Side Roads by Jim Elder For more information on the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area and Sand Lake, we recommend these resources: Websites: http://www.gorp.com/ gorp/resource/us_nra/ or_dunes.htm http://www.ucinet.com/ ~bacc/bacdunes.asp http://www.onroute.com/ destinations/oregon/ oregondunes2.asp Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area Siuslaw National Forest 855 Highway 101 Reedsport, Oregon phone: 541-271 3611 Hebo Ranger District (Sand Lake) Siuslaw National Forest 31525 Highway 22 Hebo, Oregon 97122 phone: 503-392-3161 Oregon Chapter, U.S. Lighthouse Society P.O. Box 600 Lakeside, OR 97449 phone: 541-759-3920 Copyright © 1999 Jim Elder. All rights reserved.

Coastal Oregon: Outdoor Playtime Paradise  by Jim Elder "Stretching almost 50 miles south from Florence to Coos Bay, the Oregon Dunes NRA offers...more that 10,000 acres of off-highway dune and beach driving." Driving in the Oregon Dunes. In a time when off-road travel and recreation are sometimes threatened or even restricted, any area open to 4x4 use is to be appreciated. When that area is also easily accessible, scenic and exciting, four-wheel-drive owners have cause for celebration. The Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, stretching north and south from Reedsport, Oregon, is such a playtime paradise. Stretching almost 50 miles south from Florence to Coos Bay, the Oregon Dunes NRA offers 30 fishing, swimming and wildlife watching lakes, 14 hiking trails, 13 campgrounds, 11 beach parking areas, 9 day-use areas, 1 paved dunes overlook area, a visitor center, and more than 10,000 acres of off-highway dune and beach driving. The Oregon Dunes lies along the Pacific Coast, stretching north from Coos Bay to Florence. An easy two hours west of Portland is Sand Lake Recreation Area. At Sand Lake, there are three campgrounds (a total of 241 sites) and 900 acres of coastal sand dunes, mostly open to 4x4 fun. Visitors can choose from several levels of sand-driving challenge. There are areas negotiable in stock 4x4s, riding on street tires. There are other areas guaranteed to bog down even the rigs with big fat tires, aired down. But help is always close at hand; there will be other sand-drivers eager to push or string out a winch cable. That's after the obligatory razzing, of course. More to See and Do Camping is not limited to the developed campgrounds. Sand camping -- officially called "dispersed camping" -- is allowed in the Off Highway Vehicle (OHV) areas. At the official campgrounds, bathrooms, water, tables and campfire rings are provided, but no hookups. Horsefall Campground has shower facilities. Strong currents and cool water mean that ocean swimming is not the most popular sport on the Oregon coast, but the nearby lakes offer warm-season swimming. Boat ramps provide lake and river access. There are four-wheel drive owners who secretly admit that life does exist beyond locking hubs and transfer cases. That life sometimes includes fishing, and fishing is a prime attraction on the Oregon coast and in the nearby lakes. The estuary at Coos Bay offers fishing for shad, striped bass, sturgeon and winter steelhead. Clamming and crabbing are popular pursuits. The inland lakes are stocked with native and imported species. Due to the variety of water temperatures, bottom structures, food-chain makeup and lake depth, there is an amazing diversity of fish populations. Rainbow trout, cutthroat trout, Chinook salmon, coho salmon, and the unique searun cutthroat inhabit the colder waters. In the warmer lakes, large and smallmouth bass, yellow perch, bullhead, crappie and bluegill are predominant. But the "cold" lakes and rivers are warm enough, and the "warm" lakes are cold enough, that trout and bass can often be found in the same waters. Clams and crabs are found all along the beaches, bays and estuaries. Oregon coast veterans focus their fishing according to the calendar. They cast from the beach and jetties for surf perch year round. In April and May, rainbow trout are good bets in the small lakes, and rockfish from jetties. June and July bring out the ocean fishermen, seeking bottomfish. Summer and fall are bass, bluegill, crappie and yellow perch seasons. Come mid-September, Chinook salmon come into the tidewaters. January through March is prime time for the prince of these waters -- the steelhead. What Else? There are 14 marked trails for hikers in the Oregon Dunes. Of course there are beach and dune trails. But there are also trails through thick forests, boardwalks over marshy areas, and river shoreline pathways. The shortest trails are less than a mile long; the longest four miles. Even the short trails can provide a rich half-day hike. The abundance and variety of trees, shrubs, berries and grasses offer viewing and photography opportunities that stretch time. Hikers may see tracks of bears, otters, raccoons, nutria and mink. They might even see those animals. Beaver houses, beaver dams and stumps, and sometimes beaver can be found in the marsh areas. Birds are always seen. Among them are the great blue and green heron, American bittern, tundra swan, Canada goose, belted kingfisher, great egret, bald eagle, osprey, red-tailed hawk and great horned owl. Cinnamon teal, common merganser and other ducks are abundant, as are many species of shorebirds, songbirds and woodpeckers. The endangered coastal snowy plover lives here. Sightings are dependent on location and season, but the Oregon Dunes are a birding bonanza any time of year. Many of those birds are drawn to the area by the abundant berries. The berries also draw berry pickers. First to ripen early in June are the salmonberries and thimbleberries. Blue elderberries mature in late August and September. August also offers Himalaya and Evergreen blackberries, followed by huckleberries and blueberries. Tiny wild strawberries can be found in grassy hummocks near the beach all summer. Lighthouses know no season. In fact, they are sometimes more dramatic in fog, stormy weather or at dusk. Nine classic lighthouses survive along the Oregon coast. Five of those offer regular tours, and two more can be visited by special permission. Just north of Florence is the Heceta Head Lighthouse, built in 1894. It was the strongest light on the Oregon coast, visible from 21 miles offshore. Six miles south of Reedsport is the Umpqua River Lighthouse, a twin to the Heceta. A year-round campground is near the lighthouse. Umpqua was also put into service in 1894, replacing a 1857 structure that fell into the river. These two lighthouses are in the Oregon Dunes area. Three more to the south and four to the north make the Oregon coast light up the heart of any lover of lighthouses. Plenty to see, and do, at Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area and Sand Lake. North of Sand Lake, Steller's sea lions inhabit the rocks around Cape Meares Lighthouse, and a ghost lives in the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse near Newport. For many visitors, however, the perfect way to end a day of dune climbing is to park on the beach, walk along the surf line, then sit on the sand to watch a Pacific sunset. Copyright © 1999 Jim Elder. All rights reserved.