Three Graces (Crab Rocks)

The Three Graces sit on the west side of US-101 a short distance north of Garibaldi, three sandstone rocks emerging from the water in the channel between Garibaldi and the north jetty of Tillamook Bay. From Portland the approach runs Highway 26 west, then Highway 6 into Tillamook, then 9.9 miles north to Garibaldi, then another 1.2 miles to the highway turnout. The rocks themselves are landmarks visible from the road; underwater, the site is one of the rare shore-accessible pieces of rocky substrate along this stretch of north coast. Zentacle's site profile puts maximum depth at roughly 60 to 70 feet, with large boulder formations, rock structures, and swim-throughs below the emergent rocks.

Their geologic age is likely 20 to 30 million years, and they are prominent enough that a local Yelp listing files them as a historical building, a reflection of their standing as a place people stop to see.

The Three Graces and the boulder field around them read as a rocky reef biome, with plumose anemones colonizing the boulders at about 15 feet down. Their seaward flanks catch open ocean swell as it rolls past the north jetty, adding a surf zone biome to the same dive. Scuba divers work the site for the rocky substrate and for spearfishing.

A free parking pullout on the west side of US-101 sits just north of the rocks, and it is generally uncrowded. There are no restrooms. The path to the water crosses the railroad tracks and drops over a low riprap. Currents at the site are complex and change quickly, and ebb-tide flow can reach 4 knots or more, so the dive is a compass exercise best worked on high slack. Water temperature runs around 47 degrees Fahrenheit, and visibility ranges from 4 to 30 feet with weather and tide. Spearfishing is legal here under standard Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife rules, with the 2026 Ocean Endorsement required for ocean spearfishing.