A hiker and a mountain biker take a break on the Eel Lake trail in William Tugman State Park near Lakeside.

Oregon’s South Coast has a remarkable number of what might be called specialized recreation opportunities. We have places specifically set aside for everything from horseback riding to mountain biking to disc golfing to gold panning. Many of the places also welcome casual visitors just out for a bit of fresh air and exercise.

There are lots of fun indoor activities as well, ranging from North Bend’s synthetic skating rink to an ongoing array of dancing get-togethers in a variety of venues.

But the beaches and dunes top most activity lists.

We’re probably best known as a destination for riding all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and other motorized conveyances in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area (ODNRA). There are dozens of ATV accesses throughout the 40-mile dunes system between Florence and North Bend. Thousands of people flock here in the summer months, many bringing their own “toys” for dunes riding. Rental places and tour operators do a brisk business with folks who haven’t brought their own rigs. There are hugely popular annual dunes events featuring competitions, vendor booths and other attractions.

The ODNRA also has a handful of vehicle-free areas for hikers, equestrians and the latest craze – fat-tire bicyclists. Likewise, there are stretches of beach open to vehicles and others hiker/biker only.

Sometimes the places are side-by-side. For example, vehicles are allowed on Whiskey Run Beach near Bandon, but not immediately north at Seven Devils State Recreation Site.

Equestrians can find miles of trails and beaches, beginning just north of Florence, with other horseback riding near Coos Bay, Bandon and Port Orford.

The Bureau of Land Management Blue Ridge trail system east of Coos Bay attracts horseback riders, ATVers, mountain bikers and hikers. Dirt bikers can ride the Winchester trails system on Coos County Forest land between Coos Bay and Bandon.

The popular Whiskey Run Mountain Bike Trails system is also located in the county forest.

Road-riding bicyclists can check out the officially-designated Wild Rivers tour in Port Orford that takes in the prized Elk River as well as beautiful Cape Blanco State Park.

For the younger crowd, there are professionally-designed skateparks in every South Coast community, as well as disc golf courses such as those in Coos Bay’s Mingus Park and North Bend’s Winsor and Simpson city parks.

With so much water – ocean, bays, estuaries, lakes, rivers – the waterway possibilities are numerous, and include the wonderful Siltcoos River Canoe Trail in Dunes City south of Florence. The Sough Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve near Charleston has miles of waterways and terrestrial trails for exploration. Birdwatch at the Bandon Marsh National Wildlife Reserve just north of Bandon and the BLM New River preserve 7 miles south of Bandon. The Dean Creek Elk Reserve viewing area outside Reedsport is impressive.

Duck hunters can set their sights on the Coquille Valley Wildlife Area near Coquille.

The South Coast is also a go-to golfing destination, topped by Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, and with public golf courses in every South Coast community.

As for the aforementioned gold panning, visit the BLM Sixes River campground and day-use area near Port Orford. You won’t find nuggets, but even a tiny flake of “color” in your pan can generate excitement.. The creek feeding down to Whiskey Run Beach north of Bandon has drawn gold seekers for decades, although it’s generally too floury.

This is just a partial list of the specialized places in this diverse region of Oregon. Best of all, you don’t have to go far to enjoy them – they’re just “out our back door.”

(Shopper columnist Tom Baake is author of regional guidebooks.)

The newly-created “Walking Guide for Coos Bay and North Bend” has details on seven easy hikes.

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The increasing interest in walking for fun and exercise was evident in a couple of events in recent weeks, with further activities planned. The January 4 unveiling at the Coos Bay Library of a new walking tour booklet drew more than 100 people, with presentations from organizers of the Sole Mates, Park Pack and South Coast Striders walking groups. A week later another well-attended event saw a cadre of volunteers do a clean-up and invasive species removal at the Millicoma Marsh Trails in Coos Bay’s Eastside district.

Guided walks and clean-ups are slated to continue, while some local hikers are also taking part in an Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) research study on the benefits of walking in rural communities. Organized at the local level by Coos Bay Library research librarian Paul Addis, the group follows a detailed curriculum from OHSU. As part of the study, the hikers were encouraged to name their group, choosing Sole Mates.

Paul noted there are several libraries in Oregon that are participating in the OHSU study. Some libraries chose to do just the walking activity, while some libraries choose to do both walking and civic engagement. The  Coos Bay group  encompasses both. So the entire group did both assignments. The group chose to develop a walking guidebook, put together by study group member and graphic designer Catie Loy.

Catie also leads the Park Pack, which visits local parks and trails on a regular basis. She started the group after taking part in one of the monthly Oregon Bay Area Beautification (OBAB) clean-ups. “It helped spur me to get going,” she recalls. After registering, would-be Park Packers can get text notifications on walks, and there are announcements of upcoming walks on the group’s Facebook page. The walks are kid- and dog-friendly, she notes.

It’s usually a modest turnout, although there are regulars, and as many as 23 people have shown up. Catie says that in addition to the obvious physical benefits, the walks have given participants an opportunity to check out all the parks in the North Bend and Coos Bay Area, and to make new acquaintances. The 16-page booklets have maps, descriptions and directions to seven places, ranging from in-town destinations such as Mingus Park and the Coos Bay Boardwalk, to hikes in Coos Bay’s Empire and Eastside districts. Also included are the trails at the three state parks at Cape Arago. Restrooms, picnic tables, wheelchair access and other amenities are noted on all the maps.  

The booklet’s introduction explains that the OHSU study focuses on the effects of walking as a group and “engaging civically to improve public health and walkability in our community.” For the study, participants got their doctors’ OK, and have had their vital signs recorded at regular intervals. All have shown significant improvements in such categories as stamina, says Paul.

The booklet is available at the Coos Bay Library, Coos Bay Vistors Center, and other various locations. It is also available to download at  https://www.coosbaylibrary.org/sole-mates.

While not accepting any new members as part of the OHSU study, those interested are encouraged to seek out the Park Pack and South Coast Striders for guided hikes.

A fixture on the local hiking scene, the Striders group is organized by Tom Orsi, who spoke at the booklet unveiling about the 253-mile Coos County Odyssey, a virtual “race” that started on January 1 and goes through April 15. Tom says “it’s a fun way to achieve your fitness goals in the new year. You can choose from many types of actual exercise to calculate your virtual miles, and this 3rd Odyssey has new milestones to reach.  Participate as an individual or form teams with friends, family or colleagues to motivate each other to achieve your goals.” Register and find out more at the Striders website, www.coostrails.com. Tom also discussed upcoming Strider hikes, with dates and details at the website.

Monthly clean-ups by the OBAB group are publicized on their Facebook page, their website 4obab.org, and also in the South Coast Shopper, which also regularly plugs walks and other recreational events.

All the groups and lone walkers are also looking forward to improvements planned for John Topits Park in Coos Bay’s Empire district, with new, much-needed signage and recreational offerings in the works. New and recent features include sturdy outdoor exercise equipment, picnic tables and a fee-based machine that offers kayak rentals.

As might be deduced from this brief update, there’s lots of positive activity on the walking and outdoor recreation fronts right now and coming soon, with plenty of ways for you take part in the fun.

(Shopper columnist Tom Baake is author of local guidebooks.)

Bandon’s Arch, shown here in a photo from an earlier era, is among features of walking tours around town.

In recent columns I’ve highlighted a few of the fun and informative self-guided walking and driving tours in South Coast communities. They all feature maps available digitally and in print, and some of the best are in Bandon.

There are five “Walkable Bandon” tours to enjoy the town’s colorful scenery and history – and get some exercise.

The “Old School Hike” is 2.5 miles, with the brochure and website featuring photos and a numbered map.

“To the Bogs and Back” goes 2.5 miles along quiet streets to see the cranberry bogs along Ohio Ave., with potential side trips.

The 4-mile “To the Beach and Back” also follows low-traffic streets on a route to Bandon’s top attraction – the beach.

The 2-mile “Now and Then” hike takes walkers past historic buildings and the sites of historic buildings. Hikers can match photos in the brochure and website of the old buildings and the modern-day occupants of the sites.

The newest entry is “To the Park and Back,” described as “a playful walk on an easy-to-follow route.” Total suggested length is 3 miles, and includes a “play time” interval in City Park.

Each hike offers a whimsical challenge and reward token to younger walkers as a way to keep them engaged along the way. For the new “Park and Back” page, the challenge is to find out how many horses fit in “The Barn,” which is the name of Bandon’s longtime community center in City Park.

All the brochures and website have photos of the corresponding activities. For example, the Park and Back page has vintage and modern-day photos of youngsters playing sports, as well as concerts in earlier days.

The brochures are the inspiration of Jim Proehl of the Bandon History Museum and Tom Orsi, organizer of the popular South Coast Striders hikes. Jim said Striders history hikes in Bandon have always been well attended, but “we had people asking what they could do by themselves or as a couple or family.” Parents also asked for more things for families to do. “There are wine walks, pub crawls and even a Bloody Mary walk, but not much for families,” he said.”

With some schools eliminating or curtailing PE programs, the walking routes offer a way to get some exercise. Kids are also challenged to read and follow maps, which as Jim noted “is becoming a lost art.”

Balancing each hike’s history and exercise potential was a challenge. “We tried not to overdo history because if you try to stop and do the history, you’ll never be able to do the whole hike,” said Jim. If the hikes, brochures or website pique someone’s interest in a particular subject, more information can be found at Bandon’s history museum. And of course if it inspires more healthy walking, the better.

Bandon’s brochures are available at the museum and City Hall. All the information, maps and photos can be viewed at the www.coostrails.com website under the Walkable Bandon section. Another resource is the museum’s “Graveyard Explorer’s Guidebook” that leads walkers to and around the Averill, GAR, and Holy Trinity cemeteries.

Bandon’s History Museum is located at the corner of Highway 101 and Fillmore Avenue. The museum is open from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

(Shopper columnist Tom Baake is author of regional guidebooks.)

Walkers visit one of the parks included in a map/brochure of suggested routes.

The evidence keeps rolling in about the healthy benefits of regular physical activity. We’re fortunate to have lots of options when it comes to getting some exercise here on the South Coast. Taking advantage of the various opportunities helps us stay motivated. Sometimes it’s nothing more elaborate than just taking a walk or a bike ride.

While it’s fun to explore around and make your own discoveries, it’s also interesting to check out some of the resources that offer suggestions and details, such as maps of walking routes in Coos Bay, North Bend, Bandon and Coquille. Local bicyclists have also created maps of suggested in-town bike routes, as well as back-road tours and mountain biking destinations.

The walking tour routes were developed as part of the Healthy Living Initiative by the Coos County Women’s Health Coalition. Working with local hikers, the group developed a map/brochure that’s also viewable (and printable) on line.

According to the brochure, “Getting started is as easy as walking out your front door.” Routes on the map are color-coded, with green being the easiest, and progressing through yellow – “still relatively flat but adds some distance,” and then on to more-challenging routes colored red and purple.

Most Coos Bay walks begin at Mingus Park. A splendid, paved walking path circles the lake, and other trails go to higher reaches of the park. You can even make them into loops. Add miles with walks to the Coos Bay Boardwalk.

The North Bend routes take in walks along city sidewalks as well as those at the north end of town that connect Simpson, Winsor and Ferry Road city parks.

Coquille routes include a walk along Highway 42 for part of the way, as well as a route through quieter city streets.

The map/brochure also includes an easy-to-follow beginners’ schedule that begins with 15-minute walks “and will have you walking 60 minutes in 12 weeks.”

“Everyone has a different goal,” according to the brochure. “Sixty minutes a day is good, especially if your goal is weight loss in addition to overall fitness. The American Heart Association recommends 30 minutes of moderate exercise 5 days a week for adults 18 to 65 years old.”

The brochure continues: “Consistency is key in creating a new habit, so be sure you get something in at least 5 days a week.”

As always, consult your health care provider before starting any exercise routine.

A walking partner can really help you stay motivated.

To view the brochure on line, go to https://coostrails.com/ and click on Healthy Hikes, then scroll down to the Coos County Women’s Health Coalition and click on Coos Bay, North Bend or Coquille for the maps.

As for bike maps, find in-town routes as well as places farther away in maps created by the Front Street Community Bike Works in Coos Bay and available at the Oregon’s Adventure Coast website. In-town tours range from the No Hills Ride -- a set of leisurely rides meant for short distances depending on what you would like to do – to Sightseer Rides to explore different attractions to Dare Devil Rides for an intense workout with serious uphill and downhill action. Other rides visit the Whiskey Run Mountain Bike trails, Blue Ridge trails, Millicoma Marsh trails, and Empire Lakes trails.

Get more information at https://www.oregonsadventurecoast.com.

Go directly to the maps: https://www.oregonsadventurecoast.com/img/FSCBW-BIKE-TRAIL-MAPS.pdf

Bandon has a different take, outlining details of a handful of interesting walks in five free map/brochures available at Bandon City Hall and the Bandon History Museum.

So whether you’re following maps or just exploring, here’s hoping the exercise feels more like fun!

(Shopper columnist Tom Baake is author of regional guidebooks.)

A wooden statue of Paul Bunyan guards the Coos County Logging Museum in Myrtle Point. The museum is currently closed for the season, but it’s a good starting point for a Myrtle Point walking or driving tour.

I was sitting out front of the hardware store in Myrtle Point waiting for a key to be made when a guy rode by on a horse. What was even more remarkable (to me) was that nobody batted an eye. In most towns, traffic would snarl, horns would honk, it might even make the evening news.

I watched the guy ride nonchalantly west on Spruce Street and I truly wished there was a saloon with swinging doors he could stop at – after hitching his pony to one of those iron rings in the curb. But he just kept riding west and crossed the bridges and headed out toward Stringtown.

Now, I’m well aware Myrtle Point is pretty much encircled with ranches and yes, there are horses galore especially during fair week, but after all, the fair was in July, and this was the town’s main street . . . At any rate, I was having so much fun watching that I must’ve said out loud, “I love Myrtle Point!” because a woman driving by said “Yeah we like it, too.”

I was so inspired I decided to do a little write-up on good old Myrtle Point.  Coos Bay, North Bend and Bandon have their historic walks but Myrtle Point fairly oozes history. It’s said they have some of the oldest housing stock in Southern Oregon, with more than 100 turn-of-the-20th-century dwellings. Just wandering around some of the streets it’s easy to believe. Not much gentrification in evidence. There are blocks of vintage houses, not one built newer than about 1940.

Classic Victorian homes and more modest dwellings are carefully preserved or lovingly restored to their original glory, with all the fancy woodwork and embellishments – homes literally of seven gables. Other venerable dwellings languish, perhaps awaiting someone’s inspiration, but still retaining interesting architecture. A handful of classic examples can be viewed in the “brick blocks” around downtown.

Situated just above the fertile Coquille River Valley, Myrtle Point is also home to grand old trees, some planted when the paint was still fresh on the stately Victorians. There are giant sequoias, Norway maples, monkey puzzles, plenty of fir, ash and white oak, as well as incense, red and white cedars.

There’s a walking tour map available at City Hall, with brief comments and thumbnail photos. Alas, a handful of the mighty trees have been cut down owing to old age or disease, including Tree Number One, a Port Orford Cedar that once stood next to the Coos County Logging Museum. It succumbed to root disease, and a red cedar was planted in its place. The myrtlewood tree on the other side of the building is said to be one of the largest of its kind.

As for the museum, it’s closed for the season. But that doesn’t mean you can’t take a walking or driving tour of city streets and parks. Yes, even on horseback.

For maximum fun, stop at City Hall for a tree tour printout.

Or obtain one at www.coquillevalley.online

Some highlights include the Christian Lehnherr Home at 307 Alder. Built in about 1860 by settlers in the Baltimore Colony, it was the home of Christian Lehnherr and his family when Mr. Lehnherr donated the land for the town of Myrtle Point.

The1904 Deyoe/Clarke home at 419 Ash was used for years by Dr. Clarke, and also by his wife, who taught piano.

The Hermann Block building (1st and Spruce), built in 1892, was originally three stories tall and had an opera hall on the second floor and Masonic temple on the third. Stores and the post office were at street level.

It’s not all exteriors, either. The sanctuary of the Catholic Church at 209 Second is made of myrtlewood plywood and darker myrtlewood accents.

As might be deduced, Myrtle Point’s colorful and creative old architecture serves as a link to traditions that continue to this day. We’ll check out more of their stories later.

(Some information for this story appears on Myrtle Point’s website with portions copyrighted to Robyn Greenlund. Shopper columnist Tom Baake is author of regional guidebooks.)