During our trip to Bandon last month we also were able to stop and see this historic lighthouse at the mouth of the Coquille river. The view is not as scenic as the one at Heceta head but still worth the stop to look at it and go inside. It is situated at the end of Bullard’s beach park. There is a nice campground nearby and lots of good beach access.
description of the lighthouse at the start of the path to it
And now for a little history on the light house:
Adjacent to the town, the Coquille River empties into the Pacific Ocean. The river extends inland a great distance and was a natural link to the virgin stands of timber in the area. The bar at the mouth of the river, formed by the interaction of the river and ocean, was a major obstacle for ships entering the river. At times, only a few feet of water would cover the bar, but vessels still attempted to navigate the river in hopes of reaping the rewards that lay upstream. In 1880, Congress passed a bill funding the construction of a jetty on the south side of the river’s entrance. The jetty created a clear channel in the river, resulting in a rapid rise in the number of ships entering the river.
A lighthouse at the entrance to Coquille River was the next logical step for improving navigation, and in 1890 the Lighthouse Board used the following language to request funds for it.
A light of the fourth order with a fog-signal, at this point, would enable vessels bound into the river to hold on close to the bar during the night so that they would be in a position to cross at the next high water. The light would also serve as a coast light and would be of much service to vessels bound up and down the river.
Congress appropriated $50,000 for the project on March 3, 1891, but it would be four years before land was purchased, plans were solidified, and the construction crew arrived on site.
The workers first leveled the top of Rackliff Rock to provide a base for the lighthouse and oil house. Local stone was cut to form the structure’s foundation, while the lighthouse itself was built of brick, covered with a layer of stucco. The design was unique with a cylindrical tower attached to the east side of an elongated, octagonal room, which housed the fog signal equipment and had a large trumpet protruding from its western wall.
A long, wooden walkway connected the lighthouse to the keepers’ duplex, 650 feet away. Each side of the duplex had three bedrooms, a kitchen, dinning room, sitting room, and a 15,000-gallon brick cistern for storing water. A barn was located 150 feet beyond the dwelling.
One of several history plaques inside the light house
Silver creek has a total of 10 falls inside the state park. The trail of 10 falls is a mild 8.7 mile loop with only 600 ft elevation change. Next time I go I would like to do the entire loop. For this trip we only hiked the first two falls. It would have been a bit difficult once we got to the stair to take the strollers down to the base of lower south falls. The first 2 falls are an easy two-mile hike down and back that is very easy for children.
South falls as you hit the first fork in the path
Getting There: From Interstate 5 exit 253 in Salem, drive 10 miles east on North Santiam Highway 22, turn left at a sign for Silver Falls Park, and follow Highway 214 for 16 miles to the park entrance sign at South Falls.
The short hike: From the South Falls Picnic Area C parking lot, follow a broad path downstream a few hundred yards to historic Silver Falls Lodge, built by Civilian Conservation Corps crews in 1940. After inspecting this rustic stone-and-log building, continue a few hundred yards to an overlook of 177-foot South Falls. From here take a paved trail to the right. Then switch back down into the canyon and behind South Falls.
A few hundred yards beyond South Falls is a junction at a scenic footbridge. Don’t cross the bridge unless you’re truly tired, because that route merely returns to the car. Instead take the unpaved path along the creek. This path eventually switchbacks down and behind Lower South Falls’ broad, 93-foot cascade.
The creek in between the two fallsMy sister on a log that crosses the creekThe lower south falls near the base of the staircaseBoth of the first two falls have a path that goes behind the waterfalls
Me at the 4 mile mark hiking in to the Mink lake basin
A journey for my birthday this year. Our original goal was to hike all the way into mink lake. But we only made it to Junction lake before we collapsed from exhaustion. Next time we will start from a different starting point. There are a lot of mosquitoes in this area so bring lots of bug repellent
Trail name: Elk Creek Trail #3510
Distance: 7.6 miles to Junction Lake
elevation gain: 2000 ft (2950 to 4970)
Difficulty: Difficult
Directions: From Blue River proceed east for 4 miles on Hwy 126, turn right on Rd 19 (Cougar Dam) and continue for 22 miles, turn left onto Rd 1964 for 2.7 miles, then turn left onto Rd 456 to Elk Creek trailhead ½ mile.
Trail map in reverse direction but it shows the trail well
The first three miles of the path up from the parking area are the most brutal of this climb. 1600 foot climb in just under three miles. Well it was brutal for the two of us. We got passed by a group up near the three mile mark and it didn’t even look like they had even broke a sweat. After reaching the top of the plataeu the path is mostly small rolling hills for the rest of the way in.
The end of the hill climb is in sight
Most of the path is flat the rest of the way as it alternates between central Oregon dry and western Cascade forestsMink lake sign
Just past the five mile mark you will reach a trail crossing the path. The intersection has a well marked sign on what is each direction. The trail to Mink lake is on the northern trail (turn left)
The first lake you come to is Rock lake. There are no fish in the lake, but it is a nice spot to stop and take a break.Our camping spot for the day ended up being Junction lake
By the time we made it to Junction lake we were barely moving still. In hindsight doing a eight mile hike as our first backpacking trip was probably not my best idea. But it was a good measure of how good of shape we are in and how far we still need to improve. For me losing a bit more weight will make a big difference. By my 40th birthday next year I want to be in good enough shape to hike up to the top of South Sister mountain. Which is a 11.5 mile round trip with a 4900 foot elevation climb. There are supposed to be Cutthroat and Rainbow trout in Junction Lake, but we did’t have any bite or see any raising to the surface. We were on the shallower side of the lake so the fishing might be better around the back of the lake. We were just to tired to walk around to the other side.
Friendly giant toad we found in the mountainsMorning on Junction LakeEarly morning camp
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If you want to go on a drive to see wildlife this is a great place to find Elk. They are normally fairly close to the viewing area so you can take pictures and show children these giant herbavores.
From the BLM website:
The Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area is the year-round residence for a herd of about 100 Roosevelt elk. A mild winter climate and abundant food allow the Roosevelt elk to remain at the Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area all year. Dean Creek is a Day Use Only site. The O.H. Hinsdale Rhododendron Garden is located across Highway 38 from the elk viewing area. The garden will be open for public tours on Saturday, May 11, 2013 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
There are educational exibits at the ends of the viewing area to explain about Roosevelt elk and their life cycles. And it has the needed bathroom for most of those people that need it after a long drive.
More of the elk resting from a hard day of eating grass
Directions:
From Reedsport and Highway 101: Travel about three miles east on Hwy. 38 to the Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area signs.
From Interstate 5: Take Hwy. 38 west to Reedsport and the viewing area.
After our trip to see Salt creek falls we went farther up the creek to explore an area that my father used to take me when I was younger to catch fish. Salt creek above the falls has a multitude of small brook trout in it that make it a great place to take children to catch fish. The only issue is that it is very brushy along the edges. You just have to find a break in brush where a tree fell and walk over it to the creek. Then you can wade up or down the stream. This ended up being more of a bug hunting trip then a fishing trip. But Katy still caught 3 small brook trout as we wandered up the stream. Most people never think of how many different types of insects live in a stream. In the short time we looked for bugs we found close to 10 different varieties. And a couple of frogs.
Beautiful small creek once you beat through the brush to get to it
Katy with her D net and bug catching container
Large stonefly larva
Small frog we caught that still has part of a tail
Dragonfly larva
Katy and her net full of rocks and some crane fly larva. (just little maggots not very attractive to look at)
Releasing the critters back into the creek for them to live another day
This easy to get to waterfall is the second highest in Oregon. The path to see the falls is a short 256 feet from the parking lot. But if you would enjoy a longer walk you can do a short half mile hike down to near the base of the waterfall. The path does not go all the way to the base but if you are adventurous you can scramble down the loose slate rock to the plunge pool. Salt Creek creates one of the most impressive waterfalls in Oregon as it hurdles 286 feet into a gaping canyon near Willamette Pass. The size of the falls isn’t terribly notable in the area, but rather the process by which the falls were formed. Glaciers scoured the valley out during the last Ice Age, then following their retreat, lava flows filled in a portion of the valley, creating the narrow canyon walls composed of columnar basalt that are now seen at the falls.
The trail to the falls is wheelchair assessable
Salt Creek Falls was discovered by Anglos Frank S. Warner and Charles Tufti, his guide, in March of 1887. Salt Creek is named after a series of springs with a high salt content, which is often used as salt licks by wildlife. The falls were named for the creek. Though the falls are located within relatively close proximity to Eugene, this area was more or less wilderness for quite some time. The original viewpoint of the falls was from a pullout along the old Willamette Pass Road, directly across the canyon from the falls, You can still look at the falls from that perspective, but there is nowhere to park, so you have to walk along the road from the current viewing area. But if you want to go that way you might as well walk to the base of the falls. Walking the highway there is dangerous due to many people not expecting to see pedestrians in the area.
Two of my travel companions.
Located west of Willamette Pass, just off of Highway 58. The Salt Creek Falls day use area is located 21 miles east of Oakridge, or 5 miles west of Willamette Pass. The parking lot is well signed from the main road, and eastern travelers will undoubtedly see the falls through the trees before reaching the turnoff. The first viewpoints are handicap accessible, with the trail to the base being easy, but with numerous stairs. There is a $5 per day fee to park at the viewpoint or have a Northwest forest pass to use (currently $30 per year as of 2013)
View from the halfway mark as you head down towards the plunge pool
How the falls were created
View looking down from the base as the creek travels through the canyon
With the start of spring you also start getting lower tides which make for some excellent clamming. Every bay in Oregon is home to some type of clam. Some are more abundant then others though. My bay of choice (because it is closest) is the Siuslaw estuary near Florence. There are multiple types of clams located in the bay depending on what type you prefer. Near the mouth of the river you can find the occasional gaper clam and cockles. Farther up the bay you get into the mass population of softshell clams. The population of soft shells in the bay is enormous. It is considered the densest population of any bay in Oregon. Which is why I like to go there. The current ODFW limit is a nice 36 clams per person of the eastern softshell and 72 per person of the purple varnish clam (exotic species from Japan) I normally only see the eastern softshell but occasionally there is a purple varnish in the mud. I honestly don’t know what I would do with 108 clams at once if i could find both. That is a lot of shucking to do in a weekend.
Unless you like to be covered in mud a good set of waders are needed for digging for clams. A good portion of the time while you are clamming you are on your knees digging down a couple of feet. I have tried using a clam tube before with very poor luck. But I might have just been in to muddy of area. It will be worth a try to use it again in an area that has more of a sand mix. My standby digging equipment is a small shovel and a garden spade used together. Use the shovel to get down to the level of the clam then use the spade to finish digging without breaking the clam or cutting off its neck. You want to dig just to the side of the clam hole so you don’t hit it. Then run your finger down the hole until you hit the clam then pull it sideways out into the hole you dug. The only clam we normally get to eat in this area is the eastern softshell but I added some pictures in case anyone wants to compare the two when they dig.
Softshell clam
Purple varnish clam
It normally takes less than two hours to limit out on clams for us. Depending on how fast we dig of course. After a successful day it is time to shuck and decide what to do with the clams now.
Even with mud and rain it is clamming with a smile
An emergency bag is something that everyone should carry in their vehicle. Even if you will never need it will give you some peace of mind knowing you are ready. Since the only real natural disaster that the pacific northwest might have for long-term damage is a massive earthquake we will focus on a bag for that.
The earthquake that happened in Japan is an example of what could happen in the pacific northwest is an earthquake hits off the coast. From what experts predict what we would have would be much worse than what happened in Japan. The Cascadia subduction zone runs for 600 miles along the coasts of Oregon and Washington. If a major quake happened it would be along this entire fault line with a size of 9.0+. This would put a wall of water up to 100 feet high hitting the entire coast line. In addition the size of the quake would cause most of the Willamette valley floor to liquefy into a sinking mass of muddy disaster. Nearly every bridge along the majors rivers would collapse cutting off aid and food supplies to large amounts of people. Power will be cut off for months to years as power poles, transformers, and infrastructure is destroyed. Hopefully this scares you a little, because the chance of this happening in the next 50 years is predicted to be around a 40% chance. I know if it happens while I am at work that I will have a 40 mile walk through potentially flooded fields (also our local dam’s may collapse). This will be a 2-3 day walk so I will put together a bag that can help me with travel for up to 4 days or more.
things to have:
backpack to hold everything
pop can stove (a well made one will burn 10-15 minutes on 1 ounce of alcohol)
bottle of ethyl alcohol (the yellow bottles of HEAT work great)
cook pan of some kind. You can get military mess kits for fairly cheap. I got mine for $4 each just add some silverware to the inside of the kit.
Sharp knife and sharpening stone
4 days of easily prepared food such as the MRE’s, Hormel microwave meals are good, beans, rice, hardtack. Try to have a good mix of carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Freeze dried meals are nice and light to carry and easy to cook. Just adds a bit to the total expense of your pack
Snare kit/fishing kit to supplement your carried food. In an emergency there are a lot of Nutria and opossums here in the valley.
laminated or waterproof map of the area. Due to roads being out you may have to take back roads that you are not familiar with.
First aid kit (make your own)
emergency thermal blanket
some type of waterproof fire starter
spare change of clothes
water purification tablets and a strong metal bottle to carry water in. A collapsible water bladder would be good to carry water if you are any distance from a source of water. In the event of a disaster most water will most likely be contaminated so this is very much a necessary. If you have a water filter, you should carry it also.
small roll of toilet paper in a seal able bag
Cordage of some type. I vote for paracord 550. One strand will hold up to 550 lbs, and you can pull the inner strands out if you need to for smaller cords for fishing or snares
6 or more bullion cubes. (when you are cold and scared a hot salty cup of broth helps a lot)
Optional items:
Small handheld axe or Machete
Emergency flares
Tarp or small tent
Lightweight sleeping bag
This may seem like a lot to carry, but most of it is very small and easy to carry. An emergency pack shouldn’t be over 20 pounds. Anything that is used for hiking/camping is a great. Most of it is lightweight and packs easily. There are several stoves that you can purchase that will burn almost any kind of fuel. Know the edible plants in your area. Foraging as you travel will reduce your pack weight and provide healthy greens to keep your energy levels up. There are always things that will be unique to your situation that you need to include. If you take a medication then you should have extra with you at all times for these kind of situations. My list of things to include grows and shrinks all the time as I see new items that would help me or replaces something I already have packed.
Location: Cascade foothills east of Lookout Point Reservoir
Difficulty: Moderate
Fishing: N/A
Start of the trail up the mountain
This is a nice short hike through Douglass fir forests with a scattering of rhododendrons along the trail. The peak of the mountain used to be used as a forest service lookout location. There is very little remaining of the lookout. From the top of the peak you have a great view of the area and can see Three Sisters and Diamond peak. The trail may be short but the majority of the elevation gain is in the final quarter mile of the hike making it a bit steep for anyone just starting out hiking and not in that good of shape yet. The trail opens up in late spring and is well worth the trip up.
about halfway mark
Directions: Take I-5 south of Eugene, OR to Oakridge Exit 188A. Then follow Highway 58 east for 11.2 miles to Dexter Dam and turn right at the sign for Lost Creek. Go 3.5 miles to Eagles Crest Road and turn left over a small bridge. Take Eagles Crest Road 7.6 miles toa fork and veer left following the brown hikers sign. This is Road 20-1-14 and you will take this 2.6 miles to where the pavement ends and continue on on this road another 3.5 miles of gravel. You will then come to a small triangle of roads on the left. Take either left, the first or second one, they meet up in a few short yards. This is Road 1721 and you are only on this for .1 miles to Road 941 on the left. This road is somewhat steep and rutted and may not be the best for low-clearance cars. Take this road .4 miles to the trail head sign on the right.
Fishing: N/A (there is fish but it is not worth carrying a pole down)
Deep in the coast range there is a beautiful series of waterfalls that an adventurer can hike into for the day. There are a total of three falls that you can see on this hike. The first is upper Kentucky falls about a mile into the hike. The other two falls come down two separate valleys and fall nearly side by side. If you wall down near the base of the falls there is several points where you can see both falls at the same time. Lower Kentucky falls and North Smith River falls on the other. The total distance of the hike is only 4 miles with a moderate elevation gain for the walk back up.
Spring is a great time to hike this trail. There are wildflowers along the path the entire way. The trail is generally open year around but the occasional snowstorm and fallen tree can make the path a bit more difficult in the winter. But with the high water from the rains it is still worth the trip to get down to the falls. If you are going in the fall please watch out for Deer and Elk hunters in the woods. It is always a good Idea to wear bright colors from October through November
Directions: From Eugene, take Highway 126 west towards the coast. Turn left at the Whittaker Creek sign, about 32 miles from Beltline and West 11th. Travel 1.5 miles and turn right over a bridge. (If you care to see some salmon or use the bathroom, stop at the Whitaker Creek Campground.) Drive another 1.6 miles and veer left onto the uphill Dunn Ridge Road. Drive 7.3 miles to the end of the pavement and turn Left onto Knowles Creek Road. After 2.9 miles you’ll reach a “Y” intersection. Stay to the right and continue for another 1.7 miles to paved road #23. Turn right here and go 2.6 miles to the Kentucky Falls trailhead.
Shane's Outdoor Fun 