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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2016
State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries
By 2013, the foredune at the root of the South Jetty
was in danger of breaching, allowing water past the
jetty and directly into Trestle Bay. Such a breach could
change the hydrology around the multibillion-dollar
Columbia River shipping channel.
Gravel: ‘It’s been here
since 2013 doing its job’
more material added every 10
to 15 years, depending on the
severity of future storms.
Continued from Page 1A
Doing its job
Since construction, a half-
mile section of beach around
the berm has been monitored
regularly by coastal geomor-
phologist Jonathan Allan and
field geologist Laura Gabel,
both with the state Depart-
ment of Geology and Mineral
Industries.
The two take elevations
and coordinates every meter
using real-time kinematic
GPS. Using a GPS unit in a
backpack, triangulated with
satellites and a GPS base sta-
tion placed on a dune above
the beach, they can track
the topographical changes
around the berm to within
centimeters of accuracy.
They were on site Wednes-
day, covering the entire berm
on foot and in an all-terrain
vehicle.
“It’s been here since 2013,
doing its job,” Allan said.
The pair recently pub-
lished a study monitoring the
effectiveness of the berm.
While the berm eroded more
than 60 feet inland near the
jetty, in a sacrificial area on
the northern end, the structure
has withstood multiple storm
events.
Allan and Gabel were
on the beach during heavy
storms in December, when
Allan said outgoing tides low-
ered the beach’s elevation by
2 feet, and large waves topped
the dunes of Clatsop Spit.
Gabel said the berm held
its ground, blunting the veloc-
ity of incoming waves. “If
this structure hadn’t been
there, there could have been
a lot more erosion,” she said.
Moritz said the project
has an expected life cycle of
30 to 50 years, but will need
Natural protection
In the mid-1990s, El
Niño-induced storm ero-
sion threatened Cape Look-
out State Park and a nearby
condominium development.
Moritz said local cobble was
mined and put on shore to
prevent further erosion.
Allan said he and Paul
Komer, a professor of geol-
ogy and geophysics at Ore-
gon State University, pro-
posed a dynamic revetment,
a conceptual design known
since the 1970s.
“It can be as simple as
placing gravel where the
beach meets the dune,” Allan
said.
Local cobble was mined
and placed along the beach
at Cape Lookout State Park.
“The structure there has
served its purpose, protecting
the state park,” Allan said.
While his and Gabel’s
study said the berm at South
Jetty has stood up to contin-
ued wave action, they cau-
tioned that the area has expe-
rienced milder winters in the
past few years, and that the
berm remains to be tested by
the worst storms. Monitor-
ing at South Jetty continues
through 2018.
“What we learn in mon-
itoring the Columbia River
cobble berm will help to val-
idate proof of concept, and
ultimately help guide the
design of similar structures,”
Allan said of the study. “In
the right environment, such
structures could become an
effective strategy for mitigat-
ing coastal erosion along the
Oregon Coast, and within its
estuaries.”
Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
The Astoria Bridge and Saddle Mountain as seen from Washington state earlier this year.
Mountain: ‘This is the best compromise’
Continued from Page 1A
Craig Hurst, a ranger assis-
tant with Oregon State Parks
said that, in winter, “we get
a lot of trees come down up
there, so if a large tree comes
down and somebody’s on the
other side of that tree, they’re
pretty much going to be stuck.”
Cox planned to close the
road for the entire season, but
he said he did not know the
Saddle Mountain trail is a pop-
ular destination in the winter,
so he changed course.
“I just didn’t realize the
outcry this would cause,” Cox
said.
The department decided to
revert to standard winter oper-
ations: The campground and
restrooms are closed, but the
road and parking lot will be
open.
“This is the best compro-
mise that we could come up
with,” he said.
Cox said drivers in the win-
ter should be careful on the
Saddle Mountain road, which
can become icy. They should
also be mindful that, “during
storm activity, that road’s a
great candidate for trees to
come down,” he said.
Meanwhile, because of the
seasonal weather, the short-
staffed Nehalem Bay Manage-
ment Unit will not be work-
ing on the trail, which can
get washed out and become
unstable.
“It’s not practical or realis-
tic to try to do a trail repair or
maintenance during the winter
up there,” Cox said.
Pete Gimre/Facebook
Pete Gimre/Facebook
Pete Gimre’s bike in the parking lot at Saddle Mountain
Saturday. He said the lot is usually packed.
‘I just didn’t realize the
outcry this would cause.’
Ben Cox
park manager of the Nehalem Bay Management Unit
Elated hiker
Pete Gimre, owner of Gim-
re’s Shoes in Astoria, has hiked
the Saddle Mountain trail
every month since April 2003.
On Saturday, he hiked the
extra 2 miles to the park, then
took the trail to the summit,
keeping his streak alive: 163
straight months.
Pete Gimre has hiked the
Saddle Mountain trail every
month since April 2003.
When he learned the road
would no longer be blocked,
Gimre said, “That is fantastic
news.”
“There’s literally thousands
of people I see up there over
the course of time that encom-
passes 12 months of the year,”
he said.
Gimre saw many hikers
this weekend who, as he did,
walked the additional length
to the trailhead. But he won-
ders how many chose to turn
around instead.
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