Mile 129 - Horsfall Beach on North Spit, directly west of Jordan Cove - June 27, 2007

Report Details

A glorious day at the beach, worthy of an Oregon travelog. There was remarkably little trash on the beach-hooray! I witnessed only appropriate people use, although ATV tracks divulged some recent disallowed use. I saw Western Sandpipers, Snowy Plover, Whimbrels, Long-Billed Curlew, Osprey, Common Crows and Ring-billed Gulls. Doggies were on leashes or under excellent voice control. Two western equestrians galloped in the sandy area. Kelp/algae, shells, animal casing, small rocks and wood pieces in driftline. Shorebirds foraging in surf and moving in reponse to humans. Moderate human impact (13)-4 walking, 5 playing in surf, 2 sitting and 2 horseback riding.

Conditions

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

Human Activities

Number of people: 11. Walking or running: 4. Playing in surf: 5. Sitting: 2. While no vehicles were seen, there were ATV tracks on the beach, indicating recent illegal use of this closed-to-ATV area.

Concerns

Disturbances: Shorebirds moving in response to humans/dogs

Notable Wildlife

Western Sandpipers, Snowy Plover, Whimbrel, Long-billed Curlew, Osprey, Common Crow, and Ring-billed Gull.

Driftline Content

Seaweeds and seagrass, Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Shells, Small rocks, Wood pieces. Lots of "eel-grass" on the beach. The beach was refreshingly clean of human debris.