Mile 173 Report
South end of Baker Beach, Sutton Creek, Heceta Beach
August 24, 2008
This past week, there have been greater than usual beached birds on Heceta Beach.
Report Details
This past week, there have been greater than usual beached birds on Heceta Beach. Mainly Common Murres, but also Gulls. There have been a few exhausted Cormorants. There was a dead shark, possibly a 5-Gill, that had washed up onto Baker Beach. It looked like something had taken a big bite out of it.
Conditions
Temperature: 70 F. Cloud Cover: Partly Cloudy. Wind Velocity: Calm/Light. Wind Direction: S. Tide Level: 1.5 feet.
Human Activities
Number of people: 20. Number of dogs: 6. Walking or running: 20.
Concerns
Disturbances: Shorebirds moving in response to humans/dogs
Notable Wildlife
Pelicans, Gulls, Sanderlings, Dunlins, Cormorants
Beached Birds
Murres, Gulls
Stranded Marine Mammals
Total stranded mammals: 6.
Dead Fish or Invertebrates
Unusual concentration. Dead Shark on Baker Beach. It had a bite out of it.
Driftline Content
Seaweeds and seagrass, Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Shells, Small rocks.
LCosko
CoastWatcher
All Mile 173 Reports
Mile 173
South end of Baker Beach, Sutton Creek, Heceta Beach
Hundreds of resting gulls, 8 humans 12 dogs-No humans encountered beyond the north of the creek mouth.
Ariana172
Mile 173
South end of Baker Beach, Sutton Creek, Heceta Beach
It has been a couple of months since I have had time to visit my mile.
cheshire
Mile 173
South end of Baker Beach, Sutton Creek, Heceta Beach
This is the first chance that I have had to walk this mile in several weeks.
cheshire
Mile 173
South end of Baker Beach, Sutton Creek, Heceta Beach
Walked miles 172-174 from south to north, then cut across the dunes inland and followed Sutton Creek back out to the ocean.
cheshire
Mile 173
South end of Baker Beach, Sutton Creek, Heceta Beach
The beach itself is cleaner than it has been, but there is quite a bit of debris that has blown into the dunes and into the area between the dunes and the brush on the north and west sides of Sutton Creek.
cheshire
Mile 173
South end of Baker Beach, Sutton Creek, Heceta Beach
Went back to Baker Beach, walking miles 172-176.
cheshire
Mile 173
South end of Baker Beach, Sutton Creek, Heceta Beach
I was able to cross the creek and check out the part of miles 173-174 North of Sutton Creek for the first time this year.
cheshire
Mile 173
South end of Baker Beach, Sutton Creek, Heceta Beach
Sutton Creek continues to migrate north, and the mouth of the creek has widened considerably.
cheshire