Mile 131 - Horsfall Beach, Oregon Dunes NRA - March 27, 2014

Report Details

On the Oregon SOLVE day, there was good turnout but not much to collect, at least at Horsfall Beach. It seems that sand moved onshore during the last major storm, and buried whatever debris was on the beach. The dunes had caved onto the beach in spots. Some people left and went to clean up areas along the Coos Bay shoreline. It was a beautiful day on the beach nonetheless!

Conditions

Temperature: 55 F. Cloud Cover: Sunny. Wind Velocity: Moderate. Wind Direction: N. Tide Level: 1.7 feet.

Human Activities

Number of people: 12. Number of dogs: 2. Walking or running: 10. Other Activities: collecting beach trash, ATVing. Not much trash debris to collect; I believe the last big storm several weeks ago buried it all with several feet of sand. Much less collected than in previous years. People left to go do clean-up around the bay.

Vehicles

Cars/trucks parking: 25. ATVs/OHVs parking: 8. RVs/Buses parking: 4. ATVs/OHVs on beach, allowed: 5.

Driftline Content

Seaweeds and seagrass, Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Shells, Small rocks, Styrofoam, Wood pieces. very little debris

Natural Changes

Erosion of vegetated foredune.

Actions & Comments

No...I did talk with some clean-up volunteers and explained that most of the debris I have ever seen over the last six years is not from people leaving debris while on the beach, but has blown in from the ocean with the high tides. Much plastic, ropes, etc.