Sep 15, 20218 min read

Oregon Dunes Exploration

Looking south at the beginning of the dunes.

Labor Day weekend was my first road trip in a couple of years (thank you pandemic) and the first without my trailer. Tent camping for 5 days was tough. I’m just not used to it anymore. I miss the trailer for its warmth and coziness and ease of cooking, etc. I don’t miss the towing, though or the low gas mileage (13mpg vs 18mpg).

This trip was down to the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area just south of Florence. I actually took the chance and reserved a campsite for four nights a few months earlier. That’s highly unusual for me but we don’t have a choice anymore- nearly every campground is all reservation. Waxmyrtle campground is a beautiful small Forest Service campground. Nearly every site has a thick layer vegetation of Shore pine, California myrtle tree, Douglas-fir, salal, manzanita, Sitka spruce, blue huckleberry, and Douglas spirea. Unfortunately, I was there for the holiday making it very noisy- including the constant din of ORVs decimating the dunes. I discovered I hadn’t been in this area for 40 years. The sound of ORVs was not a constant back then. I don’t think they were allowed access to as much of the dunes and people didn’t have the financial ability to buy these newer types. It’s ridiculous- just drive in circles and up hills just because you can. The noise would get so loud I couldn’t hear the ocean. With all of the noise, by the time I left I was annoyed by the sound of the ocean! I’m already sensitive to noise and since I started working at home, I’ve become even more sensitive.

It was a long eight-hour drive to my destination. Fortunately, the vast majority of the driving was on the freeway. Around Albany and all the way to the coast mountains the air was thick with wildfire smoke. Thankfully it lifted once I was on the other side of them. Highway 126 between Eugene and Florence is a bit of a windy drive but it’s a lovely rural drive with lots of Oregon State Parks along the way. If you get “lost” in Eugene just stop by the Fred Meyer, get gas, and ask them if you’re on the right road.

Once camp was set up and the dog was fed, I went for a drive through the marine layer that had set in to check out the campground, bathroom locations, and other areas nearby. The entrance road passes several small campgrounds and ends at the dunes. It’s a steep walk on deep loose sand to get to the top so I stopped numerous times to catch my breath. Once on the top I decided not to go down the other side to get to the ocean because between losing light and the marine layer it was difficult to see anything.

Back to camp. Sleeping on my air bed (wearing fuzzy socks and a stocking cap) in a sleeping bag, two blankets, and a little dog, I stayed mostly warm. Every night was a little different for temperature depending on whether the marine layer came in. That first night anxiety gripped me because I saw a sign noting that a black bear had been seen there. I found later it was back in June. Kind of silly since I’ve camped, hikes, and backpacked in bear areas many times. Although, one night Templeton started barking at something behind the tent in the middle of the night. I don’t know what it was, but it worked. It was the chihuahua in him! Too bad he’s not the size of one because he takes up the whole bed!

Since I hadn’t been out camping much- especially tent camping I found I was short on matches. Then I misplaced my little stove I use for boiling water. I felt like I was out of my element. Usually when I’m camping, I feel strong and relaxed- not this trip. I couldn’t find stuff. I didn’t have my little bathroom next to me (I did bring a 5-gallon bucket toilet for emergencies). And it was so disappointing because visitor centers were closed due to covid. I am a visitor center junkie so that was tough. I decided to pay attention to the small things and find joy in simple things.

I had a Pacific chorus frog croaking in my campsite and some very friendly Douglas squirrels and a Townsend’s chipmunk. I also had a few wrentits serenading me. One of the little squirrel rascals startled the hell out of me while I was writing in my journal. I suddenly felt something trying to get in my pocket and did a little startle scream, jumped up, and spilled lukewarm tea. That little dude then jumped up in the shrubs and started yelling at me! Sheesh- pretty cute, actually. Then the chipmunk kept climbing under the back of my truck. We had words about that which did no good. Good thing they’re cute.

Every morning at dawn and every evening at dusk I’d hear a loud squawking. I believe there

was a great blue heron that roosted in one of the trees in the campground.

It was great to hear the Swainson’s thrush in my campsite. Sadly, it wasn’t their song (which I absolutely love) but I’ll take the one note whistle. And there were swallows flying around. Both these species have moved south from my home.

Unfortunately, I discovered that I’m allergic to ragweed. I had to wait until I got home to figure out why my sinuses were stuffed up and, in the mornings, I had a runny nose. It was annoying and frustrating.

I’ve been trying to find information on why the abrupt difference between the 60-mile-long dunes and the sea stacks, sea caves, and rocky headlands adjacent to them to the north. The rocky headlands are resistant erosion leaving sandy beaches in front of steep bluffs. The dunes formed from loose sand, wind, and vegetation. The dense coastal forests keep the sand from continuing to move to the base of the Coast Range of mountains. The Oregon Dunes is the largest dune field in the United States.

On one of my trips into town and beyond to explore I had a magical encounter. I’m cruising along maybe a mile or two from the campground on Highway 101 and I see something emerge from the thick underbrush alongside the road. It was shady so I couldn’t make it out. At first, I thought it was a fox but as I got closer, I could see no tail. Bobcat! We met eyes for that magical second or two as I slowed waaay down in case it decided to dart across the highway. There were several cars behind me which was another reason for slowing down. Fortunately, it moved back into the shrubs while I honked hoping that would keep it in there. That was the first bobcat sighting I’ve had which made my day and week and month and year!

One morning I decided to head up to Cape Perpetua to explore and do some short hikes. The views were incredible. Lots of turkey vultures were using the juxtaposition of wind rising off the ocean and hitting the coast mountains effortlessly soaring, one nearly clipping my hood! At one stop there were about a dozen Harbor seals lolling around on their backs on a little rocky island. In the same area there were a ton of cormorants hanging out on the large rocky areas. It’s too late for nesting so I’m assuming it was a great roosting spot. The rock was whitewashed with bird poop. Then I look up and about a dozen Brown pelicans glide by.

I love the Sitka spruce along the coast. They’re so distorted and crooked becoming works of art. I swear they are Hobbit forests full of fairies and elves. Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) is found near saltwater along the coast from Cape Mendocino California all the way into Alaska. They can exceed 300 feet in height and 16 feet diameter if allowed to grow. Because it’s a light wood it is a popular wood for airplanes, pianos, harp, violin, guitar, sailboat pieces, and more so finding a large specimen is exceedingly rare.

I did the Lagoon Loop trail and the Waxmyrtle/Siltcoos River trail near the campground. I was pretty exhausted by the time I got back from hiking around, but it was worth it. A mile and a half was through the deep loose dune sand through the deflation plain wetlands. I just kept repeating “slow and steady wins the race.” The only way to get a real feel for an area is to walk it and absorb it.

I went north a second time to escape the noise and get away from the dune area. I checked out the South Jetty, but all the trails were steep up and over sand trails which I did not have the energy to do. Many of the dunes are 150 feet tall and the area was infested with OHVs. I did find an old interpretive sign along the road explaining deflation plain wetlands located behind the large foredunes. They formed after the introduction of European beach grass in the early 1900s. The beachgrass was introduced to stabilize the dunes. The leaves and roots capture and hold the blowing sand. Over time, the winds behind the foredunes eroded the landscape down to the groundwater. This created a narrow trough which is expanding eastward each year. With the amount of development going on in some areas of the coast I suspect the deflation plain will be stopped.

Continuing north, I then stopped by the Darlingtonia State Natural Area. An extremely short trail through a fen onto a boardwalk that leads to a collection of Darlingtonia californica also known as California pitcher plant and Cobra lily. It’s an 18-acre botanical park set aside between 1946 and 1964 specifically to protect the plant. These plants are a rare carnivorous and are found in serpentine soils and sphagnum fens that rise from wet sands on coastal plains which means they’re limited to Northern California and Western Oregon. Insects are attracted to the nectar inside the hidden opening. Once inside they become confused, fall, and are digested by the plant. The plant needs the nitrogen. To me they look like aliens. They are fascinating as is the ecosystem. As part of my job, I help delineate wetlands. I found this area unusual in that skunk cabbage and deer fern were growing together. Skunk cabbage is only found in wetlands and the deer fern only in upland areas, but here they were comingled. I haven’t figured out why.

I stopped at the Muriel Ponsler Wayside and wandered down the beach with Templeton to look for rocks and then just sit and bury my feet in the warm soft sand. I simply sat back, soaked up the sun, and the music of the ocean. The song and scent of the ocean permeates and soothes the soul.

Every adventure has an interesting day. There was the one morning when my battery was dead. Fortunately, the camper next to me volunteered to give me a jump. Thankfully I carry jumper cables. (I’ll be buying a jump starter for the next trip). I texted my son to find me an auto parts store open on Sunday in Florence because the internet was spotty in the campground. I don’t normally camp in campgrounds, so it was great that this happened here. Off to Auto Zone I go. They checked the battery, and it was fine, but the positive terminal was caked. He went out of his way to clean the terminal and I haven’t had an issue since. The next morning the camper who helped me and we chatted batteries. He also warned me that Highway 101 north was packed on Monday. Good thing I was taking a different wat home.

All in all, it was a great time and I’m already planning to do the Oregon Coast once I retire and buy my RV. Will I camp at Waxmyrtle again? Probably not. They have destroyed the serenity of the dunes by allowing ORVs all over the dunes except a few areas where Snowy plover nesting is protected from March 15-September 15.

If you go to this area, stop in at the Lakeview Myrtlewood gift shop in Dunes City about 5 miles south of Florence on Highway 101. There are some amazing items there. Art in wood with reasonable prices. Don’t forget to pick up some Shit spices. And they’re dog friendly!