Olympic National Park: Perspectives Speaker Series

Coastal Bluff Erosion at Kalaloch

Learn about new research from photo monitoring stations. Join in person or on Zoom.

The shoreline at Kalaloch is a broad, sandy, bluff-backed beach at the southern end of the coastal strip in Olympic National Park. The location of this distinctive notable shoreline along the coastal Highway 101 corridor, as well as its proximity to the popular Kalaloch Lodge and associated cabins and campground, make it one of the more valuable beach access points on the coast. The coastal bluffs at Kalaloch have been eroding at various rates since at least since 1974 based on available analyses of the site. Erosion at this site presents a variety of management problems, placing buildings and recreational infrastructure at risk. A variety of approaches have been employed to monitor and understand patterns of erosion of the bluffs at Kalaloch that will be summarized in this presentation, including ground surveys with GNSS, conducted at least twice annually, and often seasonally, since 2013. The results of those ground surveys can be coupled with available aerial lidar to provide insights about trends in morphology and position of coastal bluffs at Kalaloch between 2002 and the present. To complement the ground surveys, in October 2023 five Chronolog community-science photo monitoring stations were installed along the bluffs at Kalaloch. In addition to results associated with ground surveys, we will describe early insights provided by the first winter of photos submitted at those stations.

About the Presenter

Dr. Ian Miller is Washington Sea Grant’s coastal hazards specialist, working out of Peninsula College in Port Angeles. Ian works with coastal communities and public agencies in Washington State to strengthen their ability to plan for and manage coastal hazards, including tsunamis, chronic erosion, coastal flooding and other hazards associated with climate change.

About the Series

Olympic National Park: Perspectives Speaker Series is hosted by NOLS in person and on Zoom. The free talks begin at 7pm on the second Tuesday of each month from January through April. No registration is required. Recordings of the presentations will be available on NOLS YouTube channel within one week after the event.

The series is made possible through the work of Olympic National Park, the North Olympic Library System, Discover Your Northwest, and the Friends of Olympic National Park.

Attend at Port Angeles Main Library or Join Remotely

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https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83670593801

Meeting ID: 836 7059 3801

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