Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area

The Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area (or NRA) is located on the Oregon Coast, stretching approximately 40 miles (60 km) north from the Coos River in North Bend, to the Siuslaw River, in Florence. The NRA is part of Siuslaw National Forest and is administered by the United States Forest Service. The dunes adjoin Honeyman State Park.

The Oregon Dunes are a unique area of windswept sand that is the result of millions of years of wind and rain erosion on the Oregon Coast. These are the largest expanse of coastal sand dunes in North America. Some dunes tower up to 500 feet (150 m) above sea level, providing numerous recreational opportunities including off-road vehicle use, hiking, photography, fishing, canoeing, horseback riding, and camping. The Carter Dunes Trail and Oregon Dunes Day Use provide disabled access for forest visitors.

In 1963, Congressman Robert B. Duncan introduced a bill to establish a National Park at the Oregon Dunes. It passed the Senate Interior Committee unanimously. Senator Wayne Morse opposed provisions of the bill that would have increased environmental protections by restricting property uses.

Recreation area

A recreation area is a type of protected area designated in some jurisdictions. In the United States, National Recreation Areas are administered by several different agencies. They typically do not meet the strict guidelines to become national parks. In U.S. state park systems, recreation areas may also fail to meet some criteria to be designated state parks, such as having a large number of non-contiguous properties. Size is not necessarily a defining criterion. For instance, in Michigan, the largest state recreation area, Waterloo Recreation Area is 20,500-acre (83 km²) while the smallest state park is the 31-acre (0.13 km²) Tri-Centennial State Park and Harbor.

National Recreation Area

National Recreation Area (NRA) is a designation for a protected area in the United States.

History

Early National Recreation Areas were established by interagency memoranda of agreement between the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and the National Park Service. The first National Recreation Area was the Boulder Dam Recreation Area, later renamed Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

In 1963, the President's Recreation Advisory Committee issued an Executive Branch policy that established criteria for establishing National Recreation Areas. The policy also called for all future National Recreation Areas to be established by acts of the United States Congress. In 1964, Congress made Lake Mead National Recreation Area to first such area to be established by statute.

In 1965 Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area became the first NRA under the administration of the U.S. Forest Service. In 1972 Congress created Gateway National Recreation Area under the management of the National Park Service, thereby becoming the first "urban national park". One NRA, the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area was redesignated Cuyahoga Valley National Park in October 2000.

Oregon

Oregon (ⁱ/ˈɔːrᵻɡən/ AWR-ə-gən) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Oregon is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean, on the north by Washington, on the south by California, on the east by Idaho, and on the southeast by Nevada. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary, and the Snake River delineates much of the eastern boundary. The parallel 42° north delineates the southern boundary with California and Nevada. It is one of only three states of the contiguous United States to have a coastline on the Pacific Ocean, and the proximity to the ocean heavily influences the state's mild winter climate, despite the latitude.

Oregon was inhabited by many indigenous tribes before Western traders, explorers, and settlers arrived. An autonomous government was formed in the Oregon Country in 1843, the Oregon Territory was created in 1848, and Oregon became the 33rd state on February 14, 1859. Today, at 98,000 square miles, Oregon is the ninth largest and, with a population of 4 million, 26th most populous U.S. state. The capital of Oregon is Salem, the second most populous of its cities, with 160,614 residents (2013 estimate). With 609,456 residents (2013 estimate), Portland is the largest city in Oregon and ranks 29th in the U.S. Its metro population of 2,314,554 (2013 estimate) is 24th. The Willamette Valley in western Oregon is the state's most densely populated area, home to eight of the ten most populous cities.

Dune

In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by either wind or water flow. Dunes occur in different shapes and sizes, formed by interaction with the flow of air or water. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind. The valley or trough between dunes is called a slack. A "dune field" is an area covered by extensive sand dunes.

Some coastal areas have one or more sets of dunes running parallel to the shoreline directly inland from the beach. In most cases, the dunes are important in protecting the land against potential ravages by storm waves from the sea. Although the most widely distributed dunes are those associated with coastal regions, the largest complexes of dunes are found inland in dry regions and associated with ancient lake or sea beds.

Dunes can form under the action of water flow (fluvial processes), and on sand or gravel beds of rivers, estuaries and the sea-bed.

The modern word "dune" came into English from French circa 1790.