Report Details

Pretty day on the beach,  I was on the beach when the tide was going out, my South Beach tide table indicates the low tide in SB was at 9:43 am & 1.43'.    The water line was pretty far out, alot of the beach often underwater was exposed.    The two dogs (one was mine) on the beach did not chase the few birds I saw: maybe 15 gulls & 10 or 11 crows.  I did hear some bird calls on my way back that I didn't recognize.  I don't do sound direction that well, the sounds seemed to come from over the water--I could see some birds way out over the water, didn't have binoculars w/me so could not even hazard a guess as to identification.    Always possible I was hearing land-based bird calls.   I am very familiar w/the sounds black oystercatchers make so am sure I wasn't hearing them.      I saw few people, all appeared to be enjoying a quiet uncrowded time on a beautiful beach or the water.   The community above/adjacent to the beach is showing signs of being overwhelmed & overrun.   Welcome to Zanzibar in the US!I've posted no photos as I don't know how to reduce them as required by Coastwatch, and it's my impression CW no longer allows photographers to copyright any photos they post.

Human Activities

Number of people: 12. Number of dogs: 1. Walking or running: 6. Sitting: 1. Surfing: 3. Other Activities: This is an approximate number, I was on the mile for close to an hour, many people stay on the beach for maybe 30 minutes, so people come, people go. There may have been more people (mostly surfers) by the time I left.. I haven't visited this mile in over a year. I observed many signs of a small community overwhelmed by tourists: there were multiple "slow" and "slow down!" signs along the main street leading to the beach accesses & the scenic overlook (Devil's Punchbowl). There were flexible stanchions (if that's the correct term) placed at close intervals about 30' on either side of the stairway access to the beach, across from one of the state park parking lots. When I arrived around 7:35 or 7:38 am, there were two other cars in the lot. When I left, there were perhaps 2 empty spaces, all the other 20 or so were full. I did not check the other parking lot--it attracts RV, 5th wheels that have difficulty fitting into the lot (I.e., sticking out so far that traffic in & out of the lot is blocked) closer to the park's restrooms & surfer showers. There was also a monitor on the street that showed the speed (alleged) the vehicle was traveling. The speed limit is 25 mph, on my way back to the lot I observed a vehicle that appeared to be traveling at close to 40 mph. Further east on this street, there were no parking signs posted. My guess is that tourists/surfers have been parking all along that street when available on-street & off street parking has filled up. Probably state parks will turn the grassy area adjacent to the restrooms into additional paved parking as who needs green space? There were not many people on the beach, I saw more on the other side of the creek at Beverly Beach state park (just south of the southern end of my mile). I saw a "full" sign for the Beverly Beach campground on 101. There were also many RVs parked along 101 between Newport & Otter Rock, in beach access parking lots and anywhere there was sufficient pullover space on the west side of 101.

Concerns

Fire

Apparent violations: I saw & photographed 5 fire sites. At least two appeared to have been used recently, there was no drifts of sand over the firewood, and the black/burned areas of the firewood looked pretty fresh. No smouldering or wisps of smoke were noted. I destroyed one of the fire sites by tossing all the firewood into a nearby creek flowing over the sand to the ocean. The other 3 looked as though they'd been used within the last couple of months. Every one of the fire sites was within 30' (3 were much closer) to the bluff, and often vegetation. I did not see much litter..

Vehicles

Cars/trucks parking: 20.

Driftline Content

Seaweeds and seagrass, Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Wood pieces. I saw few to no plastic bits in the drift lines. I did see a pair of flipflops & a two leash retractable gizmo. Soaked, sandy, & in the driftline. The driftlines were sparse compared to my home beach, from Yaquina Head north to Moolack Beach.

Man-made Modifications

A culvert under 101 continues to deteriorate due to lack of maintenance. In prior mile reports I observed & noted how at least one of the concrete slabs that once supported the culvert opening onto the beach, have fallen down or over. The last time I visited the mile, I noted all the drift logs, and some vegetation blocking the culvert's drainage area as well as the opening to the beach. The vegetation/brush I noticed last time is still there and looked pretty green. ODOT or whoever is responsible has failed to maintain this culvert and its channel/drainage area for at least 3 years. In addition, the bluff through which a drain pipe (another culvert I assume) runs (under the roadbed of highway 101) appears to have receded further. This exposes more of the pipe. When it rains, the water draining out the pipe further erodes the bluff, including the part supporting the pipe. In the past, I've observed people wearing a path to the beach via that bluff, or further accelerating bluff erosion (not far north of Johnson Creek/Beverly Beach, if I've remembered the creek name correctly).

Natural Changes

Newly exposed roots/trees falling, Visible retreat of solid bluff. There is ongoing erosion of the bluffs on this mile. I observed mulitiple small slides as well as ongoing weathering of any exposed "rock". There were mutiple small slides, particularly where strata was exposed in steep vertical bluffs. The top of the bluff is treed, those trees are gradually disappearing (fall over, slide down the bluff) that's over a 20-30 year period. Some parts of the bluff top are deeply incised, possibly initially by rain, the incised area further widened/deepened by wind-produced erosion. These bluffs generally have mud/clay stone layers that erode/fall apart pretty easily (weather) unless they' vegetated and these have stable vegetation only at the top. I again noticed that driftlog distribution seems to have moved south.

Actions & Comments

What action should I take?    Talk to gods of the ocean, rain and wind?   Some of the erosion I see has been accelerated by people creating "paths" down to the beach from wherever they park their vehicles.    Their work is obvious towards the south end of the mile and in various locations on my home beach in north Newport.

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All Mile 224 Reports

Showing 8 of 53 reports

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Mile 224

Beverly Beach north, Johnson Creek

July 5, 2024

Sunny & warm day, with more people & dogs then I've seen in years on the beach, probably because of the heat wave in PDX, the Willamette Valley & so much of the US. In addition to walking the mile to do a Coastwatch report, I participated in a Surfrider day after the 4th beach trash pickup.

s hogg

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Mile 224

Beverly Beach north, Johnson Creek

March 16, 2024

Low tide at Yaquina Bay was listed as 12:16 pm today, the north jetty & a headland, and probably about 8-10 miles separate YB from the beach at Otter Rock where my mile is located, I don't know how much those factors change (or not) the exact tide level when I stepped onto the beach this morning OR when I left, about noon. Overall a beautiful day on the beach, on my arrival there were probably 23 people (including surfers) on the beach, that number increased to the number I entered.

S hogg

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Mile 224

Beverly Beach north, Johnson Creek

July 22, 2023

Lovely day on the beach.

malachite

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Mile 224

Beverly Beach north, Johnson Creek

July 22, 2023

Very low tide this am, I have no idea what the exact tide level was so I didn't enter a number.

malachite

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Mile 224

Beverly Beach north, Johnson Creek

April 3, 2023

Pleasant if chilly walk on the beach.

malachite

decorative elemnt for a coastwatch report.

Mile 224

Beverly Beach north, Johnson Creek

March 11, 2023

Quite a dynamic winter on this mile, more erosion noted, and a moderate sized slide seen on the mile.

malachite

decorative elemnt for a coastwatch report.

Mile 224

Beverly Beach north, Johnson Creek

October 6, 2022

Nice day for a walk on the beach, clean beach, saw 6 cyclists (one solo, I think the rest were more or less together), first time I've seen cyclists on this beach, have seen them off & on from the south jetty north to Lucky Gap access.

malachite

decorative elemnt for a coastwatch report.

Mile 224

Beverly Beach north, Johnson Creek

September 11, 2021

Pretty day on the beach,  I was on the beach when the tide was going out, my South Beach tide table indicates the low tide in SB was at 9:43 am & 1.

malachite