Sand Dollars

Sand Dollars Pretty findings along the Oregon Coast

If you walk the beach in Oregon, you won’t just find driftwood and shells. In addition to the many scattered crab skeletons left by seagulls or washed up by the wild currents, the rare sand dollars can be found here. These belong to the class of sea urchins and live on shallow sandy shores. They have only very small spines and a large number of ambulacral feet. On these they can only move forward and quite slowly, but at least they can bury themselves completely in the sand within about a minute. Have you heard of the “Lantern of Aristotle”? This is the name given to the five-pointed jaw apparatus on the top of the sand dollar. On the beach, however, we don’t find the living hairy-looking sea urchins, but their dried, hard exoskeleton. Apart from the round shape, all that remains of the previous appearance is the five-petaled flower shape.

Even though the pretty beach findings have not been recognized as currency in the U.S., despite their name, they definitely belong to a picture of the Oregon Coast! So, EYES OPEN!

For craft ideas with sand dollars, check out this blog post.
For more information on sand dollars and videos of them burying themselves and eating food, visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium website here.

19 June 2022

Circles in the Sand

VoyageOregon Art, Beach, Southern Oregon Coast 0

Circles in the Sand Father's Day at Bandon Beach

In Bandon, I’m only familiar with closed-off parking lots and parked-up streets from the 4th of July. But this Sunday – the American Father’s Day – the whole South Coast was at Bandon Beach. The artists from Circles in the Sand went all out today: under the motto Share Love – Show Love – Be Love, they created another of their masterpieces in the sand.

How does it work?

The artists need about two hours to draw the labyrinth-like paths in the sand. Starting at 11 a.m., all visitors were invited to walk the path in the sand. At the beginning of the meditative walk, one receives a small stone from the Circles team, on which one transfers the acquired positive energy during the walk. So at the end of the walk, which takes about 20 minutes, you not only have a nice memento, but your own positive energy to touch. Today, most of the drawings along the way were in the spirit of Father’s Day…

When can I participate in Circles in the Sand?

There will be many more days to walk one of the sand trails between now and mid-August. You can find more information, merchandize and the Circles in the Sand blog here. Watch the weather and bring sunscreen or windbreakers – Circles in the Sand is art right on the beach! Check out the list below for more dates this year:

Beach