Oregon Coast Invasive Species Cleanup at Old Pixieland Area

Published 06/09/2019 at 5:53 AM PDT
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Lincoln City, Oregon) – One small tract of estuary land on the Oregon coast needs a little help these days, including a piece of marshland that was once Pixieland.

The MidCoast Watersheds Council and Salmon Drift Creek Watershed Council is holding a special work party to remove invasive species from two important restoration sites: the old Pixieland area and the former site of a trailer park called Tamara Quays. Both have long been cleared of manmade objects, including the rusted chunks of the former amusement park that lived there shortly from the late ‘60s to mid ‘70s.

On Friday, June 21, the two groups will hold a restoration work party on the Salmon River Estuary, going from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Everyone meets at the rest area on Fraser Road, directly off of Highway 101, about 5 miles north of Lincoln City. While both sites have fully returned to nature, this also means an issue of invasive species.

According to spokesman Ari Blatt, as native plants continue to establish, they must contend with Scotch broom, Himalayan blackberry, English ivy, laurel, fox glove, and other invasive species. Removing these early in the growing season will help ensure young native trees and shrubs are given the best chance to survive so that they may provide habitat benefits for fish and wildlife over the long run.

“Restoration work first began at Pixieland and Tamara Quays in 2007, after lands of a former theme park and trailer community totaling 97 acres were acquired by the US Forest Service in order to fulfill management goals within the 1974-designated Cascade Head Scenic-Research Area,” Blatt said. “In addition to removing the structures associated with their former land uses, actions took place to restore the natural tidal hydrology and vegetation of the sites.”

Blatt said the Salmon River Basin has seen a much more complete return to a natural state than any other Oregon estuary. Early homesteaders drained most of the marshes from the beginning over 100 years ago, utilizing damming methods, then converting the land into livestock pastures. This, however unintentionally, had ill effects on the salmon of the area. Removing the dikes and other restorative measures allowed the two tracts of land to re-establish the native marsh vegetation and tidal channels that provide crucial habitat at vulnerable life stages.

Tamara Quays was a mobile home park developed in this tidal marsh area back in the early ‘70s, with several mobile home pads and two sizable roads built in the spot. The area also had ornamental trees and shrubs planted around the lots. It, like Pixieland, utilized diking of these Oregon coast waterways and rerouting of rivers in order to develop the site. Fill material was placed in some areas, and others had culverts, dams and tide gates.

All that had to be removed over the years. A big push came in 2007 when federal workers and interns removed the remaining pieces of manmade objects as well as invasive species.

Both areas together are about 57 acres of Oregon coast wetland.

Now, help with the invasive species is needed again.

The groups said you should bring water and food, sun and rain protection, working boots and gloves, and any garden tools you may have available (loppers, hand cutters, small hand saws, etc.)

Contact Ari Blatt at ari@midcoastwc.org or (541) 265-9195 if you have any questions. Hotels in Lincoln City - Where to eat - Lincoln City Maps and Virtual Tours

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