Manzanita
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ACTIVITIES GUIDET - Z |
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Tennis Tidepools Tides Tillamook State Forest Trees |
Tsunamis Volleyball Weather Weather Forecasts |
Whales Wheeler Wind Windsurfing |
TENNIS
TIDEPOOLS
TIDES
Oceanographers measure tides in vertical feet from the average water level at low tide. The starting point is zero feet. On the north Oregon coast, low tide ranges from 3 feet to minus 3 feet, and high tide ranges from 6 to 10 feet.
Inexpensive booklets, available at marinas and many stores, predict tides throughout the year. You can also find tides predicted in The North Coast Citizen.
Tides have practical effects on your visit.
The incoming tide can bring water around your feet surprisingly fast. Don't walk out onto rocks after the turn of low tide. Build your sandcastle where rising water won't destroy it until you're ready. Plan your picnic where the ocean won't wash it away.
The outgoing tide has strong currents. Don't let dogs or small children play in more than a few inches of water after the turn of high tide.
In the bay. Tides influence the depth of water, how fast it moves in and out, and what it brings and takes away.
The mud flats and sandy bottoms at the southern end of the bay are covered with water only about 75 per cent of the time. During low tides, the areas lie exposed to the air.
Safe travel over these shallow areas with a kayak or sail board requires precise information about tidal heights and changes. To avoid getting stranded in acres of mud, get accurate information - and learn what it means - before starting your trip.
Safe travel anywhere in the bay also requires knowing when the tide starts moving out and how fast it flows. Try to avoid a boat ride that leads to 10-foot breakers between the ends of the jetties.
TILLAMOOK STATE FOREST
The Oregon Department of Forestry manages Tillamook State Forest for both timber harvest and recreation. The forest has motorized and non-motorized zones for recreation. Motorized means that motorcycles can use the trails; non-motorized means they can't. Anyone can use maintained roads anywhere in the forest.
In addition to the recreation zones, the forest has many campgrounds, trails and staging sites. You can get a detailed map of roads and trails in the forest at the State Forestry offices in Tillamook (503-842-2545) or Forest Grove (503-357-2192) or from the Oregon Department of Forestry in Salem. Visit www.odf.state.or.us/TSF for information.
TREES
Red alder. You see alders anywhere that gets lots of sun - clearcuts, roadsides and river banks. Alders can grow to 40 feet in just ten years. They stabilize and add nitrogen to the soil, creating good conditions for the slower growing conifers.
Douglas fir. Fir trees are the biggest conifers in the area, sometimes growing to 300 feet. They grow fast and produce strong, light lumber. Most of Tillamook State Forest is planted with Douglas fir.
Red cedar. Indians used cedar to make lumber and canoes because it's light, easy to split and resists rot. The oil in cedar makes it ideal wood for roofing and siding, creating an entire industry around shingles and shakes.
Sitka spruce. Pound-for-pound, spruce wood is stronger than steel and was used to build airplanes during the First and Second World Wars. Trees use the mild, wet climate close to the ocean to grow almost 300 feet in only 100 years. Most of the huge trees on the south side of Neahkahnie Mountain were saplings in the 1950s.
Western hemlock. The smaller trees with tops which droop over instead of point up are hemlocks. They grow densely, but reach a maximum height of about 150 feet - only half the potential of spruce and fir.
TSUNAMIS
Because a tsunami is caused by a distant earthquake or landslide at the bottom of the ocean, emergency signals can give a few minutes' warning. If you hear the announcements, run to high ground immediately. Evacuation signs point to safe escape routes.
VOLLEYBALL
WEATHER
Locals like to tease visitors about wet coastal weather, and visitors seem to like hearing stories that confirm their stereotype. (You know when it's summer because the rain feels warmer than during the other 50 weeks.)
Yes, you should expect rain at any time of year. You may, however, encounter day after day of blue sky and (here's our secret), gorgeous days that make you happy to be alive can happen in January or July. Chances are best August through October, but you might spend Thanksgiving or New Years Day wearing shorts.
Use the following list as an approximate guide.
February, March and April, days in the mid-50s, about seven inches of rain per month.
May, June and July, days in the mid-60s, about three inches of rain per month.
August, September and October, days in the high 60s, about three inches of rain per month.
WEATHER FORECASTS
WHALES
Whale migration involves a 10,000-mile round trip. Going south, they travel about 75 miles per day in groups of 10 to 25 animals. The journey north is slower and more spread out because the trip includes newborns.
To watch for whales, go to a high headland such as the Highway 101 viewpoints on Neahkahnie Mountain or the end of Cape Falcon. Take binoculars. Go early in the morning when the wind doesn't make whitecaps and the sun doesn't glare. Look for spouts that signal whales breathing near the surface. The typical whale spouts three or four times at 15 second intervals, dives for four or five minutes, then surfaces again about 100 yards away.
Whales stay within one or two miles of shore and sometimes swim just outside the surf line, especially when swimming north. Lucky viewers see a huge head or tail rise above the water as an animal makes its next dive to feed off the ocean floor.
The Marine Science Center in Newport trains volunteers to staff popular whale-watching sites, including the large Highway 101, viewpoint near milepost 41 on Neahkahnie Mountain.
WHEELER
WIND
The beach almost always has more wind than inland - even 100 feet inland. Don't use the breeze at your door or campsite as a guide to dressing for the beach. Always carry a jacket or sweater.
WINDSURFING
In the ocean. From mid-July to late August days with off shore winds offer world-class rides. When calm invades the Gorge and Jones Beach, Manzanita has the action.
One court in Manzanita City Park. There are also several courts in Cannon Beach and Rockaway Beach.
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Hundreds of animals and plants live in the intertidal world of stunning colors and textures. Algae, barnacles,crabs,starfish, mussels, sea anemones and tube worms join in a collage of diverse life forms.
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Gravitational forces of the moon and sun cause ocean water to rise and fall. High tide occurs at the peak of the rise, low tide at the bottom of the fall. High and low tides follow each other approximately every 6-1/2 hours. The highest tides occur in December, when the sun comes closest to the Earth.
On the beach. Tides determine the ease of walking on the beach and what you may find there. High tide may bring water right up to the dunes Low tide may expose a beach 300 yards wide.
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East and southeast from Nehalem Bay lie almost 350,000 acres of public forest containing thousands of miles of roads and trails. Highway 6 from Portland to Tillamook runs through the middle of the huge areas. Small parcels of the forest surround the main tracts.
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The Nehalem Bay area includes many kinds of trees, but six are most common.
Coast pine. The coast pine, also called shore pine, grows fast and tall in
Manzanita and the north end of the spit and slow and short in the
state park and the south end of the spit. Trees have dense foliage at the top that make them vulnerable to high wind. Every spring finds a few dozen half-high pine trunks, reminders of winter storms.
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A violent change in the bottom of the ocean may produce a seismic wave called a tsunami (pronounced 'sue-nah-me'). Tsunamis may travel 400 or 500 miles per hour and reach 10-15 feet above high tide line. They are fast, powerful, dangerous and rare.
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Manzanita City Park has a flat, sandy area for volleyball. Bring your own stakes, net and ball.
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Favorable winds and relatively constant ocean temperatures bless the coast of Oregon with moderate weather. During the winter, south winds bring warm air. Winds bring cool air from the north during the summer.
November, December and January, days in the high 40s, about ten inches of rain per month..
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National Weather Service for north Oregon coast: phone 503-368-RAIN (7246); web nws.noaa.gov; radio 162.40 mh or 162.47 mh.
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You may see gray whales migrating south from Alaska to Mexico during December and January and returning north during March and April. Prime viewing times off the Oregon coast are late December - mid-January and mid-March - early April.
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Wheeler is named after C. H. Wheeler, who operated a sawmill on the site during the early years of the 20th century. City hall phone 503-368-5767.
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Winds come generally from the southwest during winter and spring and from the northwest during summer and fall. Off shore winds (from the east) can occur any time of year.
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The Nehalem Bay area offers windsurfing to satisfy beginners and challenge experts.
In the bay. Park your rig near the boat ramp in
Nehalem Bay State Park to sail east and south into the bay. You can stand in the water for several hundred feet from shore, so it's easy to learn water starts. Keep an eye on the outgoing tide which produces strong currents. Don't risk riding your board to Hawaii.
The city of Manzanita has inadequate accommodations for the dozens of windsurfers who show up on prime days which also bring hundreds of other visitors. When you visit, please respect private property and please use the public restrooms.
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