Mile 287 Report
Bayocean Peninsula north of Bayocean site 2
February 17, 2022
A quiet day at the beach - just a handful of folks strolling along the shoreline, only one of whom had a dog with them.
Report Details
A quiet day at the beach - just a handful of folks strolling along the shoreline, only one of whom had a dog with them. Visited at the apex of high tide and watched the tide recede; observed an extremely large number of beached moon jellies of all sizes ranging from very small to very large deposited along the high tide line. There had to have been thousands of them - it's the largest concentration of moon jellies I've ever seen (see attached photo of just a couple feet of the driftline). Additionally, there was a significant amount of trash accumulated along the shoreline. There was way too much to carry out to the parking area, so we worked for several hours, filling every large Solve trash bag we had with us and creating a large mound of trash above the tide line on the northern end of the mile. We notified the rangers at Cape Lookout State Park about the location of the trash pile and they said they'd try to pick it up on their next trip along the spit. I'm ready for the pandemic to be over so that the annual spring and fall beach clean-ups can resume!
Conditions
Temperature: 50 F. Cloud Cover: Partly Cloudy. Wind Velocity: Calm/Light. Wind Direction: SW. Tide Level: 7.5 feet.
Human Activities
Number of people: 6. Number of dogs: 1. Walking or running: 6.
Vehicles
Notable Wildlife
Saw 3 bald eagles perched in trees above beach; 2 mature adults and 1 juvenile.
Beached Birds
Total dead birds: 1. none visible
Dead Fish or Invertebrates
Unusual concentration. Very large number of beached moon jellies of all sizes, ranging in diameter from as small as
Driftline Content
Small rocks, Seaweeds and seagrass, Shells, Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Wood pieces, Land-based debris (picnics, etc.), Marine debris (plastic, styrofoam, etc. washing in from the sea), Styrofoam, Ocean-based debris (from fishing boats, ship trash, etc.). Lots of flotsam and jetsam! Significant amount of styrofoam pieces of all sizes as well as large quantities of fishing-related debris (nets, lines, crab traps, bait containers, etc.).
Report Images
All Mile 287 Reports
Mile 287
Bayocean Peninsula north of Bayocean site 2
The cloudy marine layer that was present when we first arrived eventually burned off, providing us with a pleasant but breezy sunny afternoon for our visit. 1) We encountered an intact hull of a fiberglass boat on the mid-section of the mile; photos and location information was provided to the State Park Ranger so it could be retrieved from the beach. 2) There had been a massive influx of velella velella (by-the-wind sailors) washed ashore several days before our visit. 3) Given the number of folks in the parking area when we arrived, we had expected to see more folks on mile 287 but encountered just a typical number of visitors. 4) There was more detritus on the beach than we've seen in recent previous visits.
C NELSON
Mile 287
Bayocean Peninsula north of Bayocean site 2
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C Nelson
Mile 287
Bayocean Peninsula north of Bayocean site 2
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C Nelson
Mile 287
Bayocean Peninsula north of Bayocean site 2
We were disappointed that the SOLVE beach clean-ups have not been re-initiated following the pandemic, so decided to do our own.
C Nelson
Mile 287
Bayocean Peninsula north of Bayocean site 2
The primary purpose of this visit was to observe the impact of the last of this winters king tides.
C Nelson
Mile 287
Bayocean Peninsula north of Bayocean site 2
Remarkably clear smooth sand with small amount of driftwood pushed high up the beach.
JuliaH
Mile 287
Bayocean Peninsula north of Bayocean site 2
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Mile 287
Bayocean Peninsula north of Bayocean site 2
A pleasant, partly cloudy spring day.
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