Mile 215 Report

March 16, 2007
by NewportNancy

Location:

Lincoln

Yaquina Bay SP, North Jetty Yaquina River

Conditions:

Friday 3:30 PM

Foggy

60° F

Wind:

Calm/Light from the N

Humans / Pets:

People:

Dogs:

Activities:

Walking / Running:

Sitting:

Fishing:

Concerns:

Fire·Litter

Disturbances:

Vehicles:

Cars/Trucks parking:

Activity Comments:

Some people were sitting in their cars enjoying the view, some were probably at at the Yaquina Bay lighthouse.

Notable Wildlife:

1 squirrel, about 50 grebes in Yaquina Bay (southern limit of the mile), few gulls on beach

Dead Birds:

Total:

Species/names:

2 too decomposed to identify, 1 Western grebe

Stranded:

Fish & Invertebrates:

1 dead moon jelly washed up on beach

Driftline:

Kelp or Algae·Animal casings (e.g. crab, shrimp molt)·Animal casings (e.g. crab, shrimp molt)·Land-based debris (picnics, etc.)·Plastic pellets·Shells·Small rocks·Wood pieces

New Development:

Modifications:

Natural Changes:

Some erosion of road at northern end of Yaquina Bay State Park - orange fencing there to keep people away, probably will be addressed by Parks Dept.

Comments:

Light groundwater flow onto beach at various points along the mile. Nothing really notable.Beach topography very flat, featureless (on beach side of dunes, of course). Coastal fog rolled in after a gorgeous day. Wind felt like it was coming from the north but it may have been an onshore breeze due to warming in the Valley.No notable wrack line.Very low tide.1 transient "camp" observed at the base of the cliff of Yaquina Bay State Park near the shore of the freshwater pond.

Summary:

This was our very first observation of Mile 215. It was a gorgeous day all day, clear, warm, and still, but by the time we got down to the beach the coastal fog had rolled in and the temperature had dropped. It was an extremely quiet day in terms of human (or animal!) activity - only a few people walking dogs on the beach, although there was a beautiful sand castle on the beach so someone had been digging in the sand earlier. There were more cars in the parking lot than people on the beach, so probably many of them were visiting the lighthouse. As mentioned in the report, we saw a raft of grebes in the Bay, and one dead one on the beach, but not much other animal activity except for a squirrel running around the dunes. We did see one empty egg case. One homeless camp was observed at the base of the cliff within State Park limits.The inland edge of much of this mile is vegetated cliff with no indication of erosion, but within the Park boundary there is a spot at the northern end of the road within the park where erosion is occurring. We forgot to bring the camera, so no images this time around. We will also learn a bit more about what to look for as we do this more and more!

Other Mile 215 Reports (20)

2019

February 16, 2019 - JuliaAndLuna

Had hail for part of the walk. I think that kept a lot of people indoors.

2018

October 20, 2018 - JuliaAndLuna

The beach was very clean, I only found a single old toothbrush. Weather was comfortable on the walk south, but wind picked up severely on our way back up the beach.

2014

May 19, 2014 - B Pope

Nothing of significance. Notable fishing debris. Broken shells. Lots of wood washed up. A bit of kelp. Saw nothing with Japanese writing on it or anything that couldn't have come off one of our...

2013

November 23, 2013 - R Bayer

Nothing of special note. People and dog presence may be reason why I saw only one bird (a gull) on the beach. There was a very strong wind from the east, especially near the Yaquina Bay North Jetty...

September 7, 2013 - B Pope

Although this is my first posting, I've walked this mile for the last year. There are no significant changes. Tide was high so could not document rocky intertidal life on the north jetty. No...

2012

August 25, 2012 - R Bayer

There were more and a greater variety of shorebirds than usual. I was surprised to see the 2 Ruddy Turnstones, but had good long looks of them at close distance. Shorebird migration seems to be...

May 5, 2012 - R Bayer

A fair amount of woody and vegetative debris on beach, but no large human-made objects. Continuing small (<20 mm) plastic particles are present in some high tide drift lines.

2011

August 28, 2011 - Beachbum

Just so you know, those signs are fairly common on the stretch from Yaquina Head to the North Jetty. They're "floaters" that have come from the Cobble Beach tidepool area at Yaquina Head Oustanding...

August 26, 2011 - R Bayer

The weather was not comfortable for people to be on the beach, so there were fewer than usual. On the North Jetty was a triangular bright yellow waxed cardboard sign that folds underneath with a...

March 25, 2011 - R Bayer

Fewer people and birds than usual. Numerous small (<20 mm) plastic particles intermittently along 1-2 high tide drift lines; hard to quantify number and concentration of small particles that...

2010

October 16, 2010 - R Bayer

Much of the sand along the upper beach has gone since my Sept. 5, 2010 walk, apparently from wave erosion. Flotsam now occurred higher on the beach that it had since last spring. I saw less than 1...

August 6, 2010 - R Bayer

Along the driftline, there were very few plastic particles less than 20 mm long (<1 per square meter) and very few larger plastics, so few if any plastics have washed ashore recently. However, I...

June 12, 2010 - R Bayer

In the drift line on wet sand closest to the water, I found only 0-3 small (20 mm or less) plastic particles per square foot, so few small particles appear to be currently being washed up. However,...

April 11, 2010 - R Bayer

Lots of plastic particles less than 20 mm long in wrack line along the mid-beach as well as a fair amount of larger plastics as well as glass bottles, many of which had a cap. There were fewer...

March 7, 2010 - R Bayer

The 4 oystercatchers on the sand beach were a surprise. They may be resident on the North Jetty.

January 9, 2010 - R Bayer

Four dead birds: 3 Northern Fulmars (each had colored ties on wing, combinations: red-white-yellow, red-white-red, purple-white-red), 1 Pigeon Guillemot (no ties). The one significant bit of litter:...

2008

September 16, 2008 - NewportNancy

It was a foggy, quiet day along Mile 215. Moderate sand hills (1-2 feet) have formed on the southern end of the beach near the north jetty, but the beach was flat further north. It was clear that all...

January 11, 2008 - NewportNancy

Access via Yaquina Bay State Park was a small challenge today, as the path at the bottom of the southern staircase was flooded (the seasonal/weather-dependent "pond" behind the dunes had expanded...