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Denny Dyke stands on the beach in Face Rock State Park and lets his eyes wander over his huge work.
He and his team have been rubbing, shoveling and drawing circles in the sand since sunrise, with dreamcatchers, a yin-yang symbol, and all kinds of sea creatures in between.
A whole network of trails has been created, here on Bandon Beach, at the southern end of the coast of the US state of Oregon.
Around nine o'clock the sun is slowly getting warmer, neighbors and tourists come out of their houses, hotels and mobile homes and stroll to the sand labyrinth that attracts everyone's attention.
There is no shortage of visitors in the small towns along Highway 101, which not only runs through California, but also through its northern neighbor, Oregon.
And in the north even almost to the border with Canada.
It's 120 kilometers to the south, from Bandon to the state of California.
And significantly more than 400 to Astoria, where Washington State joins.
Circles in the sand on the beach
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Oregon is ideal for a road trip off the beaten track.
If you cross the state on its almost 600 kilometers along the coast, you will experience wild landscapes, dark forests, unique ecosystems, lighthouses, the rough Pacific and magnificent sunsets.
And numerous surfers in warm neoprene.
Fantastic sunsets, like here on the beach in Bandon, make up for the rather cold water
Source: Getty Images / Sankar Raman
You won't find palm trees and warm weather in Oregon, even in midsummer.
But the journey along the partly steep and rugged Pacific coast is at least as spectacular in terms of landscape as the ride through the southern neighboring state.
No megacities, little self-expression, hardly any noise: in Oregon it is rather cozy.
Many places are a bit eco, alternative and esoteric.
Even with Denny Dyke on the beach.
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Before he releases his “Circles in the Sand” for exploration, he has a request: “Hug four people who are near you.” Sounds a bit strange - but after a moment's hesitation complete strangers are in each other's arms.
"You are going to be better now, right?" Everyone nods.
The Sand Circles on Bandon Beach in Face Rock State Park are ephemeral art
Source: dpa-tmn
Dyke started his project a few years ago, actually for meditation.
"But a lot of people liked it, I was asked about it again and again," says the man with the gray beard and the faded T-shirt.
"So I now do the circles in the sand with my team a few times a week." This art is transient, because everything is gone again with the next flood.
“That's exactly how it should be,” says Dyke.
Garbage from the Pacific becomes art
In contrast to the sand circles on the beach, much of what swims in the Pacific off the coast of Oregon is not at all transient.
Trash, plastic, styrofoam, packaging, old flip-flops: everything that people around the world throw away so carelessly.
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Angela Haseltine Pozzi has been dealing with the problem for many years.
The artist finally decided to hold the mirror up to her fellow citizens.
“We go to the beaches in the area with volunteers and collect the rubbish that washes up,” says the artist.
The waste is rinsed with vinegar and then sorted by color in the workshop in Bandon.
"Our visitors also join in, a few bits here, a few scraps there."
A seahorse made from rubbish: Angela Haseltine Pozzi creates works of art from what people throw away
Source: dpa-tmn
And then Pozzi goes to work.
A large sea turtle can be seen in her gallery, installed almost entirely from green garbage.
A coral reef made from polystyrene waste.
A whale skeleton made from plastic bottles.
And a huge seahorse made of garbage in all colors.
It takes weeks, sometimes months, for such a sculpture to be finished.
“But we hope to make people think with these works,” says the artist.
The sculptures by Washed Ashore are not only in Bandon, but also in other places in the USA, which is the name of the organization.
The idea seems to be popular - or to calm the guilty conscience of rich people.
In any case, the unusual sculptures are now being traded for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Puffins and gray whales live on the coast
There is also a rubbish reminder, a tufted puffin, at Face Rock State Park.
These puffins with two distinctive strands of blonde hair on their black and white heads come to the Oregon coast to hatch their eggs and nurse their offspring.
To see them, however, you need to know the rocks that frequent the puffins.
They build their nests in caves in the stone.
Those who find that too tedious can also find the animals in the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport.
There they specialize in marine animals and the birds of the local coast.
In addition to numerous species of birds, sea lions and starfish, you can also see octopuses, jellyfish and sea creatures that live deep down in the cold Pacific.
Tufted Puffin in the Oregon Coast Aquarium: The two strands of hair are the distinctive feature of this bird
Source: dpa-tmn
It is easier for visitors with the larger animals along the coast.
Also in Newport, the "Marine Discovery" sails twice a day, a small boat that goes for whale watching.
Gray whales live on this stretch of coast, they find their food in a reef that is not far from the beach.
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Every now and then they emerge from the sea, usually announced by a meter-high water-air fountain.
Then you can see the dark gray back of these mighty animals, which can be up to 15 meters long and weigh around 30 tons.
“Do you see the many spots on the back of the whale?” Asks marine biologist Delpha. "These are crustaceans and mussels that settle on the whale," she explains. The caudal fin, on the other hand, can only be seen when the gray whale says goodbye to a dive. "It is wide, often has many notches and a very special pattern." That is unique to every whale, like the fingerprint of marine mammals. "There are no two whales with the same tail fin pattern."
There are some gray whales that swim, eat, and reproduce on the Oregon coast year-round.
Orcas and humpback whales are also spotted on their migrations from Alaska to Hawaii and back again in spring and fall.
Up and down the coast, sea lions and seals can be seen in many places.
They can also be found in droves just before the Point Heceta Lighthouse.
Vacationers catch their own crabs
The Sea Lion Caves are the largest cave system along the coast, where hundreds of sea lions protect themselves from the elements during the harsh winter months. In summer, on the other hand, they are more likely to be found on the steeply sloping rocks, where they enjoy the sun and occasionally take a bath in the salty waves. Watching the animals hunting and eating in their natural habitat is a unique experience for many tourists.
In Kelly's Brighton Marina further north on Highway 101, near Rockaway Beach, you won't see any sea lions, but with a bit of luck you can see seals that let the sun shine on their fur on the sandbanks of Nehalem Bay.
Here you can also get what is probably the freshest lunch in the entire state - visitors catch their crabs themselves here. They cast marked nets filled with fish carcasses from small boats.
While “crabbing” in Kelly's Brighton Marina, tourists catch the crabs and later prepare them themselves
Source: dpa-tmn
Anyone who has never been to "crabbing" has a good teacher in Kelly Laviolette.
He's been passionate about it for decades.
He wants his Marina to be understood as an outdoor living room.
"Here people stay in their caravans or tents, you catch crabs, you can cook them right away and talk to the other guests." And because you are in a state whose greatest asset is nature and where you can get more out on the streets Seeing motorhomes as cars, it works fine.
The Oregon road trip ends in Astoria
Those who prefer sand to water underfoot will find plenty of opportunities to let off steam on Oregon's coast.
With a fat bike, for example.
The bicycles with the thick tires that are suitable for the beach are rented out in many places.
Things get wilder in the huge dune landscape near Florence - and much louder.
Sandbuggy is the name of the companion, which actually only consists of a frame and seats.
And a strong, loud engine.
Driving yourself is strictly forbidden.
Fortunately, many will think when the sand buggy is lying at an angle in the dunes at full throttle.
Full speed through the dunes: sand buggies actually only consist of a frame, seat and motor
Source: dpa-tmn
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The sharp contrast to this is the Cape Falcon: deep blue sea that does not get warm enough for swimming even in summer, framed by rocks and a wide beach that merges into a dense mixed forest.
The Pacific Northwest in its most primitive form.
Margaret Minnick from Cape Falcon Marine Reserve is committed to ensuring that this region remains an intact habitat for nature and animals.
“It is very populated here, especially below sea level, and it should stay that way,” she says.
On so-called eco tours, she explains to visitors why the rocks are so important for mussels and sea anemones that numerous types of crabs have their ancestral home on the sandy seabed - and why the popular fishing is not a good idea here.
When the Oregon road trip ends in Astoria, it's almost strange to be in a real city again.
With hotels, restaurants and lots of people on the streets.
Because the four, five or six days on Highway 101 are extremely decelerating.
The views of the sea are too beautiful and the road too winding to have to step on the gas.
Source: WORLD infographic
Tips and information
Getting there:
Usually, for example, Lufthansa or Delta Air Lines fly to Portland.
If you are planning a road trip from north to south, you can also fly to Seattle and drive from there to Astoria.
For example, Condor and American Airlines fly to Seattle.
Entry and Corona situation:
German vacationers do not need a visa for the USA, but must obtain an electronic entry permit at https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov.
It costs $ 14 and is valid for two years.
Tourist entries to the USA are currently not possible due to the pandemic, Auswaertiges-amt.de.
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Climate and travel time:
The Pacific Northwest is known for the rainy weather and the rather cool temperatures.
In summer the sun shines constantly, the temperatures are then pleasant.
Information:
visittheusa.de/state/oregon
More sustainable travel to Corona?
An interview with Daniel Rieger, Head of Transport Policy at NABU, Prof. Dr.
Harald Zeiss, founder and managing director of the Institute for Sustainable Tourism at the Harz University of Applied Sciences, Ingo Lies, Founder & Managing Director of Chamäleon Reisen and Thomas Ellerbeck, TUI Group, moderated by Christina Brause, Managing Editor Investigation & Reportage at WELT AM SONNTAG.
Source: WORLD