
Waiting for the Waves – Bolinas, California
“He that can have patience can have what he will.”
― Benjamin Franklin
~~~
Posted by Jody on October 23, 2017
Waiting for the Waves – Bolinas, California
“He that can have patience can have what he will.”
― Benjamin Franklin
~~~
Posted in Monday Miscellaneous, Northern California Beaches, Surfing Beach, Today's Special | Tagged: beach, beach photography, Benjamin Franklin, Bolinas California beach | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Jody on January 30, 2017
Today’s Featured Guest Writer is Jacqueline Downs.
On a recent trip to Pismo Beach with my 7 year old granddaughter, I found a large shark tooth on the shore while shell seeking. I have being a shell seeker for many, many years up and down the California coast and have never found a shark tooth. Actually I have never really searched for shark teeth. I was extremely excited to find it while searching for sand dollars.
Shark Tooth from Pismo Beach, California
I found the shark tooth on the beach close one of the beach stairways north of the pier. I thought it was a nice rock, but behold it was a great surprise. The tooth is a little larger than a quarter.
Pismo Beach Prize
“Looks kind of old. Kind of like me” ~ We doubt that, Jacqueline ! 🙂
~Many thanks to Jaqueline for sharing her beach treasure with us! We are so happy that she sent along such fabulous photos of her very special find. Any day at the beach with a granddaughter is wonderful. Finding such a spectacular prize together makes it all the better!
Related Links: Pismo Beach, California (Official Site)
Pick Your Own Prehistoric Shark Teeth (Venice, Florida)
Please join us! Submission Guidelines for Guest Writers
Posted in Beach Treasures - Beachcombing, Featured Guest Writer, Northern California Beaches, Sand and Shoreline | Tagged: beach, beachcombing, Pismo Beach California, prehistoric shark teeth, shark teeth | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Jody on November 11, 2015
Crown Memorial State Beach, Alameda, California
Honoring Our Veterans
In Memory (Naval Air Station Alameda)
Thank you for your service, veterans! Here’s hoping you can take some time today to relax on a beach ^_^. You’ve earned it- From The Beach Treasures and Treasure Beaches Team (including Greg, who happens to be a U.S. Navy veteran)
Posted in Beaches of North America, Northern California Beaches, Pacific Coast Beaches | Tagged: beach, California, Crown Memorial State Beach, Veterans Day | 4 Comments »
Posted by Jody on August 26, 2014
“There’s a beach in San Francisco?” We get that a lot! In fact, it’s only a very short jaunt from Fisherman’s Wharf to this popular stretch of sand! Simply head east on Jefferson Street, and you’ll find Aquatic Park Historic Cove and the exceptional city-side Aquatic Park beach.
This entire area is part of the National Park Service’s San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park. Lots of words…even more fun!
Here you can bike, run, swim, paddle board, play in the sand, or just watch the world go by:
The next time you’re in the City by the Bay, you can use this handy National Park Service site to help plan your visit to San Francisco’s Aquatic Park Cove beach: San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park. And you’ll, too, be singing ~ “I Left My Heart in San Francisco. High on a hill, it calls to me…”
🎶 “My love waits there in San Francisco
Above the blue and windy sea
When I come home to you, San Francisco
Your golden sun will shine for me”♬
“I Left My Heart In San Francisco” by George Cory and Douglass Cross
~~~
Posted in Northern California Beaches, Sand and Shoreline | Tagged: Aquatic Park Cove, beach, Fisherman's Wharf, Hyde Street Pier, San Francisco Bay, San Francisco beach, San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Jody on August 23, 2014
Greg and I recently returned from another fantastic visit to the Bay Area (and points north).
Stinson Beach
While strolling Stinson Beach one perfect July afternoon, we happened upon a large number jelly-like oval-shaped creatures washed up on the sand. 😦 They were the most striking deep blue in color. I recognized them right away, even though I had never seen one of these strange little life forms in person before.
By the Wind Sailors on Stinson Beach
By the Wind Sailors on Stinson Beach
Their distinctive “sail” was the give-away!
By the Wind Sailor
By the Wind Sailor
Nobody (except the scavenging gulls) seemed to pay them any mind at all. Harmless to humans, these amazing marine organisms are called “by the wind sailors” (Velella velella ). They live on the surface of the ocean and can be found on both the Atlantic coast and the Pacific coast of the United States. By the wind sailors are commonly seen scattered about the sands of Stinson Beach during the late spring and early summer, and along the west coast as far north as Washington State, when especially strong winds can cast counteless numbers of these ill-fated critters ashore.
Look closely for the By the Wind Sailors.
Harmless to humans: blue stinging tentacles around the rim.
According to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s SIMoN website:
Velella velella is incredibly stabile and seaworthy by design. The sail is triangular, slightly thicker at its base, stiffened by superficial thickened ridges, and yet still quite flexible. This incredible design allows smooth bending when its sail is under load, recoiling when the wind lets up, and overall minimizes the risk of kinking. The whole animal tilts when under sail, hull broadside to the flow of oncoming water.
Velella velella drifts before the wind, almost always tacking about 45 degrees to the right of the prevailing northwesterlies. This is normally enough to keep them offshore, however southerly or extremely strong onshore winds can cause them to spin around and follow the wind at a much closer angle that brings them toward land. Once washed ashore, the animals die and disintegrate within a few days.
And here’s a little something extra for your next beach/trivia party! According to Oregon State University: “The sail is set diagonally to the long axis of the animal. On our side of the north Pacific Ocean, their sails are set in a northwest to southeast direction. On the other side of the north Pacific, the sails are set in a northeast to southwest direction. In the southern hemisphere, sails are reversed.”
Apparently, 2014 has been a bang-up year for the beaching of these remarkable, translucent, ocean-going creatures. Stories of mass sightings abound.
Here are a couple more helpful links in case you’d like to learn more about the (often hyphenated) by-the-wind sailor.
Serenity, Sand and (yes) Sharks of Stinson Beach (Stinson Beach)
~~~
Posted in Beach and Coastal Wildlife, Northern California Beaches, Sand and Shoreline | Tagged: beach, beachcombing, By the Wind Sailor, jellyfish, Marin County California beach, Stinson Beach California, Velella velella | 14 Comments »
Posted by Jody on October 15, 2013
We just love returning to the beaches of Morro Bay, California. Nestled on the Pacific Ocean about half way between Los Angeles and San Francisco, Morro Bay is home to one of the most fascinating coastal environments you’ll find anywhere.
Our family loves exploring the tide pools near “El Morro” (aka: Morro Rock). We’re never disappointed with the rich variety of marine life we find near the rocky breakwater.
Heading out to explore the tide pools in almost any weather is well worth the time and energy. You’ll be so glad you did. Keep your eyes open! You’ll have to look under and around rocks to spot the beautifully colored sea stars and sea anemones. Smaller crabs will scurry into the riprap, waving and drumming their pincers to warn you off. It’s a really cool sound (Don’t worry about embarrassing them, though – they never seem put off that you’re laughing at their bravado)! The larger crabs won’t pay you any mind at all. Years ago, Greg and I even came across a young seal resting on the sand. That was a real bonus!
On the way back toward town, check out the bay side water to see if you can catch a glimpse of the very entertaining otters.
If bird watching is your jive, the Morro Bay area is home to over 250 species of birds (including peregrine falcons), a fact that this quaint fishing village celebrates each year with the Winter Bird Festival weekend.
Beach and coastal activities are numerous in Morro Bay. If you check out the beach to the north of Morro Rock, you’ll inevitably find surfers, even if they’re just hanging out waiting for the next set of waves. This strand is also where a bounty of sand dollars can be found (be careful not to collect the live ones).
If you look to the south of Morro Rock toward the placid waters of the protected bay, you’ll see kayaks gliding amongst the moored sail boats.
Kayak in Morro Bay, California (©Jody Diehl)
It always seems to be a bit misty when we’re visiting Morro Bay, and mornings can be pretty nippy out on the water. You might want to wear layers and bring along rain gear, just in case. Your sturdy beach-trekkers will be perfect for climbing over the uneven rocks around the tide pools.
Where is your favorite tide pooling spot? We’d love to hear about it!
~~~
Posted in Beach and Coastal Wildlife, Beach Treasures - Beachcombing, Northern California Beaches, Tide Pools | Tagged: beach, beachcombing, Morro Bay California, Northern California tide pools, sand dollars, sea stars | 9 Comments »
Posted by Jody on August 17, 2013
McClures Beach, Point Reyes National Seashore, Northern California
Men go abroad to wonder at the heights of mountains, at the huge waves of the sea, at the long courses of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motions of the stars, and they pass by themselves without wondering.
~Saint Augustine
~~~
Posted in Northern California Beaches, Today's Special | Tagged: beach, beach photography, McClures Beach California, Point Reyes National Seashore, Saint Augustine | 3 Comments »
Posted by Jody on June 13, 2013
John Steinbeck Sculpture at Cannery Row >>> This way to the beach!
Plaza Entrance to the Beach at Cannery Row
Cannery Row’s Beach
Self Portrait at Cannery Row’s Beach – Looking across Monterey Bay
“The tide goes out imperceptibly. The boulders show and seem to rise up and the ocean recedes leaving little pools, leaving wet weed and moss and sponge, iridescence and brown and blue and China red.”
~ John Steinbeck, Cannery Row
Summer reading: I just finished reading Cannery Row (thoroughly enjoyed it) and have now moved on to John Steinbeck’s Travels With Charley (loving it!). Steinbeck sure did know how to weave a captivating tale!
What’s on your summer beach reading list? I’d love to hear your recommendations!
~~~
Cannery Row: Looking Back – John Steinbeck
Cannery Row in Monterey, California
Just one more thing: Flag Day USA is tomorrow, June 14th. ~ Fly em’ high! ~
Posted in Northern California Beaches, Tide Pools | Tagged: beach, Cannery Row, Flag Day, John Steinbeck, Monterey California beach, summer reading | 11 Comments »
Posted by Jody on June 3, 2013
Surf’s Up! ~Early May in Santa Cruz on California’s Central Coast~
On our last day in Santa Cruz, Greg and I were thrilled to catch the surfers off of Cowell Beach. The water near the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum was teeming with wet-suited folks just waiting for the perfect wave. As we stood at the railing happily watching the action, I noticed more surfers quickly running toward the picturesque cliffs to enter the water. Not knowing if this was their usual routine, I wondered whether this was an especially good morning for surfing in Santa Cruz. You can see in the photo collage that we caught sight of one of the younger surfers jumping into the ocean from the unstable cliff edge. Most of the surfers just scrambled down the precarious bluff to the water’s edge to (safely?) enter the surf.
Wouldn’t the Beach Boys be proud? ♬Catch a wave and you’re sitting on top of the world!♫
Surfing history in Santa Cruz, California:
“History records that surfboard riding first began in the Hawaiian Islands hundreds of years ago. It took until the late 1800’s and early 1900’s before it was introduced to the U.S. Mainland, mostly along the southern coast of California. Surfing became known in the Santa Cruz area when a few young men from the beaches of southern California migrated to the San Francisco Bay Area to seek jobs or to attend college. They already knew how to surf and brought their boards with them. Soon they discovered the beaches of Monterey Bay and the outstanding surf breaking across the outer reefs and sandbars at Cowell’s Beach.”
Source: Hal Goody, History of the Santa Cruz Surfing Club, Santa Cruz Public Libraries
Additional links:
Friction in Santa Cruz waters: Paddle boarders, surfers battle
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Posted in Monday Miscellaneous, Northern California Beaches, Surfing Beach | Tagged: beach, California Central Coast, California surfing beach, Cowell Beach, Santa Cruz California Beach, Santa Cruz Surfing Museum, Surfer Memorial, surfing | 4 Comments »