Low tides expose the Oregon Coast

By Joe Rojas-Burke - The Oregonian

Super-low tides will provide ideal conditions for exploring tide pools and searching for shipwrecks at the Oregon coast this weekend and next week.

There are minus tides this weekend. And on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, tides will drop as low as minus 3 feet -- about as low as they can get on the Oregon coast.

Extreme minus tides reveal seascapes and marine life that's hidden under pounding surf most of the year. Check a tide table for detailed times, and for safety, make sure to keep an eye on incoming waves.

Here are some great places to explore during minus tides:

1. The Peter Iredale, a ship that sank in 1906, stands out at Clatsop Beach. And north of the Columbia River, where Jetty A meets Cape Disappointment, you might see the remains of the Bettie M, a tuna seiner that sank in 1976.

2. Easily accessible tide pools around Haystack Rock at Cannon Beach are loaded with anemones, chitons, several kinds of crab, limpets, nudibranch, sea stars and urchins.

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