Mile 202 Report
North Spit Alsea River
July 16, 2024
Today was the first windless day in awhile, shirtsleeve weather with a calm sea and a distinct marine layer offshore.
Report Details
Today was the first windless day in awhile, shirtsleeve weather with a calm sea and a distinct marine layer offshore. I hadn't walked Mile 202 in a couple of months, and I was struck by the continuing encroachment and new dune formation by European Beachgrass and also by American Searocket, a member of the mustard family which some studies suggest is native to the Atlantic coastline but has been introduced to the Pacific coast and is now considered naturalized, reproducing and dispersing on its own. Although Western Snowy Plovers prefer a little beach debris, this continuing spread of vegetation and dune formation on the wide southern stretch of Mile 202 near Alsea Bay will likely diminish suitable habitat for these threatened birds, which winter and breed here.
Conditions
Temperature: 60 F. Cloud Cover: Sunny. Wind Velocity: Calm/Light. Tide Level: 4.3 feet.
Human Activities
Number of people: 14. Number of dogs: 4. Walking or running: 8. Sitting: 6.
Notable Wildlife
Two western snowy plovers seen near a "double" sized roped nest exclosure, two turkey vultures, pelicans flying both north and south, a few pelagic cormorants flying inland from the ocean. Like every year for the past five years that I've watched, the osprey platform atop the repurposed tsunami warning siren pole in the Bayshore Beach Club parking lot was again occupied early in the nesting season but soon abandoned.
Driftline Content
Small rocks. Almost no wrack line except for small rocks.
Natural Changes
See summary.
Report Images
Jon French
CoastWatcher
All Mile 202 Reports
Mile 202
North Spit Alsea River
Today was the first windless day in awhile, shirtsleeve weather with a calm sea and a distinct marine layer offshore.
Jon French
Mile 202
North Spit Alsea River
Bayshore's HOA recently spent $2,500 for permits and bulldozing a path down to the beach behind the Bayshore clubhouse, a designated public access, smoothing out the drop-off resulting from winter erosion and restoring access for beach goers and our State Parks ranger's ATV.
Jon French
Mile 202
North Spit Alsea River
Mile 202 beach accesses and exits are now restricted because of erosion and sheering off of the sand cliffs along its northern portion, so I now need to plan for a receding tide if I want to walk the entire mile safely.
Jon French
Mile 202
North Spit Alsea River
After finding forty beached Cassin's Auklets on Jan.
Jon French
Mile 202
North Spit Alsea River
A beautifully calm, sunny day, maybe the last for awhile, with a fifteen mile view from Seal Rock to Cape Perpetua and hardly anyone on the beach except for two surf fishers and a couple valiantly trying to launch a kite with no wind.
Jon French
Mile 202
North Spit Alsea River
As I began yesterday's mile walk and monthly COASST beached bird survey, a light rain began to fall, the first in months.
Jon French
Mile 202
North Spit Alsea River
As I have done before, I combined today's walk with my monthly COASST survey for dead seabirds.
Jon French
Mile 202
North Spit Alsea River
The beach was fairly cool today after 99 degrees two days ago.
Jon French