Mile 201 - Patterson Memorial SP, Patterson Cr, Yaquina John Pt - March 12, 2011

Report Details

Being a Monday at 2:15 PM, it wouldn't be unusual for there to be very few people on the beach, given that this is a work hour. So, the 5 people that were seen is small but not unexpected for March.The beach of Gov. Patterson Park and the area north to the mouth of the bay, had sparse, well dispersed driftwood in the upper reaches of the beach (the foredune). The lower beach was clear of driftwood.Not much debris in the driftline: 1 glass beer bottle, 2 plastic water bottles, a Korean plastic bottle, several small pieces of hard plastic. The dunes of the park had receded to expose some shrubbery roots and some small tree roots. This was after several stormy nights of high winds and rain....even hail. The 4 dead birds were found along this stretch as well.The beach at the south end of Bayshore was void of people,and dogs. The seals were hauled out on the sand along the river's mouth, as they usually are. Very little in the driftline: 1 plastic bottle, few odd pieces of plastic, a styrofoam float and some plastic netting. No driftwood and the sand had been carried away by the tides and storms, leaving the dune far back towards the houses.The storms re-arranged sand to reach the eaves of many of the houses along that end of Oceania. It's the first time I'd ever seen sand being pushed BACK onto the beach. They were using Bobcats to clear the sand.**I will attach photos of dead birds and marine plants after I download them from the camera.

Conditions

Temperature: 50 F. Cloud Cover: Cloudy. Wind Velocity: Strong. Wind Direction: SW.

Human Activities

Number of people: 5. Number of dogs: 3. Walking or running: 2. Other Activities: 3 playing with their dog. Nothing threatening the environment.

Concerns

Apparent violations: none.

Vehicles

Cars/trucks parking: 4.

Notable Wildlife

This was just after a storm the night before and there were no live birds on the beach at this time.

Beached Birds

Total dead birds: 4. 1 fulmar, 2 gulls with black wing tips,1 cormorantPhotos to be posted later

Dead Fish or Invertebrates

No other dead creatures

Driftline Content

Seaweeds and seagrass, Land-based debris (picnics, etc.), Ocean-based debris (from fishing boats, ship trash, etc.). 1 plastic beverage bottle with Korean lettering.

Man-made Modifications

South section of Bayshore beach: after the storms, so much sand has built up to the eaves of the houses at that end of Oceania that Bobcats are being used to push the sand back onto the beach.

Natural Changes

Newly exposed roots/trees falling, Visible retreat of solid bluff. These changes were present in the area of Gov. Patterson Park.

Actions & Comments

Additional comments: After days of storms, there were many kelp holdfasts up on the beach w/o their kelp. Not many large kelp stems were found, but lots of small to medium sized kelp that were brown and looked like small carrots, but were filled with air, and could have been air bladder floats for some species of algae or even could be bulbs of the young Giant Perennial Kelp.

gjport

CoastWatcher

All Mile 201 Reports

Date

Showing 8 of 20 reports

Mile 201

Patterson Memorial SP, Patterson Cr, Yaquina John Pt

July 2, 2024

During an impromptu walk on Patterson beach, I saw three intriguing, puzzling pieces of driftwood.

mudslide

Mile 201

Patterson Memorial SP, Patterson Cr, Yaquina John Pt

February 14, 2024

We were on a field trip for 6th grade.

Faith Forshee

Mile 201

Patterson Memorial SP, Patterson Cr, Yaquina John Pt

February 14, 2024

We went as a field trip with all our 6th graders from Crestview Heights in Waldport, Oregon. We did notice an abundance of what appeared to be new driftwood.

Becky Moser