Public invited to visit historic rhododendron garden during annual open days, April 12

BLM release – North Bend, Ore. – The historic O.H. Hinsdale Rhododendron Garden will be open to the public for three Saturdays this spring so visitors can enjoy hundreds of blooming rhododendrons, azaleas and trees. The garden is located three miles east of Reedsport on Highway 38 along the Umpqua River. The Friends of Hinsdale Garden and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Coos Bay District will be on hand to answer questions and give tours from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on April 13, April 27, and May 11, 2019. “We are excited to be working with the Friends of Hinsdale to give people an opportunity to visit this unique local treasure. It is pretty spectacular when you walk through the garden in full bloom with 30 foot tall rhododendrons,” said Kathy Westenskow-Davis, the BLM’s Coos Bay District Manager. Those visiting the garden should check-in at the interpretive kiosk at the Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area, just west of the garden on Highway 38. Due to limited parking, visitors will be shuttled to the garden from the elk viewing area in small buses. The BLM, along with the American Rhododendron Society and the Friends of Hinsdale Garden, have worked to restore the garden over the past several years. The garden contains hundreds of rhododendrons and azalea plants, some over 100 years old.  The BLM acquired the rhododendron garden on Spruce Reach Island in 1994. The unique woodland garden is a historic resource that is potentially eligible for inclusion on the Natural Register of Historic Places. For additional information about the open days, contact Leslie Peters or Megan Harper of the BLM at 541-756-0100, or by contacting the Friends of the Hinsdale Garden at hinsdalegarden.com. Visitors can also view photos or take a 360-degree video tour of Hinsdale Garden by smartphone or computer, any time of day, at https://youtu.be/Gk8OMc-mGU0 and a Google Street View tour at http://bit.ly/2UkDsik. An album of photos is also available at https://flic.kr/s/aHsk6t1zsN.