News and events

150+ Top Yachts Are Headed for Lido Boat Show

Posted on by in Beach and Ocean Recreation, Boating, California Coastal Notes of Interest, Catalina / Channel Islands, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Misc., Orange County, San Diego  |  Comments are closed
TheLog.com There’s only one place on the entire Pacific Coast where you can see the West’s largest in-the-water collection of big yachts for sale: the Lido Boat Show. The 35th annual Lido Boat Show, Sept. 26-29 at Lido Marina Village, will offer a rare personal viewing opportunity, where show-goers can step aboard and compare the finest in luxury yachts -- including cruiseworthy motoryachts, offshore sportfishers, sleek sailboats, long-range trawlers and head-turning sport yachts. Continue Reading......
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Catalina Island Film Festival to return on Wednesday

Posted on by in All other recreation, California Coastal Notes of Interest, Catalina / Channel Islands, Misc., Visitor Guide  |  Comments are closed
By Andrew Edwards, Press-Telegram The Catalina Island Film Festival is set to return to its seaside venue on Wednesday. “You have this Hollywood reverence and history on this beautiful gem of an island,” festival director Ron Truppa said. “It’s the closest thing we have to the Cannes Film Festival in the United States.” Catalina Island’s history as a location for film shoots dates back more than 100 years. D.W. Griffith’s “Man’s Genesis,” was filmed on the island in 1912, according to the Catalina Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau. It’s virtually impossible to venture around the island city of Avalon without seeing black-and-white photos of old-time movie stars at local businesses. Continue Reading......
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Bison on Catalina: Uno Addition to the Herd

Posted on by in California Coastal Notes of Interest, Catalina / Channel Islands, Misc.  |  Comments are closed
By Calvin Duncan, Conservancy Wildlife Biologist - eCatalina.com AVALON, CATALINA ISLAND - August 2013-Spring and summer are the seasons most anticipated by Catalina’s wildlife enthusiasts because of one thing: babies! Baby eagles, baby quail, baby squirrels, baby foxes - the cuteness factor is unparalleled. But wait - something’s missing. Where are all of the baby bison? Bison calves have been a little harder to find on Catalina since 2010 due to the implementation of the Catalina Island Conservancy’s groundbreaking bison contraceptive program. So far this year, only one calf has been documented. Due to his solitary circumstances, he has been affectionately nicknamed “Uno” (Spanish for one). In the past some 30 calves were born each spring. Continue Reading......
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Mako shark caught off coast of Calif could be record

Posted on by in California Coastal Notes of Interest, Fishing, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Misc., Orange County  |  Comments are closed
Courier Islander - Gillian Flaccus / The Associated Press HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. - News that a sport-fisherman reeled in — and kept — a potentially record-setting mako shark off the Southern California coast earlier this week is making waves with conservationists, who berated the catch because shark populations are vulnerable to overfishing worldwide. The female shark caught Monday off Huntington Beach weighed in at just over 1,323 pounds. It was 11 feet long and measured 8 feet around its sizeable midsection, said Kent Williams, a California-certified fish weight master and owner of New Fishall Bait, where the shark was taken for frozen storage. Jason Johnston, of Mesquite, Texas, caught the massive fish after a 2 1/2-hour battle, the Orange County Register reported. Continue Reading......
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Coastal Cleanup Volunteers Needed to Rid Waterways of Debris

Posted on by in California Coastal Notes of Interest, Coastal Dweller Reference, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Misc., Orange County, San Diego  |  Comments are closed
By Andrea Papagianis - Dana Point Times The state’s largest one-day volunteer event is just around the corner and local agencies are reaching out to residents to take part in cleaning up the Dana Point Harbor and surrounding beaches and waterways. This year’s California Coastal Cleanup Day, which invites volunteers to participate in a three hour sweeping of debris throughout the state, will take place on Saturday, September 21. In 2012, more than 65,000 volunteered for cleanup efforts statewide and removed more than 700,000 pounds of trash from beaches and inland waterways, said Eben Schwartz, outreach manager for the California Coastal Commission. Continue Reading......
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Summer Report Card Shows 90% of Beaches Earned “A” and “B” Scores

Posted on by in All other recreation, Beach and Ocean Recreation, California Coastal Notes of Interest, Catalina / Channel Islands, Coastal Dweller Reference, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Misc., Orange County, San Diego, Surfing, Visitor Guide  |  Comments are closed
By Ashley Cordes - Long Beach Post Beach waters in Long Beach were healthier than ever this summer, according to Heal the Bay's most recent End of Summer Beach Report Card. Of the 15 beaches monitored weekly by the Long Beach Health Department, 14 received "A" and "B" grades for the period between Memorial Day through Labor Day, meaning more than 90% of beaches received excellent marks. Last summer, only 77% of Long Beach waters received "A" and "B" grades. The one beach that faltered from the positive scores this summer was the testing site at 55th Place, which received a "D" for its exceedance above state water quality standards. Nelson Kerr, Manager of Long Beach's Bureau of Environmental Health, says that the location received weekly "A+" grades until June 25 when a single bad sample earned it a "D." Continue Reading......
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California: A cruise for craft beer lovers

Posted on by in Beach and Ocean Recreation, California Coastal Notes of Interest, Coastal Dweller Reference, Misc., Visitor Guide  |  Comments are closed
By Jane Engle - Sun Sentinel Connoisseurs of craft beers can lift a glass with the experts on a West Coast cruise during the “California Beer Festival at Sea” aboard the Celebrity Century.
Guests will learn about industry trends and how to make their own beer at a roundtable with Lagunitas Brewing Co. of Petaluma, Calif., and Ninkasi Brewing Co. of Eugene. Ore. “It’s like Brewing 101,” said Vincenzo Giammanco, president of the California Beer Festival, the program’s organizer. Continue Reading...
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Bay Cleanup Finds Everything But the Kitchen Sink

Posted on by in California Coastal Notes of Interest, Misc., San Diego, The Log  |  Comments are closed
By Shane Scott - The Log SAN DIEGO -- “It’s not every day you find a full-size washing machine in the middle of the bay,” said Capt. Robert Butler of Vessel Assist said, as he stood next to a rusty, barnacle-encrusted hunk of metal he found on the bottom of the harbor at California Yacht Marina. The washed-up washer was removed, along with other debris, during the 23rd annual Operation Clean Sweep cleanup of San Diego Bay. “I’m pretty sure when we get done, we’ll find the dryer,” Butler added. Continue Reading......
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Four-year Program Aims to Increase Eelgrass

Posted on by in California Coastal Notes of Interest, Misc., Orange County  |  Comments are closed
By Ambrosia Brody - The Log NEWPORT BEACH -- Eelgrass, a native sea grass that has a reputation among dock owners of making dredging an onerous and expensive undertaking, appears to be thriving in Upper Newport Bay -- and that’s a good thing for boaters.            \ “In order to be able to dredge when we need to, we need a good amount of eelgrass in the bay, to balance out what is being removed,” said Amanda Bird, Orange Coastkeeper’s Marine Restoration coordinator. Continue Reading......
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Marina Tenants Warned Not to Rent Boats as B&Bs

Posted on by in Beach and Ocean Recreation, Boating, California Coastal Notes of Interest, Misc., San Diego, The Log  |  Comments are closed
By Ambrosia Brody - The Log SAN DIEGO -- Boat owners who are considering listing their vessels on “bed and breakfast” or “vacation rental” websites are warned not to follow through with those plans, as local marina managers are cracking down on those running such businesses from their slip. “There are legitimate ones (boat B&Bs) -- but these were not,” said Ken Guyer, marina manager at the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina. “These boat owners thought they could rent out the boat, and let their paid guests experience all the amenities (of the adjacent Marriott Marquis),” Guyer said. It’s a little comical.” Continue Reading......
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