrounded the outcropping a few times while we were out there. It’s definitely a must-see on the Oregon Coast.
Congratulations on getting out to the well. the day I was there several years ago there were storms out to sea & the surf was too trecherous.