Touring America 2023

Here it is Saturday, another fairly nice day on the Oregon Coast. It's a bit breezy and it's supposed to get worse along with some coastal fog later today. With that in mind, we got an early start as we wanted to visit the beach and another lighthouse...Coquille River Lighthouse. Our daughter and her fiance arrived last night and will be visiting with us for a few days before taking Josh back home with them so he can start school. We will be meeting up with them in September for the wedding......



This is the entrance where the Coquille River meets the Pacific Ocean. This river was popular in the late 1800s, early 1900s as a shipping river for timber harvested from the nearby forests. The harbor entrance was very dangerous as the depth varied and many ships ran aground here. In 1880, Congress approved construction of a jetty to improve navigation up the river.

After construction of the jetty at the Coquille River entrance, it was determined a lighthouse was needed to further assist in navigation. It was approved in 1891 and completed in 1896. It was used until 1939 at which time it was deemed unnecessary, partly because of the construction of the beacon and fog horn you can see to the left of the lighthouse in this picture.

As is typical of all lighthouses, a circular staircase winds its way to the top structure which houses the light itself. Since this lighthouse was decommissioned and abandoned, the light was removed and much of the structure left to deteriorate.  It sat vacant, neglected and at the mercy of the weather, the sea and vandals for over 24 years! When the State of Oregon constructed Bullard's Beach State Park where we are staying, the lighthouse and adjacent land was included.

 Since restoration and reconstruction was far more than the State Parks budget would allow, a joint effort was put forth between the State Parks and the Army COE in 1976. The lighthouse was then reopened to the public. The light itself was never replaced but a temporary light was placed in it for the Bandon centennial in 1991.








 Here is a picture of Debi, her daughter and grandson at the top of the tower where the light once shone....









A walk out on the jetty that was constructed in 1883 was hampered by many large logs and timbers that have washed ashore during several violent storms that passed through this area last year. With some luck, funding will soon be available to clean up some of the areas. Here, with the lighthouse as a backdrop is the happy, soon to be newlyweds, with Josh, of course....

While at the lighthouse, the girls spotted what looked like a farmer's market across the river in the town of Bandon. Never one to miss a sale, we had to wander over to see what was there. We found a great party going on and found a few gifts. We also had some delicious fish n chips on the boardwalk.






Tonight, the rangers invited the folks from "First Flight", a bird sanctuary and rescue operation in Bandon, to come speak with us at the Park. They brought with them some raptors and entertained us with stories about the birds, their habits and what we can do to help them survive. Here we see a Great Horned Owl, named Otis.

That's Jerry above. He's a Turkey Vulture with a busted up wing. He's 22 yrs old and has been a resident of First Flight most of his life. The bird on the left is a Red Shouldered Hawk. This bird is found primarily in the Eastern United States but has recently been found in the western areas of Arizona and now Oregon. It feeds on small rodents, lizards and snakes......