Some 3,000 to 3,500 people are expected to attend the 13th Yachats Agate Festival Saturday and Sunday, looking at displays and vendors in the Yachats Commons and Lions Club Hall. (Quinton Smith/Lincoln Chronicle)
By CHERYL ROMANO/Lincoln Chronicle
YACHATS — Two major winter events heat up the social calendar this month as the Agate Festival and Yachats Lions Crab Feed come back to town.
The 13th Yachats Agate Festival is a free family attraction celebrating the world of rocks Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 17-18. This year the festival becomes an official event of the Yachats Lions Club.
From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., at both the Yachats Commons and Lions Hall, attendees can browse almost 40 vendors of rock-related goods, hear expert speakers, and watch and take part in demonstrations.
The popular Crab Feed closes out the month on Saturday, Jan. 31, with four seatings for all-you-can-eat Dungeness crab. Each $50 ticket buys crab, coleslaw, garlic bread, baked beans and beverages.
Crab feed tickets are going quickly. To order, go here. There will be two seatings Saturday – 12:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. — at both the Yachats Lions Hall and Yachats Commons.
Thousands expected for Agate Fest
Agate Festival committee chair Candi Claussen expects some 3,000 to 3,500 people to attend the weekend of events that explore the world of agates — semi-precious stones in the quartz family.
Rocks and other minerals of all shapes and sizes will be on display and for sale Saturday and Sunday during the 13th Yachats Agate Festival. (Quinton Smith/Lincoln Chronicle)Traditionally held on the three-day Martin Luther King Day holiday weekend, the festival offers all ages “something to smile about,” said Claussen. “It’ a family fun atmosphere, with such a variety of items centered around Mother Earth … and the speakers offer a wealth of knowledge.”
In addition to the displays, speakers and demonstrations, the festival offers a chance for visitors to experience the agate window-walls at Yachats Community Presbyterian Church, also known as the Church of the Agate Windows. For one hour – 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday — church members will offer brief talks about the six large agate panels in the sanctuary.
The festival is now under the umbrella of the Yachats Lions Club. Claussen, who runs the Big Dog BBQ food truck with her husband, became a Lions member last year and wanted the event to benefit from the Lions’ nonprofit status.
Multiple raffle items from local shops, restaurants and vendors will be up for grabs for $1 apiece. Winners don’t have to be present to collect their prizes, which will be drawn at 4 p.m. Sunday. All proceeds this year will go to Reach For the Stars (https://reachforthestars.info/), a therapeutic horsemanship program in Seal Rock.
“We’re very pleased to bring the Agate Festival to Yachats as a community event,” said Lions Club president David Okelley. “It’s another way we serve and continue to grow.”
A large group from the Eugene/Junction City area have been attending the Yachats Lions Club crab feed for years, including this trip over in 2025. (Quinton Smith/Lincoln Chronicle)Seats added for crab feed
Like the Agate Festival, the Lions’ annual Crab Feed fundraiser draws throngs of visitors to town, as it has for over 30 years.
This year the feed maintains its all-you-can-eat format, with ticket prices up slightly — $50 from last year’s $45 — to reflect rising cost of Dungeness crab.
A total of 480 tickets were made available when sales were opened earlier this month. “We sold out last year,” reported club president David Okelley, “so we’ve added another 140 tickets.” To accommodate the crowds, Lions added a 12:30 p.m. seating at the Commons.
In addition to in-person dining, there is a take-out option. Tickets for groups can be purchased in any number.
“We will ensure that you are seated as a group,” Okelley said.
As in years past, students from Angell Job Corps will join volunteers from the club and the community to help stage the feed.
“We get great support from the community and local businesses in Yachats, Waldport and Newport,” Okelley said. “South Beach Fish Market cooks and cleans the best-tasting local crab you have ever eaten.”
The crab feed helps fund the Lions Club’s charitable services locally and throughout the county. Proceeds from the feed also go to the Oregon Lions Sight and Hearing program, providing vision screening for children in Lincoln County schools, as well as home-schooled students.
This year, close to 3,000 students are receiving vision screenings thanks to the Lions.
“This is where your crab feed money is going — to make sure our kids in the district are vision-screened,” Okelley said.
- Cheryl Romano is a Yachats freelance reporter who contributes regularly to Lincoln Chronicle. She can be reached at [email protected]
