Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

Earlier this year, we asked readers to pick their favorite Oregon State Parks. Now, we're headed to the top 15 to check in, bringing back a comprehensive guide to each one.

Drive out to the remote reaches of the southern Oregon coast and you’ll find it: an old estate proudly established on the rugged sandstone cliffs, where tall waves crash sending ocean mist drifting, swirling through five acres of formal gardens and stately structures – a place of manicured and natural beauty unmatched on the Oregon coast.

To find it, you have to drive Highway 101 to North Bend, break off onto the Cape Arago highway to tiny Charleston, then follow the narrow road out to a rocky section of the southern coast, home to several inlets and offshore islands, one lovely but inaccessible lighthouse, and four state park sites – the highlight of which is Shore Acres.

Its beautiful balance between nature and garden is reason enough to visit the state park, but Shore Acres has much more to offer. The park glows with a storied history, and shines even brighter at the end of each fall, when colorful holiday lights fill the gardens.

It’s rare to find such luxury on public land, but like so many state parks in Oregon, Shore Acres wasn’t always open to the public.

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Courtesy of Oregon State Archives

THE HISTORY

The state park began as the private estate of local shipbuilder and lumberman Louis J. Simpson. He bought the land in 1905 and within five years he had constructed an opulent three-story mansion on grounds that featured an indoor saltwater pool, massive ballroom and private power plant, as well as several formal gardens.

A 1910 feature in The Oregonian described it as “the most luxurious home in the state of Oregon,” a palatial summer estate that Simpson and his wife, Lela, dubbed “Shore Acres.”

In 1921, a fire destroyed the mansion, and Simpson set out to rebuild his estate bigger and better than before. The new home was a two-story building the length of a city block, with 17 rooms and the original saltwater pool, which had survived the fire. But financial losses during the Great Depression took their toll on the Simpsons. In 1942, they sold the land for a mere $29,000 to the state of Oregon, which set to work preparing it for use as a public park.

But before the state could get too far, the U.S. Army took over the estate, using the site as a radar station during World War II, occupying the mansion as barracks and an officers’ club. By the time the army left in 1948, the building was in such poor shape that the parks department had to tear it down. The gardens also fell into a state of disrepair until 1974, when the department launched an initiative to rehabilitate Shore Acres, hosting a rededication ceremony the next year.

The gardens were brought back to – or perhaps have exceeded – their former glory, but where Louis Simpson’s mansion once stood tall on the edge of the oceanside cliffs, the parks department built a humble observation building, from which visitors can watch waves crash against the rocky shore he once called home.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

THE GARDENS

Today, Shore Acres features some five acres of formal gardens, including a Japanese-style lily pond, rose test garden and plots where a wide variety of flowers and evergreen shrubs grow year-round. The gardens are also home to the largest Monterey pine in Oregon, according to the parks department.

It’s a rare example of a manicured garden both in an Oregon state park and on the Oregon coast. It’s a lovely place to wander, where pockets of solitude abound. There are ample places to take family photos or simply stroll among the colorful flower beds, the fresh ocean air on the breeze.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

SIMPSON BEACH

A short trail leads from the parking lot, behind back gates to the gardens, and down to Simpson Beach, a small sandy cove formed in the otherwise rocky shoreline. Since its inception as a state park, the beach has been a popular day-use spot, where you can lounge by the turquoise ocean, surrounded on all sides by the forested cliffs.

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Courtesy of Robin Loznak

STORM WATCHING

Shore Acres is one of the best places on the Oregon coast for storm watching. Here, huge waves explode against big rocks close to shore, dwarfing the coastline in extremely dramatic scenes. Every year, photographers and thrill seekers walk far out onto the rugged cliffs, but it should go without saying that doing so is extraordinarily dangerous and inadvisable. The observation building and fenced-in areas should offer good enough views.

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Courtesy of Oregon State Parks

HOLIDAY LIGHTS

One of Oregon’s best and most unique holiday light displays takes over the gardens of Shore Acres at the end of every fall. With more than 325,000 lights, the annual event – now in its 32nd year – has become a local tradition that draws about 40,000 to 50,000 visitors each year, with lighted sculptures, live entertainment and dozens of illuminated trees.

This year’s event will run from Nov. 22 through Dec. 31, from 4 to 9 p.m. every night. The cost is just the park’s regular $5 parking fee.

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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Jamie Hale/The Oregonian

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