Category Archives: Long Beach

Trips Worth Taking: 50 million visitors later: She’s still the Queen of the Seas

By WARREN RESEN – Member of NATJA - Tampabaycurrent.com Long Beach, CA — With much fanfare, the Queen Mary arrived in Long Beach Harbor in December 1967 to begin its well-deserved retirement after 30 years as the premiere luxury liner sailing the waters of the North Atlantic Ocean. The conversion to change Queen Mary from an ocean-going luxury liner to a floating hotel, tourist attraction and venue for special events began almost immediately upon its arrival. The retired “Queen of the Seas” opened to the public at her now permanent home in 1971 and more than 50 million visitors have since walked its decks. Continue Reading... ...
Read more

On the Waterfront: Riding San Pedro’s Port of Los Angeles Waterfront Red Car Line

by Eric Brightwell - KCET.org Any decent map of rail lines in Los Angeles has to include the rails used by Amtrak, Metro, and Metrolink. Extra credit if they also include the tracks used by BNSF Railway and Union Pacific Railroad. Including novelty rails like Angels Flight, Travel Town Railroad, or the trolley lines at The Americana at Brand and The Grove is probably going too far. Then there's the Waterfront Red Car Line in San Pedro, which in my mind, lies somewhere in between novelty rail and public transit. Though now in operation for more than a decade, I was only just made aware of it when I saw it included on a map alongside Metro and Metrolink and decided to check it out. Anyone who's at all interested in mass transit has probably heard of the Pacific Electric rail system -- popularly known as the Red Cars or Big Red Cars. Covering over 1,000 miles, it was once the...
Read more

Legal action taken in pier dispute

By Emily Foxhall - Daily Pilot A Newport Beach resident has filed a civil action against the city over the alleged mishandling of the permit for the dock that stretches in front of his family's Balboa Island home. The petition, filed Monday on behalf of former professional basketball player John Vallely, came just one day ahead of the third time the dock issue went before the City Council. Council members voted Tuesday to dismiss proposed changes to the city's harbor code that would have affected the way permits are transferred for piers that encroach on another's dock area, as Vallely's does. Continue Reading... ...
Read more

ON FILM: SURFRIDER FOUNDATION’S BATTLE OVER MARTIN’S BEACH

By: MARY CATHERINE O'CONNOR - Outside Online On October 21, 2012, five surfers jumped a closed gate and walked to Martin's Beach, a storied stretch of Pacific in the Northern California's San Mateo County. Their aim was to perform an act of surfing disobedience that could get them arrested. It did. This week the surfer's website The Inertia and Surfrider Foundation released a short film, "Martin's 5: Battle for the Beach," that explains why these surfers – Jonathan Bremer, Kyle Foley, Tyler Schmidt, Austin Murison and David Pringle – risked misdemeanor convictions. They, along with surf access and ocean advocacy organization Surfrider Foundation, claim that access to Martin's Beach is granted to individuals through California's Coastal Commission, which formed 40 years ago and passed the California Coastal Act in 1976. The Act was designed both to conserve marine resources along the Pacific, from Oregon to Mexico, and to maximize opportunities for the public to access and recreate on California beaches. Continue Reading... ...
Read more

Island to Island Relay Raises Money to Fight Cancer

SUPConnect.com SANTA BARBARA, California - Giles Finlayson recently beat cancer. ·Now his life's work is to raise money for other people stricken with the horrible disease! You can help out in the cause in less than three weeks by participating in the Island to Island Waterman Relay! Saturday October 12th, 2013 will be the Island to Island Waterman relay!  It's a 28 mile relay for 14ft. stand up paddleboards, prone paddleboards and outrigger canoes made up of 3 people per team. Continue Reading... ...
Read more

Boaters rescued in waters off coast of Baja, California

ABC10 San Diego SAN DIEGO - A San Diego-based U.S. Coast Guard crew rescued three boaters from a sinking boat about four miles southwest of the Coronado Islands, off the coast of Baja California, authorities said. A commercial marine assistance company called the Coast Guard about 3:30 p.m. Sunday as the 19-foot bayliner was taking on water, which the on board pumps could not keep up with, Coast Guard officials said. The Mexican Navy also responded. Continue Reading......
Read more

Schmidt Breaks 5 SUP Records, Raises Charity Donations

Posted by Peter Schelden (Editor) In seven days, Will Schmidt of Laguna Niguel broke five standup paddle records by touching the five inner Channel Islands before paddling back to Dana Point. Schmidt did it for the Wounded Warrior Project. He was particularly concerned about raising awareness for veterans like himself who have suffered from depression following their service. Continue Reading... ...
Read more

Announcing New Coastkeeper Environmental Water Law Clinic at Whittier Law School

Clinic Will Give Students Hands-On Experience Enforcing the Federal Clean Water Act

COSTA MESA, CA, Sep 24, 2013 (Marketwired via COMTEX) -- To protect the quality of water in Southern California, law students and a non-profit environmental organization are now working together. Orange County Coastkeeper and Whittier Law School have joined forces to create the Coastkeeper Environmental Water Law Clinic at Whittier Law School.

Through the Coastkeeper Environmental Water Law Clinic, students will assist Coastkeeper to prepare for litigation using the federal Clean Water Act against polluters affecting water quality in Orange County and the Inland Empire. Whittier Law students will also help protect public access to waterways under the Coastal Act, taking an active role in following, monitoring and commenting on development projects that may affect regional waterways and public access.

Continue Reading......
Read more