Lily Lake Loop Hike

Overview

The trails around Lily Lake are at the north end of the Oregon Dunes, although this area, while administered by the Siuslaw National Forest, is not part of the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. Lily Lake itself is a typical dune lake, where a creek coming down from the slopes of Cape Mountain has been dammed by sand dunes formed behind Baker Beach. The short loop described here takes you through the deflation zone behind the foredunes and then back near the shore of Lily Lake before rising over a lushly forested stabilized dune on the return. Note that some sections of the trails are underwater in winter and spring although these pools are fairly easily circumvented. From the day use parking area, walk west past a gate with signs for Baker Beach. (The campground is to your right.) Take the first trail on the right that leads off this maintenance track. This is the Berry Creek Trail, and you should keep straight at a junction where a trail leads right back to the campground. An established wood of shore pine is to your right, while younger pines and beachgrass have colonized the deflation zone to your left. In the wet season, you may have to circumvent areas of trail that have been flooded. The trail rises up an old dune now capped with windswept Sitka spruce, and you’ll need to keep left at a junction to join the Lily Lake Loop (spelled “Lilly” on the signs). From this elevated viewpoint, there are views to Lily Lake with Cape Mountain rearing behind and Highway 101 curling around its base. To the west, Berry Creek snakes its way towards Baker Beach and the Pacific Ocean. To the north, Sea Lion Point juts into the ocean. Coyote bush and silktassel are coastal shrubs that inhabit the area. The trail descends to a flat grassy sward and runs near Lily Lake although the shore itself is brushy and not easy to access. There’s plenty of elk sign in this area. The trail enters spruce woods and passes a cutoff trail. Continuing along the flat trail, you’ll hike through a corridor of salal and reach another junct

Trail Stats

Photos

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