Mile 204 Report
Driftwood Beach Wayside, Buckley Creek
June 3, 2022
Driftwood Wayside is open again after PacWave's departure, but I was the only visitor on this breezy, drizzly day.
Report Details
Driftwood Wayside is open again after PacWave's departure, but I was the only visitor on this breezy, drizzly day. I walked north to Seal Rock looking for potential Western Snowy Plover nesting habitat, but the beach is still barren from winter storms and tides. I only encountered two beach walkers, and one very aggressive young German Shorthair Pointer who ran up to me with ears laid back and decided I was worth nipping. There was no owner in sight, and the nip missed, but I'll carry my walking stick next time.Two days before, two other volunteers and I had conducted our second NOAA marine debris survey in the 100 meters south of Buckley Creek. We didn't find much debris, but the important thing is to methodically collect and categorize what we do find, report our results to NOAA, and periodically resurvey and report on the same site so that NOAA can hopefully get a better handle on this worsening environmental scourge. Except for ongoing surveys at Padre Island National Seashore in Texas, in the past month only eleven NOAA debris surveys were conducted on the entire East and West coasts, Alaska, and Hawaii, of which two-thirds (seven of eleven) were conducted in Oregon. Thanks, Jesse Jones, for helping make this happen!https://mdmap.orr.noaa.gov/site/1289
Conditions
Temperature: 56 F. Cloud Cover: Cloudy. Wind Velocity: Moderate. Wind Direction: SW. Tide Level: 0.0 feet.
Human Activities
Number of people: 2. Number of dogs: 1. Walking or running: 2.
Concerns
Apparent violations: An aggressive off-leash dog harassed me on beach, no owner in sight. I yelled at it until it ran off..
Vehicles
Cars/trucks parking: 1.
Notable Wildlife
None, just a few gulls near the water
Driftline Content
Very little driftline content
Report Images
Jon French
CoastWatcher
All Mile 204 Reports
Mile 204
Driftwood Beach Wayside, Buckley Creek
Today marked my latest sighting of the old growth driftwood log that I've admired and whose comings and goings from Driftwood Beach I've documented since June 2020, when I first photographed it high on the beach south of Buckley Creek.
Jon French
Mile 204
Driftwood Beach Wayside, Buckley Creek
I had read that the 265-foot vessel Seacor Lee would be anchoring a mile off Driftwood Beach in support of OSU's PacWave South wave energy testing project, positioned so that divers from the ship could perform work on previously installed seafloor conduits.
Jon French
Mile 204
Driftwood Beach Wayside, Buckley Creek
I haven't walked Driftwood Beach regularly since the PacWave South wave energy project completed work underground in the Driftwood parking lot.
Jon French
Mile 204
Driftwood Beach Wayside, Buckley Creek
By the time I got to Driftwood Wayside, a lot of people had already arrived for their New Years Day beach walks, some 30 vehicles in the parking lot and 30 - 40 people down on the beach, accompanied by at least half as many dogs, almost all leashed.
Jon French
Mile 204
Driftwood Beach Wayside, Buckley Creek
This was probably the last dependably dry Mile 204 walk before the rains begin in earnest.
Jon French
Mile 204
Driftwood Beach Wayside, Buckley Creek
After the morning fog lifted and before the marine layer moved in, I walked from Seal Rock on Mile 205 to Beach Access 66C on Mile 203.
Jon French
Mile 204
Driftwood Beach Wayside, Buckley Creek
Driftwood Wayside is open again after PacWave's departure, but I was the only visitor on this breezy, drizzly day.
Jon French
Mile 204
Driftwood Beach Wayside, Buckley Creek
The PacWave South wave energy project hosted a BBQ today at Driftwood Wayside for staff and neighbors to celebrate the completion of construction work here and the reopening of the Wayside later this month.
Jon French