Fabulous Morning in Bandon

(Continuing the recap of my late April trip to Bandon and the Southern Oregon coast....)

I learned the first lesson of yurt rental that Friday night - never get a yurt over a weekend at a popular campground.  Bullards Beach State Park had six yurts for rent - all clustered close together in what they called a "village."  Upon returning to camp after photographing the sunset, I discovered I had several noisy neighbors.

Coquille River Lighthouse

It appeared members of the same family had rented at least three of the available yurts, all directly adjacent to mine.  Besides having lots of shrieking kids (yes, I'm a mom and I know kids will be kids, but these were especially loud) the adults stayed up way past midnight, drinking and talking at full volume.  Needless to say, it wasn't a very relaxing night's sleep.

Morning beach view

Waking before 7 am the following morning, I had about 30 minutes of peace and quiet before the neighbor kids arose and resumed their screaming.  Time to go explore the beach!

Looking towards Elephant Rock

I began my morning with a drive out to the Coquille River Lighthouse.  Located across the Coquille River from Bandon, this small, but charming structure sits at the base of a rocky jetty.  Although no longer in service, and only intermittently open to the public, it makes a nice photo subject.

House with an amazing view

After getting a few lighthouse images, I drove into Bandon and discovered a small parking area on a bluff just south of the jetty.  Several local trails led walkers and runners down to the beach or along the clifftop.  The views back towards the Coquille River were especially nice.

Fab morning light on the seastacks

Then I drove back to Face Rock Wayside.  I discovered excellent morning light illuminating the shoreline.  Excitedly, I grabbed my camera, and headed down to ocean level.

Blue sand reflections

It was a beautiful morning for a walk on the beach.

Morning beach walk

Wet sand reflected the blue sky overhead.  Frothy waves crashed on nearby rocks.  Seagulls glided overhead.

Shorebirds

Not only the wide sweeping coastline panoramas, other small details also got the attention of my camera lens.  A small group of shorebirds searching for food in the wet sand against the bright blue water.

Lovely purple shell

And this incredibly lovely purple-hued shell.

Bird reflection

Some of the seastacks cast reflections in the wet sand, and I busied myself trying to capture a few abstract views.

Seastack reflecions

Finally, climbing back up the wooden staircase to the parking lot, I stopped to take in the amazing ocean vistas from on top of the bluff.

View from Face Rock Wayside

Gorse flowers were blooming prolifically along the cliff faces.

Gorse bloom

These bright yellow flora made a stunning backdrop to the blue ocean below.

Lovely colorful beach view

Still having some time before lunch, I headed back to Coquille Point.  I'd enjoyed watching the sun set there last night, and decided the place needed a bit more exploration.

Elephant Rock

Many large seastacks sat a short distance from the beach.  Elephant Rock, one of the largest, was especially interesting, as it was shaped similar to a large-eared elephant.  Hundreds of seabirds nested on it's flat top.

Delicate white wildflowers

Since I didn't have time to explore the blufftop trails the prior night, I took the opportunity to check them out now.  I found several varieties of flowers blooming in the grassy slopes, such as these delicate white ones (which I didn't know the name of).

Seabirds on Elephant Rock

Then I spied a small patch of purple peeking out from the beach grass.

Wild Iris

Wild iris!  One of my favorite wildflowers!

More iris blossoms

I love these vivid, purple beauties.  Hoping to catch their blooming season, I felt like I'd hit the wildflower jackpot.

Colorful beach scene

I spent the rest of the morning wandering about Coquille Point's trail system, capturing as many iris as I could.  (Yes, there's quite a few iris images posted here, but you should've seen how many I started with!)

Great morning to be on the coast!

A hugely successful morning for beach photography!  With a full memory card and empty tummy, I now set my sights on Bandon's downtown boardwalk, hoping to score a bowl of clam chowder.

In my next post, I'll continue the day's recap - with another lighthouse visit and more fabulous sunset shots.  You won't want to miss it!


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