2014 Road Trip - Seal Rocks to Sunset Bay

We had another reasonable start to the day. We made stops at Yachats, Devil’s Churn, Cape Perpetua, Neptune, and Tokatee Klootchman. All those locations were quick stops with minimal notes. I did not even take pictures at all of them.


I actually took notes at Heceta Head. The primary purpose of this stop was another lighthouse, but the area seemed birdy enough to prepare an eBird checklist.

We decided to stop at Sea Lion Caves. They told us that there were about 20 in the cave. There had to be more than that. Unfortunately, I was taking pictures in the dark where flash was not allowed. We had a viewpoint for the lighthouse we had just visited. Immediately outside the viewpoint, we encountered some baby Gulls.

They were right that there were more Sea Lions outside. While they were more distant that the ones in the caves, the light was much better. I have higher hopes for those pictures than the cave pictures.

We stopped at a park set aside for a single plant, the Cobra Lily or Pitcher Plant. This is an insectivorous plant. We also saw their associated flowers.

While on the Oregon Coast, the sand dunes seemed like another worthwhile stop. We went on a paid tour on a bus-like buggy. In many ways, it was like a roller coaster without a set track. I asked my sister if she would like to come back some day and drive. She seemed somewhat reluctant.

Taylor Dunes became an aborted walk for us. We had no water on us and the evil fireball of death made an unrequested appearance.

Our, last stop before camp was the Umpqua River Lighthouse. The parking lot was right next to the lighthouse, so we had no reason to stick around.

Throughout our various stops, I only kept bird counts for Heceta Head. Sightings elsewhere include Western Gulls, Brown Pelicans, White-crowned Sparrows, Tree Swallows, Song Sparrows, Robins, Crows, Vultures, Pelagic Cormorants, a Chipmunk, an Osprey, and an Eagle.

Each day, we have added a new animal species for the year. I’m not sure I had a chipmunk on this trip yet. It might be a different species from ours. On our trip to our campsite at Sunset Bay State Park, we found an Egret from the car. This will not appear on eBird.

UPDATE 1: I have added pictures from Yachats State Park.

UPDATE 2: I have added pictures from Heceta Head Lighthouse State Scenic Viewpoint and an eBird checklist.

UPDATE 3: I have added pictures from Sea Lion Caves.

UPDATE 4: I have added pictures from Darlingtonia State Natural Site.

UPDATE 5: I have added pictures from Siuslaw National Forest.

UPDATE 6: I have added a picture from Umpqua Lighthouse State Park.