This is a series of posts about our Southern Oregon Coast road trip in November, you can start here if you would like.
On Day 2 of our Southern Oregon Coast road trip, we woke up at Eel Creek Campground and debated when to get out of warm sleeping bags to hike the John Dellenback Dunes Trail that leaves from the campground itself. Last time we were here in November of 2020, we got up before the sun because we had a long day of driving ahead of us but this time we were only traveling down HWY 101 a few hours so it didn’t seem as urgent.
So about 6:30 am I reluctantly got up and made some coffee while waiting for the sunrise to lighten things up a bit. It was so cold, I decided to just keep my full length alpaca poncho on as we made our way over to the trailhead.
The sand was frozen which I was grateful for as it made walking easier. Morning fog rested gently over the landscape in front of us. This was my third time on this trail but in general you are just heading west towards the Pacific Ocean over sand dunes and then through a section of coastal forest.
My hubby took a few pictures of me making my way along, we couldn’t help but draw a comparison with travelers on Tatooine even though we had fog instead of blowing sand.
The forest section had a few gymnastics for us. My hubby had remembered the puddles but I had selectively forgotten from last time.
I have written about this trail before, it is about 5 miles round trip from the campground. If you start early enough you will have it to yourself but there is evidence that it sees a lot of day traffic even during the winter months. We rarely see litter but this time I scored a discarded, sticker free REI Nalgene on our walk!
There aren’t much better ways to start the day than on the beach.
We didn’t linger too long as we had more in store for the day so we were soon making our way back through the forest. Plus my husband had taken his shoes off for the puddles and at some point stopped being able to feel his feet. Icy wooden puncheons made for careful steps.
Some of the trail markers have become just a short reminder of where to go as drifting sand changes the landscape.
When you rise early, it is interesting to spot the tracks of nocturnal animals before the hikers come through.
We could hear a few echoes of ORVs on the neighboring dunes but enjoyed the calm of the rolling sand and blue skies where we were.
We were back to the car before 10am and after a breakfast of hard boiled eggs and bananas, we were on our way down HWY 101. Stay tuned for more of our day and road trip!
You can find out more about this hike on my John Dellenback Dunes Trail page. This is also the land of the Umpqua and Siuslaw tribes, you can find out more here. My next post about this trip is at Bullards Beach State Park and Coquille Lighthouse.
Editor’s note: Curious about my alpaca poncho? Not me but this is it:
I purchased it around 2018 at the Pacific Crest Trail Days from Appalachian Gear Company, an upstart by long distance hikers. Their clothing was really well made but during COVID they reported running into supply issues and never fully recovered. I think they are like many small companies who set out to make quality items but struggled with the costs of doing business. There is talk online about their closing if you are interested. I love this poncho and keep it in the car for days when I need an extra layer or for things like sitting around the campfire.
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I visited some dunes yesterday. They are just fascinating and there were so many tracks, too many to follow and all so interesting.
It is a true testament to nature, how so many flora and fauna find a home in sand dunes.