Sea Lion Caves is a connected system of

sea cave A sea cave, also known as a littoral cave, is a type of cave formed primarily by the wave action of the sea. The primary process involved is erosion. Sea caves are found throughout the world, actively forming along present coastlines and as relic ...

s and

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

rns open to the Pacific Ocean in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Oregon Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...

. They are located north of

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico ...

U.S. Highway 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

, about midpoint on the

Oregon Coast The Oregon Coast is a coastal region of the U.S. state of Oregon. It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to its west and the Oregon Coast Range to the east, and stretches approximately from the California state border in the south to the Colum ...

. In this area Highway 101 follows a steep and undeveloped seascape above sea level. Human access to the caves is through a gift shop building.

Description

The cave system is at

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardis ...

and the ocean continually washes into the main cavern which has a floor area of about and a vaulted rock dome about high. Southward from the main chamber, a low passage runs to a sea level opening. This corridor is flooded at

high tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables c ...

and free of water at

low tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables c ...

. The western entrance is a short, high passage through which the ocean washes at all tide levels. At the north, a third entrance is about above the ocean which serves as an elevated observation area where the entire cave system and its wildlife are visible.

Lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.algae Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular micr ...

, and mineral stains cover the cavern walls with greens, pinks, purples, buffs, and reds on the rough surfaces, some of which are named Lincoln's Head, the Indian Maiden, and The Goddess of Liberty. The sea level portion of this cave and the sea cliff rocks just outside the cave have become, over the centuries, the only known mainland rookery and hauling area (wintering home) of the

Steller's sea lion The Steller sea lion (''Eumetopias jubatus''), also known as the Steller's sea lion and northern sea lion, is a near-threatened species of sea lion in the northern Pacific. It is the sole member of the genus ''Eumetopias'' and the largest of ...

and—to a lesser extent—the

California sea lion The California sea lion (''Zalophus californianus'') is a coastal eared seal native to western North America. It is one of six species of sea lions. Its natural habitat ranges from southeast Alaska to central Mexico, including the Gulf of Ca ...

. The high vault is a natural resting place for sea birds. Many birds make their home at or near the Sea Lion Caves such as the

pigeon guillemot The pigeon guillemot (''Cepphus columba'') () is a species of bird in the auk family, Alcidae. One of three species in the genus '' Cepphus'', it is most closely related to the spectacled guillemot. There are five subspecies of the pigeon gu ...

Brandt's cormorant Brandt's cormorant (''Urile penicillatus'') is a strictly marine bird of the cormorant family of seabirds that inhabits the Pacific coast of North America. It ranges, in the summer, from Alaska to the Gulf of California, but the population no ...

, western, herring, and California

gulls Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari (bird), Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and Skimmer (bird), skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders ...

, tufted puffins, and the occasional hawk or

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

. Sea Lion Caves is one of the great sea caves of the world, and currently ranks 10th among the world's longest sea caves. With a measured length of 1315 feet, it is the longest in the United States. A comparable cave is the undeveloped Painted Cave on Santa Cruz Island, California, which is 1227 feet long. The whale watching deck, located below the gift shop, permits a seaward view of approximately . The deck is at an elevation of , making it a popular whale watching post. Typically,

orcas The orca or killer whale (''Orcinus orca'') is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, of which it is the largest member. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'' and is recognizable by its black-and-white pat ...

are seen migrating once a year past the Sea Lion Caves, whereas the

gray whale The gray whale (''Eschrichtius robustus''), also known as the grey whale,Britannica Micro.: v. IV, p. 693. gray back whale, Pacific gray whale, Korean gray whale, or California gray whale, is a baleen whale that migrates between feeding and bre ...

is seen anywhere from a few months to all year long. Small groups sometimes end their migration in the immediate vicinity, feeding very close to the shore.

History

Sea Lion Caves were discovered in 1880 by a local seaman, Captain William Cox, who entered the grotto through the western channel in a small boat on a calm day. He reportedly returned to explore the caves a number of times and on one occasion was marooned for several days because of stormy weather and rough ocean. He reportedly sustained himself by shooting a young sea lion and eating the meat of its flippers. Regardless of the incident's authenticity, it is established that Captain Cox purchased the land in 1887 from the State of Oregon. His family owned the property until 1926. There were no roads in the area at that time. The slopes of the rocky headlands were used for sheep pasture. Access to the caves from the hillside above was not even considered until after the land was acquired by R. E. Clanton in 1927, with the specific intention of opening the caves as a business. In 1930, when it became probable that

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

would be completed going past the site, Clanton was joined by J. G. Houghton, and J. E. Jacobson. The three partners decided to risk all their money to build a safe access to the cave. A trail was excavated by hand into the face of the cliff. At the bottom, a 135 step wooden tower was extended down to the north entrance of the caves. Despite the difficulty and danger of the construction, the trail and stairs provided safe access for visitors and the Sea Lion Caves opened to the public in August 1932. The traffic was light at first. The highway was a gravel road until 1934, and until 1937 there were five ferry crossings within 100 miles to traverse the highway. However, word of the attraction spread and the number of people visiting the Sea Lion Caves slowly grew until 1942, when virtually all recreational travel halted due to World War II. Meanwhile, Clanton withdrew from the partnership in 1934 and R. A. Saubert became part owner. The three families operated the Sea Lion Caves until 2006, when the Saubert and Jacobson families took over the partnership. In 1961, the addition of an elevator resulted in a sharp rise in the number of visitors. The elevator took three years to build, but by June 1961,

Otis Elevator Company Otis Worldwide Corporation ( branded as the Otis Elevator Company, its former legal name) is an American company that develops, manufactures and markets elevators, escalators, moving walkways, and related equipment. Based in Farmington, Connec ...

completed the elevator. It has a capacity of 23 passengers and travels at 250 feet per minute (). It can accommodate 400 people per hour. In 2016, a new elevator was installed.

References

External links

* * {{Coord, 44.1224, -124.1276, type:landmark_region:US-OR_source:googlemaps, display=title Caves of Oregon Landforms of Lane County, Oregon Oregon Coast Roadside attractions in Oregon Sea caves

Description

History

See also

References

External links