Mile 247 Report
South Spit Salmon River, Tillamook/Lincoln county line
April 26, 2023
We observed quite a few birds, a dead sea lion, a dead starfish and conducted an MDMAP survey for the NOAA program.
Report Details
We observed quite a few birds, a dead sea lion, a dead starfish and conducted an MDMAP survey for the NOAA program. There were students from Camp WestWind and their counselors walking / sitting in groups on the beach. The crecent- shaped beach to the south of the rocky 'key hole' was inaccessable due to the level of sand and water at the time of this survey.
Conditions
Temperature: 54 F. Wind Velocity: Calm/Light. Wind Direction: NW. Tide Level: 0.8 feet.
Human Activities
Number of people: 32. Walking or running: 25. Sitting: 7. There were visible tire tracks in the sand. Confirmed after our last survey that yes -the staff at Camp WestWind use their ATVs to check the beach / remove debris.
Notable Wildlife
We observed 2 osprey, 2 bald eagle, 4 canada geese, 1 great blue heron, many sea snails, many sea anemone and several sea gulls.
Driftline Content
Shells, Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Marine debris (plastic, styrofoam, etc. washing in from the sea), Styrofoam, Ocean-based debris (from fishing boats, ship trash, etc.).
Natural Changes
Erosion of vegetated foredune.
Dead sea lion to the north of the marine debris survey site, halfway between the water and the back barrier.
evidence of recent erosion of the back barrier / cliff
anemone in the tide pools at the south end of Mile 247
Sea snail at the tide pool area at the south end of Mile 247
dead sea star to the north of the debris site at mile 247, halfway between the water and back barrier, near the dead sea lion
there were two osprey and several eagles circling overhead at the mouth of the estuary and landing in the large nearby trees
Report Images
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CoastWatcher
All Mile 247 Reports
Mile 247
South Spit Salmon River, Tillamook/Lincoln county line
A survey team of Sitka Center staff and local volunteers (GraySea, Jake, Nancy, Laurie and Bill) accessed the sand spit via kayak and canoe. The survey team accessed the south side of the 'keyhole' area in the rocky intertidal habitat (southernmost portion of Mile 247) and conducted a 15 minute timed count of ochre sea stars to submit to the MARINe program.
Sitka Team and Community Members
Mile 247
South Spit Salmon River, Tillamook/Lincoln county line
A survey team of Sitka Center staff and local volunteers (Chris, Nancy, Lilly and Melissa) accessed the sand spit via kayak and canoe.
Sitka Center Team and Community Members
Mile 247
South Spit Salmon River, Tillamook/Lincoln county line
Trash and dead seal
Joan Mahler
Mile 247
South Spit Salmon River, Tillamook/Lincoln county line
A survey team of two Sitka Center team members, Jake and Nancy, accessed Mile 247 - Salmon River Spit by crossing the Salmon River Estuary via kayak and paddleboard. During this survey, the survey team was able to access the inner area of the rocky habitat and do a 15 minute timed sea star count in the two sea star monitoring sites. As the survey team walked back north noteable debris included a large tangle of ships rope, noteable wrack line content included a high concentration of giant mole crab casings/moults and small pieces of hard plastics.
Nancy Newman
Mile 247
South Spit Salmon River, Tillamook/Lincoln county line
Survey participants accessed Mile 247 - Salmon River spit via kayaking/paddle boarding across the Salmon River Estuary.
Mile 247 - Salmon River Spit
Mile 247
South Spit Salmon River, Tillamook/Lincoln county line
Sitka Center team member Nancy and Sitka Center artists in residence Evan, Rose, Katrina, Tim, Maria and M accessed the site via kayak.
Nancy Newman
Mile 247
South Spit Salmon River, Tillamook/Lincoln county line
Sitka Team members and Sitka Center artists in residence accessed Mile 247 via kayak, walked south taking observations of the beach mile and met Camp Westwind Team members near Mile 247's rocky habitat.
Nancy Newman
Mile 247
South Spit Salmon River, Tillamook/Lincoln county line
This CoastWatch survey was conducted by Sitka Team member Nancy and 4 members of the Sitka Center 2024 resident cohort: Thomas, Erin, Christian and Fran.
Nancy Newman