Carefree kids jump while exploring the tide pools just south of the Ocean Beach Pier.
On Sunday I headed to Ocean Beach, for no particular reason. I like to walk out on the pier.
My visit happened to coincide with low tide, so I took advantage of an opportunity to explore the tide pools near the base of the pier. What did I see? Amazing life. Amazing beauty.
North of the Ocean Beach Pier there is a beautiful, very popular beach. Some rocks are exposed at low tide.Under the Ocean Beach Municipal Pier, which is the second longest pier on the West Coast.Seagulls circle above people who are searching for natural wonders in the intertidal zone.A view of the Ocean Beach Pier and nearby tide pools. An easily accessible place to explore the seashore and make small discoveries.People explore fascinating tide pools near the foot of the OB pier during low tide. The rocks can be very slippery.At low tide, the exposed sandstone rocks south of the pier contain many depressions, the home of algae and small sea creatures.There are many interesting photo opportunities at the tide pools. Down on hands and knees, you’re going to get a little slimy and wet!A complex, natural mosaic in the rock.Hidden channels and eroded surfaces in the irregular, pitted sandstone.Kids stand near the sea wall at the end of one water-sculpted, crevice-like channel.I believe this little guy is a troglodyte chiton. Thousands can be seen in their own tiny sandstone burrows in the intertidal rocks. They can live 20 years in the same spot!Lots of amazing discoveries to be made!One can see pink encrusting coralline algae and surfgrass in this saltwater-filled channel.I can see why this is called sea lettuce! It’s actually a type of green algae.Another view of the tide pools immediately south of the OB pier.Bright green surfgrass, reddish algae and blue ripples of incoming ocean surf make a strangely beautiful photograph.More pink coralline algae and surfgrass at the OB tidepools.A small empty shell among some sea lettuce.An unusual photo at the tide pools. Nature is an infinitely prolific artist.A cool photo composed of accumulated shell pieces.Limpets large and small on one rock form a beautiful pattern.Adventures in progress.Tiny miracles of nature in the soft sandstone.A sample of the surprising beauty you might encounter at these tide pools.A periwinkle, or sea snail.More beautifully patterned limpets, and I think I might see a few barnacles.Right up next to the sea wall. The tide pools continue a good distance to the south.A sea anemone covered with shell fragments, among sand and algae in one tide pool.An aggragating anemone, safely closed up at low tide so that it doesn’t dry out. Many small stones and shell bits have collected upon it.Another watery scene in a life-filled Ocean Beach tide pool.There’s a lot of exploring to do!Looking under the OB pier as I climb up its stairs for an overhead view of the tide pools.Looking down from atop Ocean Beach Pier at the nearby tide pools. People out on the rocks search for wonders in the intertidal zone.
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Painted underwater scenes on the grass at the Balboa Park Centennial 2015 Philippine American Celebration.
Astonished eyes were staring down at the ground at the Balboa Park Centennial 2015 Philippine American Celebration. That’s because a very colorful, very long painted canvas had been unrolled on a patch of grass for festival visitors to admire.
What you see in these photos is a segment of the seven kilometer long “Fishes of the Ocean” painting. The amazing artwork, depicting marine life, was created by thousands of mostly young people in the Philippines from 2006 to 2009. The project was an attempt to break the Guinness World Record for longest painting on a single canvas!
I did some research on the internet, but I’m still not sure whether a record was officially set. If you can provide more info, leave a comment below!
Small segment of the amazing seven kilometer long Fishes of the Ocean painting.Talented young artists, mostly unknown, contributed to this colorful environmental art.Abstract fish forms swim in a school on a very large canvas.All sorts of exotic tropical fish are swimming at the ocean’s bottom.Sea life painted in many vivid colors.Fishes of the Ocean was created in the Philippines in an attempt to break a Guinness World Record.Visitors to Balboa Park in San Diego walk past an unexpected cool sight!A land shark waits motionless in the grass!The long strip of fun art zigzagged across the grass near the International Cottages.Creativity is one of the attractions at the annual Filipino cultural festival.Just a wonderful product of human imagination.This appears to be a scene from a coral reef.A scuba diver among bubbles and rays of colored light.I see a turtle, whale, starfish and octopus.Cartoon ocean creatures prompt smiles in Balboa Park!
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Taking an easy stroll above the wide, blue ocean in beautiful La Jolla.
My day in La Jolla yesterday was so wonderful I had to do it again!
A second walk today has my computer bursting with photos. So I’d better share some!
I’m going to create two blog posts. This first one involves a walk down the short but breathtaking Coast Walk Trail, then down Coast Boulevard from the Cave Store to La Jolla Cove Beach. Where the ocean meets land here is one of the most amazing, magical places a person might ever visit. A few photos hardly do the experience justice.
Be forewarned, this post starts with great natural beauty, but ends with sudden ugliness. You’ll see why I became a bit angry during my otherwise glorious adventure.
The Historic Coast Walk Trail begins near Torrey Pines Road and ends at the Cave Store on Coast Boulevard.Dozens of kayakers were out on the water as I walked west down the trail enjoying magnificent views.Red kayaks bunched close together below, east of Goldfish Point.Rounding a corner, shops and restaurants on Coast Boulevard come into view.Wooden steps plunge down to a scenic view point atop amazing sandstone cliffs. In the narrow cove on the left is an entrance to a sea cave.Nature’s beauty takes many forms, including a golden flower.From the view point I look east along eroded cliffs toward La Jolla homes.Heading back up to the Coast Walk Trail, which ends nearby at the Cave Store.A man-made tunnel inside the Cave Store leads from the gift shop to the Sunny Jim Sea Cave.About to turn north, beginning down Coast Boulevard, toward La Jolla Cove.The amazing Coast Boulevard passes La Jolla Cove, Scripps Park, Children’s Pool and the La Jolla tide pools!A message on the sidewalk caught my eye. Your troubles will cease and fortune will smile upon you.It’s possible to see into this sea cave.The rocky cliffs along Coast Boulevard are the home of pelicans, sea gulls and cormorants.Long-beaked pelicans and black cormorants have a rest in the warm sun between diving and hunting for fish.The cliffs of La Jolla are made of unstable sandstone, which occasionally crumbles into the Pacific Ocean.A gorgeous view of La Jolla Cove on a perfect spring day.A lifeguard tower rises above La Jolla Cove Beach. To the right of the tower is Point La Jolla.Looking down at La Jolla Cove Beach from the north. Buildings along Coast Boulevard are surmounted by those on Prospect Street.City of San Diego sign provides a warning. Caution, do not approach seals or sea lions! Harassing these marine mammals is against the law.A lady climbs stairs up from the beach, past a lifeguard rescue board.Some benches allow people to enjoy the view. Scuba divers in the cove swim with the sea life.Several thoughtless, self-centered people almost stepped on a seal as they crowded in to get a photograph.Agitated sea lion on a rock angrily confronts pestering people who don’t seem to care.
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Our big blue marble Earth dangles in the sky on San Diego’s Embarcadero for an Earth Day event.
Last weekend Earth Day was observed at the jam-packed EarthFair in Balboa Park. This weekend, the first annual Earth Day on the Bay took place. The event was centered around the Maritime Museum of San Diego, and concentrated on maintaining a healthy coast and ocean. Admission to all the awesome museum ships was free, and being a cheapskate, I decided to walk down to the Embarcadero and enjoy myself!
Earth Day on the Bay featured free admission to the Maritime Museum of San Diego plus many organizations with environment-themed exhibits.The historic 1898 steam ferryboat Berkeley, the museum’s hub, is also featuring nature photography by Ansel Adams and others.The TOPtoTOP Global Climate Expedition ship is visiting San Diego at the moment.
As I walked across the deck of the Berkeley, enjoying views of our beautiful big San Diego Bay, I happened to notice an unusual boat docked among the museum’s ships. The hull included the United Nations Environment Programme logo. Apparently, people participating in the TOPtoTOP Global Climate Expedition are visiting San Diego for a couple days. They gave a talk yesterday at the museum about their mission. According to their website, it is to inspire children in classrooms and share examples of nature’s beauty, and foster innovations for a green planet. They believe that great human goals and progress can be achieved in balance with nature.
TOPtoTOP, docked among other museum ships, is equipped with many solar panels. It’s sailing around the globe using only human and natural power sources.The various Earth Day exhibitors on the waterfront included the Port of San Diego, with a report on critical conservation and other green projects.The first annual Earth Day on the Bay attracted a modest crowd, but it’s a good start!This big inflatable whale allowed humans to grasp the scale of the marine mammal.I enjoyed a harbor tour on a very unique Maritime Museum boat, which I’ll blog about shortly!
I got two cool blog posts coming up! I had a couple of fun adventures today! Plus I still have lots of photos from my extensive Saturday walk around Liberty Station. I’d better get busy!
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Ready to board R/V Melville from San Diego’s Broadway Pier before the research ship is retired.
The research ship Melville retired today. For five decades scientists aboard the ship helped to expand our understanding of the oceans, marine biology and planet Earth. I headed down to the Broadway Pier on San Diego’s Embarcadero this morning, because for one rare and final time the general public was invited to tour this legendary ship!
The R/V Melville, the oldest active ship in the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System fleet of marine research ships, was launched by the Navy in 1969. Operated by the world-famous Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, the vessel has undertaken 391 research cruises and steamed a total of 1,547,080 nautical miles. A fact sheet distributed to today’s visitors also notes that the Melville logged over 90 equator crossings and has hosted around 7,116 scientists from 237 institutions. That amounts to a lot of knowledge gained!
The amazing oceanographic research ship was named after George Melville, an arctic explorer and Rear Admiral in the United States Navy. One interesting fact: the ship was used in the filming of the 1976 movie King Kong!
I took these photos as I enjoyed this fascinating final tour of the ship. I hope my captions accurately describe what I saw. (If they don’t, please leave a comment!) Some of the interior shots are a bit blurry. I apologize.
The Melville is operated by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, part of UCSD in La Jolla.One of many friendly, helpful people who’ve served on the history-making ship.The tour started at the bow. Downtown San Diego skyline rises in the background.Excited people climb up toward the pilot house of Melville.The shiny ship’s bell!Huge number of buttons, knobs, switches and dials in the pilot house of Melville.A second photo of the complicated ship control console.The ship’s log is open on some navigational charts.Looking out porthole from the chief scientist’s quarters below deck.The chief scientist during research cruises slept here.The library, lounge and study contains many shelves of books and several interesting displays.Graphic in library depicts the R/V Melville.Portrait of George Wallace Melville, the ship’s namesake.Bronze plaque commemorates the Melville’s launch date in 1968.Painting by artist Chuzo of the Melville hangs in a corridor near some stairs below deck.Meal hours are posted on door leading to the cafeteria.Visitors check out the mess hall where crew and research scientists enjoyed a break, to eat, talk and share knowledge.Hungry folks can choose bug juice or milk. I’ll take milk, please!Numbered mugs on the mess hall wall. Number 1 belongs to the captain.Several masks, ethnic artifacts and marine objects decorate the walls of the cafeteria.A look at a shipboard laboratory where various materials could be analyzed.At the photo’s center is a winch control. Video monitors help scientists visualize their work underwater.Gauge registers up to 75,000 pounds of tension!Massive A-frame at stern of Melville. The working deck contains exhibits for people to check out.Sea Soar is an undulating towed vehicle used to collect real-time information, from the sea surface to a depth of 400 meters.This outdoor area can be closed off during rough weather so that work can be performed when conditions are poor.M.O.C.N.E.S.S. Multiple Opening/Closing Net and Environmental Sensing System allows oceanographers to catch zooplankton and measure environmental properties like salinity and temperature.Kids examine a rock dredge, used for the recovery of heavy material on the ocean floor.Van Veen Grab for ocean floor sampling. When it hits bottom, the jaws close and grab a sample of sediment, rocks and creatures.Seismic Sound Source for sub seafloor acoustic imaging. Towed behind research vessel in conjunction with hydrophone streamer arrays to image the sub-seafloor geologic structure.Heavy machinery available on the complex ship includes multiple winches, cables, cranes.Ocean probe with multiple sensors near an A-frame at ship’s side, where it might be lowered by cable into the water.CTD and Water Sampling Rosette measures conductivity, temperature and depth with a variety of sensors. Other chemical and biological parameters can also be measured.The super strong cable runs from here to one of two A-frames, where equipment can be towed or lowered.One of many powerful winches on the research vessel Melville.View from Broadway Pier of A-frame jutting from the Melville’s side.Farewell R/V Melville. The human race learned much during your many decades of service!
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