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08/20/08

Secrets of the Season

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New Trail Still a Novelty on Central Oregon Coast

After a couple of false beginnings, you'll find the trail starts next to the stairway going up to the highway

(Newport, Oregon) - It's still Newport's biggest little secret, even after more than two years.

A new trail in the central Oregon coast resort town debuted in early 2006, and gradually started generating buzz among residents and regulars. It also got anticipation growing for its expansion into a much larger trail system that will stretch from the northern beaches of the town to Yaquina Bay. The trail was unmarked for a long time, but it still remains a kind of "new toy" for many in the area, very slowly drawing in a larger and larger crowd.

This quarter mile hidden path is part of what will be called the "Ocean to Bay Trail." It begins, rather clandestinely, at the east end of the parking lot at Agate Beach State Park, and then meanders under thick rain forest foliage, with pristine, freshly laid gravel covering its length. Along the way, walkers encounter bridges over pretty little streams, more than a couple long wooden boardwalks that snake over chasms and other geographic features, and some untouched wetlands that will likely never, ever be developed.

Jim Protiva, Newport’s Director of Parks and Recreation, calls this leg of the greater trail system-to-come “a step into the wilderness without stepping out of town.” This part goes from Agate Beach Wayside to Big Creek Park and is phase one of the Ocean to Bay Trail. The other stretches will be built slowly over the next few years as money becomes available.

“It’s the opportunity to walk through wetlands without impacting them, and it’s an out-of-the-wind activity in Newport,” Protiva said.

First, the explorer has to find the trail – and you may initially get fooled. An unmarked paved path at the east end of the parking lot at Agate Beach apparently wanders off into the woods. It quickly forks to the south or north; the southern stretch takes you back across a creek running through the wayside, and down a path which wanders below the Agate Beach Best Western hotel, eventually taking you to the western end of the parking lot. This is not the trail, but a pleasant and pastoral diversion, nonetheless.

The new trail actually begins when the paved entrance seems to disappear into a wall of ground, where you find yourself in a tunnel that goes underneath Highway 101. On the other side, a long stairway leads up to the other side of the highway. But next to those steps, the trail actually starts.

During the winter, you’ll see through the leafless trees and into the marshes and sopping wetlands just to the east of the trail. “Those are wetlands so wet they’ll probably never get developed,” Protiva said.

The air here is thick with the smell of nature, marshes and forest.

For three-quarters of a mile this freshly minted trail meanders, and you’ll soon run across one of several footbridges. Protiva says there are three of these, about 40 feet long. Then the long boardwalks begin, each of these around 100 feet long. The look of this green space is primeval, maybe even slightly resembling something out of Tolkien. The end result is pure natural stunner mixed with the nature-friendly ingenuity and the design of Man.

Protiva said this leg cost approximately $275,000.

The second phase will be a mile-long stretch into eastern Newport that goes from Big Creek Park to the public swimming pool. The third phase will be from there to Newport Middle School, about a quarter mile. From there, the fourth section will take walkers on a mile hike to a spot on the eastern part of Highway 20. The last phase will trek a quarter mile further until it ends at the bay.

“There is no timeline,” Protiva said. “We will continue to expand as money is available.” He said that the second phase will probably begin construction in the next year, however.

Currently, the trail is still a secret, although many locals have caught on. “Originally there was no fanfare or signage, so it’s all been by word of mouth,” Protiva said. “Residents have caught wind of it and are using it. But that’s about all.”

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