Skateparks in Oregon are known as some of the country's best, due largely in part to the efforts of Dreamland Skateparks of Lincoln City, which has built parks all over the world, including one of the crown jewels right in their hometown.

Need inspiration to get moving in the new year?  The Newport Recreation Center has just the thing to jump-start your engine with “Newport to Nyssa,” a virtual mileage challenge inspired by Highway 20.

We were all laughing by the time I pulled into the driveway to visit Jean and Don Stuart. To help me find their trailer, sitting on a cement foundation among burned trees, automobiles and other detritus in the fire-ravaged Panther Creek neighborhood, Jean told me to “Look for the star." After watching me drive right past them twice, my eyes squinted, searching for the star at ground level, Jean finally called me and told me to look UP.

The Oregon Coast Council for the Arts is presenting a new series of winter “Art to Go” kits for distance-learning by kids, families and adults throughout Lincoln County. Designed for kids aged six and up, the kits promote creative, project-based learning opportunities and are available through Thursday, March 4, while supplies last.

Flowers native to Oregon are the focus of “Flower Girls,” an exhibit presented by the Oregon Coast Council for the Arts featuring 24 oil paintings by Lincoln County artists Victoria Biedron and Katia Kyte.

It has been roughly a decade since my friend Dennis Gibson, a wheelchair user, gently pointed out that I was often forgetting to include accessibility information in my stories. Dennis passed away in 2017, but since the time he awakened me to my unintentional oversights, many gains have been made to increase access to the trails and beaches that make the Oregon Coast such a treasured place to live and visit.

It’s January 2021 and here we are, still in the throes of the pandemic. Some creative types, like members of Newport’s performing arts community, are working hard to keep the muse alive. 

Fans of wood art should be sure to turn out for the latest exhibit presented by the Oregon Coast Council for the Arts, “A Segment of Art,” running through Saturday, March 20, in the Coastal Oregon Visual Artists Showcase at the Newport Visual Arts Center.

Traditionally, the times considered best for whale watching on the Central Coast are the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day and the week of Spring Break. But according to marine biologist and owner of Whale Research EcoExcursions, Carrie Newell, not only can Gray whales be seen here all year, spring is good and summer is best.

Since the end of last year, Lincoln City’s Driftwood Public Library has been hosting a virtual Death Cafe, facilitated by Death Doula Crystal Akins.

There’s no doubt about it, times have changed. Life during the pandemic means mask-wearing, social distancing and avoiding crowded spaces. Creative thinking abounds, however, like within the Yachats Lions Club, which will be holding its annual Crab Feed on Saturday, Jan. 30 — with a bit of a twist.

The Sitka Center for Art and Ecology is continuing to throw open the virtual doors and share the work being produced by its resident artists and scientists, inspired by the trees and wildlife on Cascade Head just north of Lincoln City

After six weeks of closure, Chinook Winds Casino Resort in Lincoln City will re-open this Friday, Jan. 15, with increased safety measures in place.

Words people usually associate with animal rescue are ones like, “fluffy,” cuddly” and “cute.” Not, usually, “scaly,” “poisonous” or “illegal.”

Whether you credit the quote, “With great power comes great responsibility,” to Voltaire or Spider Man’s Uncle Ben, we should all be grateful that the state of Oregon has imbued everyone with the power to visit most of the coastline.

Thanks to a rescheduling, Lincoln County artists now have a bit more time to get works in for the Oregon Coast Council for the Arts PushPin & ClothesLine Show, which will now run from Saturday, Jan. 16, through Saturday, Feb. 27 in the Runyan Gallery of the Newport Visual Arts Center.

The Lincoln City Community Center is back open and, to help celebrate, is holding a socially distanced version of the annual New Year’s Swim on Saturday, Jan. 9, from 9 to 11 am, where a group of swimmers will try to complete a total of 2,021 lengths of the center’s pool.

With the fast evolution of the smartphone camera and easily added filters making everyone a “photographer,” it’s easy to forget that it wasn’t that long ago that photography was an art practiced by few and admired by many.

Perhaps you’ve heard of Wim Hof, aka “The Iceman,” a Dutchman who has made a name for himself by combining attention-seeking stunts, like spending more than an hour lying on a huge block of ice in his underpants, with medically overseen experiments that reveal evidence that shocking the system regularly can have real long-term health benefits.

Spend enough time around trail runners and you’ll soon find that they are too tired all the time to have a sense of humor that transcends the adolescent level.