Geo 365: Oct. 30, Day 303: Basalt Terrace North

Looking north from the same spot as yesterday's shot, on the far horizon to the right, another housing development is visible. I reiterate my comments from that post on why that flat area looks ideal for coastal development. It looks (from a driveway in the full-size view) that the headland between here and there is a park. Early in the 1900's, the then-Governor of Oregon declared the Oregon Coast a "highway," in part because at the time there were few roads in the area, and sandy areas at low tides were in fact important transportation corridors. It also gave the state complete jurisdiction over the area. I don't recall the details of how it's written, but basically the state owns all the land along the coast up to a certain elevation, and the general public is guaranteed access if it's physically available. So landowners can't buy lots and block people from "their beach," or "their cove." As a result, there are innumerable places with what I refer to as "pocket parks," which may be nothing more than parking lots allowing access to particular bits of Oregon's uniquely under-developed "highway."

Photo unmodified. May 6, 2013. FlashEarth location. (The houses appear to be the southern end of the coastal community of Depoe Bay, famously the site of the fishing excursion in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.")