Mile 336 - Columbia Beach, Peter Iredale wreck, Fort Stevens SP - July 24, 2019

Report Details

Another fantastic day for debris surveys at the Peter Iredale. Sunshine with slight breeze made for suitable walking conditions. One carload of folk thanked us for picking up litter and debris. We engaged another out of state visitor with a dog, that was interested in what we were doing. Great oppotunity for chatting up Oregon Shores. (These are the folks that may have been in a no permitted area, possible mobility issues?? ) We noticed many concentrations of Cellphane worm casings and crab molt(older, as shells were rather bleached out) on our walk. Coast line was rather clean with a few noted items. We filled one bag of litter/debris. We noticed that when we placed our trash in the garbage cans, someone else had previously come along and cleaned up additional debris/litter. That was a pleasant surprise.

Conditions

Temperature: 62 F. Cloud Cover: Sunny. Wind Velocity: Calm/Light. Wind Direction: S.

Human Activities

Number of people: 25. Number of dogs: 5. Walking or running: 10. Playing in surf: 5. Sitting: 2. Tidepooling: 5. Other Activities: 5-6 Vehicles driving in sand in permitted area, with 1 remaining in non permitted area (out of state). Most people were exploring the shipwreck and setting up for spending a day at the beach. Our observations were that some vehicles were driving to permitted locations and setting up picnic sites for the day. Most people that were enjoying a walk along the coast had dogs. By the time we ended our survey, there were twice as many vehicles in the parking area and people near the wreck. No off road vehicles noted at location.

Concerns

Apparent violations: See previous notes.

Vehicles

Cars/trucks parking: 30. RVs/Buses parking: 1. Cars/trucks on beach, allowed: 6. Cars/trucks on beach, prohibited: 1.

Notable Wildlife

Small flocks of gulls (likely suspects-California gulls, Herring gulls, Western gulls, etc.) 10-15 birds in each group; One Bald eagle flew over during survey. (We also found several primary feathers from (juvenile) bald eagle; possible feather molt??- as no carcass was noticed.) We left feathers at site.

Dead Fish or Invertebrates

Unusual concentration. Somewhat large concentration of Cellophane worm ( Spicaetoperus castarum) casings; Some evidence of older crab molt-rather bleached, Once small sea star (deceased) was discovered in shallow tide pools.

Driftline Content

Seaweeds and seagrass, Shells, Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Wood pieces, Land-based debris (picnics, etc.), Ocean-based debris (from fishing boats, ship trash, etc.). Found many items of clothing (children/adult socks, water socks/shoes,etc). Additionally, we found one cloth ball cap that had small Gooseneck barnacles on it as well as several (beer) beverage containers, wrappers, etc. pantyliner, cigarette butts, bottle caps, lighters and one large bundle of nylon rope.

New Development

No changes noticed

Man-made Modifications

N/A