Friday, November 22, 2013

Geo 365: Nov. 22, Day 326: Windswept

We're looking southward up Humbug Mountain here, from the bridge that carries Route 101 across Brush Creek. The rock here is Humbug Conglomerate, if I recollect. (Computer and wifi are being fussy right now, and I think the reference I typically fall back on for this area may be temporarily off-line, so I'll double check and correct later, if need be.) But for our first brief stop here, I wanted to show Dana the brute force that the coastal winds exert on the confers growing on the mountainside. Brush Creek has carved a minor canyon north of the mountain, one of the highest (if not the highest) rising directly from the coast in Oregon. This funnels the wind up the canyon, increasing its speed. Those trees show the effect of their frequent torment by coastal gales. Indeed, this section of road around Humbug Mountain takes its toll on travelers as well. Wind-caused accidents are not uncommon here, and during particularly severe storms, it's often simply closed as too dangerous to use.

Photo unmodified. May 7, 2013. FlashEarth location.

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