Report from the southern Oregon Dunes

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Sunny but windy today. It looks like the next couple of days are nice then some rain clearing up for next week end.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

When we left today there was a fog sitting a bit off the ground. It went over the coastal range and you could see the fog in the trees and even some traces in Portland. Very pretty if you are out sight seeing but driving in it is another matter .

[Ol'fogasaurus]

I forgot to mention that with all the weird weather this year the mosquitos are out early so be prepared ("Bloodsucking mosquitoes, depending on species, sex, and weather conditions, have potential adult lifespans ranging from as short as a week to as long as several months. Some species can overwinter as adults in diapause." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosquito) and carry some repellant.

You don't see them as much out on the dunes themselves especially close to the ocean where the wind is blowing most of the time but in protected areas, especially when the ground water lakes are still showing or in the evening in camp the little blood sucker can be everywhere.

I'm still fighting with one bite on the back of my neck which brought the thought forward. I got her but apparently after the bite had been delivered and the saliva had been injected.

Lee

[dustymojave]

Living and recreating where there are mosquitoes sucks.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Back down again. A lot of rain all the way down but overcast on the coast.

On the two bridge rebuilds on the road from Drain to Reedsport, the west bridge has one side finished which they are now using as the main road with the stop light still being use to control direction. The same on the east bridge but it is behind the west one in as much as the south lane is just having concrete being poured.

https://www.bing.com/search?q=weather+f ... lang=en-US

Got to look at a VW bus (Type II) made for the sand. A small V8 in it.

The weather forecast for Coos bay OR.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

II forgot to mention that on the way here we saw several rigs that looked like something you would see at races like the Baja 1000 or those type of races. I talked to a guy I know and he said that a lot of people bring them down just before the season to do some testing on what they have. Interesting!

Oh, and the Elk knew when to get out of the rain. Saw no Elk at the Elk viewing and grazing area just before Reedsport.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

It was too wet out to do some of the work we had to do so we went into town to get parts and information for other work. Came out and the clouds had mostly cleared and the few that were left were high in the blue sky but while we were feeding our faces the wind came up.

There were white caps in the Coos Bay itself which means 15 to 20 + mph or better (25 knots figures out to 28.769. A knot equals 1.15077945).

The bay where you go across the causeway to Horsfall was just starting to get white caps so it was probably in the 18 mph to 25 mph.
The ground water lakes are showing streaking which means 12 mph to 18 mph (figure that out yourself ) but it feels closer to 18 mph.

Bring a balaclava or a handkerchief to cover your face under your goggles or you will get sand blasted raw pretty fast. The same with gloves.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

The sun was out yesterday but the wind was out too. More than a breeze, high enough to blow my hat off but not enough to get sand blasted.

This AM a fog had settled in. The ground was dry but then all of a sudden it was as wet as if there had been a rain fall (not!) but while the fog was still there but it wasn't sitting on the ground anymore either. Weird!

The weather is supposed to be either overcast or overcast with sun breaks or maybe sun through the weekend.

Lee

Update: it is raining! It is that kind of rain you often see in the mountains where it looks like low clouds but you need your windshield wipers or, if walking, you can feel the moisture drops hanging in the air on your skin.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Sorry about the late post but I had get some work done before it got too hot or windy. The wind did come up enough to keep blowing my hat off but luckily enough I was able to catch it before it went over the top of the hill I was on and on to town 7 miles way. I don't think the inlet to the Coos bay would have stopped it either. .

Nice sunny warm day with very high thin clouds. The cool wind is the only drawback.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

High clouds with bits of blue sky showing. The temp has raised to 58° and there is a wind blowing out of the north but not hard.... yet!

We haven't seen any bats flying after dusk especially with all the mosquitos and other flying insects about but then the wind has been blowing so hard that you can work outside without having to bathe in mosquito repellant every 15 minutes.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

The wind is about as high as yesterday afternoon and well into the evening. We went into town today and driving by the open areas from Hwy 101 the dunes are smooth as silk but also there are groves hidden under the soft, unpacked sand covering them so be careful.

Lee

[dustymojave]

Mosquitos??????

What are they?

Aint never seed them around here.

Just one of the nice features of living in the desert. Sunny, High 72F. Wind 15-20. Thursday was 103F.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Friday and Saturday were low tide days; a minus 2.1 and a minus 2.0. I will try to post a couple pictures of the low tide when I get them from my wife's phone.

For those who do not know: Mosquatos' are nasty little flying object which the females are blood suckers (no further comment) so they then can lay their eggs. They then "spit" in the victim which can cause itchy or infected skin.

https://www.bing.com/search?q=mosquito+ ... lang=en-US

https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=mo ... &FORM=IGRE

[dustymojave]

Back to 103 here.

And I DO know what mosquitoes are Lee. I was being facetious. But while my friend who lives about 3/4 mile from my home makes a living controlling mosquitoes for LA County, much of his work is actually down in LA, not up here in the desert. But there ARE mosquitoes occasionally around here. They're just mighty few and far between.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

I knew you were just being a "smart ..." (guy ) but I also couldn't resist . Friends do that don't they .

We, my wife and her daughter, are at Ocean Shores for the weekend to see the wood carving and other artsy-fartsy things like sand castles beingbuilt (maybe, not sure) show this weekend. The chainsaw artist from Reedsport OR is up here and from what I understand he will do a simple chainsaw wood carving each day then it will be auctioned off. When we go to the dune we see his carvings displayed in the old town part of Reedsport. He is pretty darn good.

Out on the beach yesterday and the tide was out an there were no storm wave so the wave action was pretty low. The weather is supposed to be OK but better tomorrow. Looked into some of the tourist stores also plus got some salt water taffy so life is good!

Lee