Mile 125 - North Beach on North Spit Coos Bay - March 7, 2010

Report Details

The wreck of the George Olson, that 2008 smash sensation, lay covered up last year, but now it's back. Not too impressive, but there. Its one visible side stands 4' at the bow, 2' at the stern.Beautiful day, though a forecast of rain may have kept folks from venturing out. Two other women riding their horses, and one man with his dog trying to find a way down the bluff. Small flock of sanderlings, one vulture, one dead sea lion. Contacted State Parks about latter. They haul dead mammals further north to prevent habituation of predators near the snowy plover habitat on mile 125. Miles 125-126 collect more than their share of litter. My horse came home festooned with crab pot rope and two bags of trash, but we didn't make a dent. We could use 50 good SOLV volunteers here on the next workdays,but transportation might be a problem. A STOP sign in the middle of 126, affixed to a tall I-beam, surprised me. I'mtold by Parks that it will soon carry another sign alerting all users to the snowy plover reserve with restrictions for using the beach between 3/15 and 9/15. Beach grass that fell from the seawall two years ago has taken root and seems to be thriving. The surf was a brilliant white, the lower beach swept clean of all but a few shells, and I took great delight in observing my two, new adopted miles.

Conditions

Temperature: 60 F. Cloud Cover: Cloudy. Wind Velocity: Calm/Light. Wind Direction: W. Tide Level: 0.7 feet.

Human Activities

Number of people: 3. Number of dogs: 1. Walking or running: 1. Other Activities: horseback riding (2). Two women on horses, walking. Myself, w/ my horse, picking up litter. One man on seawall w/ dog, trying tofind a way down to the beach.

Concerns

Litter

Apparent violations: none.

Disturbances: Shorebirds moving in response to humans/dogs

Notable Wildlife

Small flock of Sanderlings. Two gulls.One vulture.

Beached Birds

Total dead birds: 3. All 3 gulls appeared to have been eaten.Little was left but the wings and bones.

Stranded Marine Mammals

Total stranded mammals: 1. One dead adult sea lion. It was lying within the snowy plover area which will be fenced off in another week. I called State Parks office to let them know. They routinely haul dead mammals further north on the beach to minimize habituation of predators to this area

Dead Fish or Invertebrates

Five crab carapaces

Driftline Content

Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Land-based debris (picnics, etc.), Ocean-based debris (from fishing boats, ship trash, etc.), Shells, Small rocks, Styrofoam, Wood pieces.

Man-made Modifications

New riprap or shoreline protection structures. Reinforcement of the north jetty was going on at this time last year. The jetty appears much more formidable now.

Natural Changes

The bluffs on Miles 125/126 are lower than further north on the beach, and look lower still this month. Enough sand was reclaimed by the sea during winter storms to partially expose the wreck of the George Olson.

Actions & Comments

Alerted Calum Stevenson, State Parks Supervisor, on 3/8, that they might like to haul off the dead sea lion near snowy plover habitat. I also told him that I had tied atangle of nylon rope too heavy to carry to the STOP signI-beam for pick up, as well as another hazard to wildlife(two plastic buoys w/ large loop of rope). He said thatthe State Parks patrol the beach often once crabbing season begins in December to pick up all the rope and net that is lost or thrown away. I suggested that the SOLV volunteers would make a big difference on Miles 125 and 126, since litter seems naturally to accumulate here. Transporting them to these more hard to reach miles on SOLV workdays, however,would be difficult.

rubygoes

CoastWatcher

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