A seagull stands atop a pile of nets and floats on San Diego’s picturesque G Street Pier.
You won’t believe all the birds I identified today during my walk along the Embarcadero. You really will not believe it!
Check out these fun flighty photos taken beside beautiful San Diego Bay!
American coots (also called mud hens) stand on rocks near the Marriott Marina.A Canada goose on San Diego’s Embarcadero! Now that’s a very unusual sight! This bird seems to have joined a local flock of American coots. Maybe it was blown off course during the recent windy storm.Another strange bird near the sparkling water about to take flight! Oops. My mistake.A female black-crowned night heron among rocks near the Embarcadero Marina Park South pier.A gathering of pigeons on the grass at Embarcadero Marina Park North.Rare exotic birds photographed in flight! Oops. Those are actually colorful kites. Fooled me again!I’ve arrived at Seaport Village. Okay, I’m certain these are real birds–maybe. Looks like a parrot, flamingo and some egrets.Gulls, pelicans and sea lions await handouts of leftover fish parts. Early Saturday afternoon, and the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market is wrapping up.Two sneaky gulls with hungry, watchful eyes.There’s gotta be some yummy fish scraps here somewhere!Commercial fishermen unload on the small dock behind this gate at Tuna Harbor. Birds wait eternally here, too!A bird in the sky above broad-winged sailboats flying across San Diego Bay.Seabirds love hanging out around the fishing vessels at Tuna Harbor.A snowy egret near the net of a live bait catching seiner.A double-crested cormorant flaps its wings in the water of San Diego Bay near the USS Midway.Birds above an ocean wave, painted on a ceramic tile by a young person. Many fun tile benches along the Embarcadero were created for a project called Celebrating the Big Bay in 2004.Many birds in flight.
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Shoppers at the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market learn about whelks and other food from the sea.
Late yesterday morning I revisited the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market. It’s a place whirling with human activity, fascinating sights, and fishy, oceany smells. The fresh seafood market spontaneously appears on the pier between Seaport Village and Tuna Harbor every Saturday morning. It features the catch of local fishermen. And lots of shoppers, should you arrive early.
During my casual visit I noticed some interesting information on a table that described what our local fishermen catch. So I took some pics. I also enjoyed being shown various species of edible sea creatures by a few of the friendly vendors, though I’m afraid I purchased nothing. My cooking skills amount to pushing buttons on the microwave. I admit it.
If you’d like to read some of the literature I spotted on a table, click the images.
Sidewalk signs try to lure people out onto a pier near Seaport Village. Fresh seafood caught by local fishermen is sold here every Saturday morning.I arrived at the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market at about eleven o’clock, after the usual early morning crowd of fresh fish shoppers had departed.Some freshly caught silvery Pacific bluefin tuna on ice for sale. That’s a lot of eating!I noticed people by the edge of the pier looking across the water toward downtown San Diego.Something below in the water has caught their attention…It’s a sea lion just hanging out, probably hoping for a handout!The Mary Beth docked nearby appears equipped and ready to go out for more fish.Some colorful artwork at the fresh fish market depicts a fisherman and scenes from above and beneath the ocean.Meet your meal! At one table I discovered some interesting photos and literature, including a diagram of deep-set buoy gear used to catch swordfish.This poster shows the most common seafood commercially harvested in California. Many of these species can be purchased at Tuna Harbor Dockside Market.More info on the table describes the wavy turban snail and Kellet’s whelk, which I’m told make for good eating.I believe I’ve seen brown box crabs, Pacific rock crabs, and red sea urchins at this very market! The latter can live up to 200 years, and is considered a delicacy.Some guys cut up a huge fish, making steaks. Customers can have their purchase cleaned on the pier.A big pile of whelks. To cook these, boil!Look at all the seafood one can choose from at this one tent. The Tuna Harbor Dockside Market continues to grow and now occupies about half of the pier.Fresh fish! Lots of tuna!I’m shown a spiky sea urchin. The kelp and starfish are just for show–they aren’t normally eaten!
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A Disney princess has been captured in a large fishing net on the Tuna Harbor pier.
If you love a sunlit clutter of colorful surprises, Tuna Harbor’s G Street Pier is the perfect spot.
Curious eyes during a slow walk are sure to discover many wonders. Small humorous wonders that produce small smiles.
Enjoy a few photos.
Fishermen bike to their boat. Tuna Harbor is full of visual delights, odd clutter, humor and life.Floats with spear-like poles rise into the sky above downtown San Diego skyscrapers.A heron has taken sole possession of this boat in Tuna Harbor.Fish won’t be caught in here for long.An untidy fishing boat in Tuna Harbor. Sun, sweat, grit and real life. The source of your elegant dinner.Truth is, the Sea Nag likes to keep things cool.An indifferent gull.This live bait boat resembles an auto tire store.Who doesn’t love a houseboat? A small bird builds a nest in an odd place.
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New light. Eyes reopen. The sky regains depth. Wings stretch.
In downtown San Diego, along the Embarcadero, morning light reflects from both clouds and water.
The first smile of the day.
Life is wonderful, and good.
A beautiful sky one October morning above Tuna Harbor in San Diego.Seagulls perched on a boat await the morning activity of fishermen.A seagull circles far away like a dream.Fishing boats and tinted clouds, reflected in the gentle water.A boat’s mysterious reflection in the rippled water.A sky full of fantastic clouds. Early morning above the Embarcadero near Ruocco Park.Magical light infiltrates clouds above San Diego.Clouds that seem like cotton in the blue sky.Morning birds take flight like windblown seeds in the air.Clouds are framed by The Riparium, public art created in 2012 by Roman de Salvo. The sinuous structure rises in one corner of San Diego’s Ruocco Park.Gazing skyward through The Riparium. A fine day has dawned in downtown San Diego.
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Today I saw a new canopy and sign at the ever-expanding Tuna Harbor Dockside Market. It’s a food tent called Loaf and Fish! They’ve got one of my favorite things!
I’m not really a food blogger, but I have a terrible weakness for fish sandwiches, fish tacos and fish burritos. So when I saw a new food vendor was selling fresh fish sandwiches this weekend at the Tuna Harbor Dockside Market, of course I had to try one!
A bit down the pier you’ll find the sign that reads Loaf and Fish. Those are the nice folks you need to see. My grilled fish sandwich was really good! I was told they don’t have a website yet, but they’ll be there on the pier every Saturday morning, a tasty addition to the constantly growing Dockside Market!
(You can visit San Diego’s new outdoor fish market every Saturday morning on the pier just north of Seaport Village, next to Tuna Harbor.)
Loaf and Fish. Built, helmed and crewed by fishing families. The tasty yellowtail in my sandwich was caught by the fishing vessel Wild West!Oh, man! My fish sandwich is getting ready! Some tomatoes, avocado (yum), red onions, chipotle mayo, lettuce, all on a fresh bolillo roll. And, of course, grilled fresh fish!And here it is, with a smile! You know what? It was pretty darn good. I recommend devouring these!Everyone at Loaf and Fish was super nice to some strange blogger guy walking around with a camera. Good luck guys!
UPDATE!
Loaf and Fish has added a couple of items to their menu. You can now enjoy fish tacos and tasty fish soup!
The fish tacos are just as yummy as any you’ll find in San Diego. And keep in mind our city has the best fish tacos in the entire world.
I’ve also tried the fish soup and it’s really tasty! In addition to big chunks of freshly caught fish, there are fresh vegetables and slices of avocado floating on top! On chilly mornings this hot soup really hits the spot!
To top it all off, eating on the pier by the water–with the bustle of activity all around, including friendly fishermen and local fishing boats and the seagulls and playful sea lions barking nearby–it’s a feast for the senses that can’t be beat!
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Information sign beside Tuna Harbor, in downtown San Diego, describes how local tuna boats were utilized in the Pacific Ocean theater of World War II.
Some fascinating historical information can be found on San Diego’s Embarcadero, right next to Tuna Harbor where many commercial fishing boats dock downtown. The sign, erected by the San Diego Port Commission in 2008, is titled Tuna Fleet Service World War II (1941-1945). It provides a glimpse of how dozens of San Diego-based Tuna Clippers joined the American war effort during the Second World War.
Here is the text on the sign:
During World War II, 600 fishing vessels were taken by the Navy, Army, and Coast Guard, including 52 “Tuna Clippers”.
On Pearl Harbor Day, the U.S. canned tuna industry was located almost exclusively in Southern California, and canners received most of their tunas from “baitboats”. Fishermen on these boats chum live bait (sardines, anchovies) to attract the tunas into a feeding frenzy and then use rigged bamboo poles to pull the hooked tunas aboard. Dating from 1924, a fleet of large “baitboats” was developed and became know as “Tuna Clippers”. These large ships, equipped with powerful diesel engines and newly developed brine refrigeration, fished for tunas found migrating thousands of miles from San Diego on trips of 90 days or more. During the 1930s, this San Diego high seas fleet was studies by the U.S. Navy, resulting in wartime plans that included the conversion of Tuna Clippers to minesweepers.
At the time Pearl Harbor was attacked, there were 90 vessels in the California baitboat fleet, including 76 Tuna Clippers plus 3 under construction. The 49 Tuna Clippers taken by the Navy and 3 by the Army represented about 55% of the fish carrying capacity of the entire baitboat fleet.
After war was declared, the Government ordered the Tuna Fleet to make port in California or Panama. Ten of the Tuna Clippers entering the Canal Zone in December 1941, were immediately taken for temporary patrol duty. The U.S. Army took three Clippers for use in the Panama Sea region, the SHASTA and CAPE HORN as tugs and the INVADER as a supply ship.
On February 16, 1942, tuna fishermen attended a meeting conducted by Commander W. J. Morcott, USN (Ret.) at the Naval Reserve Armory. 600 tuna fishermen signed up, with Skippers and Engineers receiving warrant ratings, and others given petty officer ratings according to age and experience. Within 10 days, a fleet of 16 Tuna Clippers, painted gray and marked with YP number designations as Yard Patrol vessels, left San Diego harbor on February 25, 1942. Their destination was the “Panama Sea Frontier” for picket duty to protect the Canal.
In May 1942, a convoy of six YP Clippers left San Diego for the “Hawaiian Sea Frontier”. These YPs transported supplies to French Frigate Shoals, the islands of Midway, Johnston, Fanning, Christmas, Palmyra, and Canton. In June 1942, seven YP Clippers left San Diego, for service at Efate Island or Samoa, or Auckland, New Zealand. In November 1942, another group of five headed for the U.S. Naval base at Tutuilla, Samoa. As the conflict moved towards Japan, YP Tuna Clippers were sent on missions to other Islands and Atolls of the Western Pacific.
The Navy discovered that “Yippies” were able to transport troops, gasoline, ammunition, and refrigerated cargoes and capable of navigation within shallow atolls and over minefields, of towing damaged warships, and rescuing downed pilots. This is why “Yippies” were also called the “Pork Chop Express” or “Errand Boys of the Pacific” or the “Solomon Island Ferry”. During the Solomon Island Campaign in 1942, the PARAMOUNT (YP 289) and the PICOROTO (YP 290) delivered frozen turkeys and all the fixings for a traditional holiday feast at Guadalcanal Island. In 1943, frozen turkeys were also delivered to the Marines fighting on Bougainville in time for Thanksgiving by the AMERICAN BEAUTY (YP-514).
“Yippies” were equipped with CW radios, fathometers, Navy radar and Navy sonar. Armament included machineguns, and other gun gear to fire Depth charges. The YP crew of tuna fishermen and regular Navy ran from 4 to 20 men.
Two YPs were destroyed in the Solomon Islands campaign by enemy surface ships: On 9 September 1942, off Tulagi Island, the PROSPECT (YP-346), and on 25 October 1942, off Guadalcanal Island, the ENDEAVOR (YP-284). The number of casualties sustained is unknown.
Two YPs were lost in the Midway region: On 23 May 1942, the TRIUNFO (YP 277) was destroyed by fire and explosions enroute to French Frigate Shoals (North of Hawaii), and then scuttled to avoid enemy capture. Only two crewmembers survived. During October 1942, the YANKEE (YP-345), with 17 crewmembers, on a voyage from Pearl Harbor to Midway Island via French Frigate Shoals, was “lost without a trace from causes unknown”.
Four YPs were lost at sea: CALIFORNIA (YP-235) on 1 April 1943, after fire and beaching in the Gulf of Mexico from an explosion of undetermined origin; NAVIGATOR (YP-279), 5 September 1943, foundered in heavy weather enroute to Townsville, Australia; CAPE SAN VINCENT (YP-280), on 24 April 1946, sank near Saipan Island; SAN SALVADOR (YP-281) on 9 January 1944, was destroyed after the foundering in Force 9 storm, with crew of 19 and one dog rescued, near Wallis Island, South Pacific. After transfer to the U.S. Army in July, 1943 the SEA TERN (ex YP-269) was lost at sea off Baja California.
Three YPs were destroyed during October 1945, because of a typhoon off Okinawa: PARAMOUNT (YP-289); CONTE GRANDE (YP-520) and CHALLENGER (YP-239).
The Navy destroyed 7 YPs after the War during 1946 and 1947: AMERICAN VOYAGER (YP-287), CIPANGO (YP-504), EUROPA (YP-236), FALCOM (YP-515), QUEEN AMELIA (YP-516), QUEEN ELIZABETH (YP-519), and YVONNE LOUISE (YP-282).
The successful wartime experience of the “Yippies” caused the Navy to build 30 wood-hull vessels patterned on the Tuna Clipper design. Each of 30 newly constructed wood hull Navy YPs was of 128 in length, of 14 feet draft, and powered with a 500 H.P. diesel main engine. They were built during 1945, two each by 15 different shipyards located in California, Oregon, and Washington.
Commencing in 1947, 24 of these YPs were added to the U.S. Tuna Fleet.
After the war, the Navy and Army transferred 33 surviving former Tuna Clippers to the War Shipping Administration (WSA) for buy-back by the previous owners. Three of these surviving vessels never returned to the U.S. tuna fishery: CABRILLO, FISHERMAN II, AND THEODORE FOSS.
Additional information on the sign:
Tuna clippers joined the navy too and were painted a dull slate grey, while the stalwart Portuguese descendants learned to fire the guns that were mounted upon the deck. Equipped with the finest refrigeration systems, these trim craft became “errand boys” of the Pacific, delivering food and fuel to the fronts. One day these tunaboats will be convoying a fleet of small ships to Panama. Next month, perhaps, they’ll be off to Midway Island with gasoline for navy PBYs. Two months later, they’ll be down in the Solomons running the “milk route” between Guadalcanal and Tulagi with supplies – part of the saga of men and boats.
excerpt from San Diego Union
July 23, 1943
Scores of converted tuna clippers slipped out of San Diego bay on their way to do valiant work in Pacific battle areas. First boats sailed from here Feb. 25, 1942. These small, sturdy diesel-powered boats are ideal for convoying and patrolling as well as for transporting needed war supplies to defeat the Japanese.
excerpt from San Diego Union
July 23, 1943
Today’s commercial fishing fleet in San Diego includes picturesque boats that provide fresh seafood for restaurants and a Saturday dockside market. (The USS Midway aircraft carrier, now a popular museum) is visible in the background of this photograph.)Someone walking down the Embarcadero near Tuna Harbor pauses to read a bit of fascinating information concerning the Second World War.Left part of the sign depicts map of the Pacific theater of World War II in relation to San Diego. Pictured are some vessels that participated.A detailed description of how the local Tuna Fleet served in various capacities during World War II.California Tuna Clippers: Military Service World War II. (Click the image to enlarge.)Commercial fishing vessel Dalena in San Diego’s present-day Tuna Harbor.
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Crew of live bait catching fishing boat Cougar works to transfer an immense net onto the G Street Pier at Tuna Harbor.
Late this morning I went down to HarborFest in Chula Vista. I’ve got to sort through a couple hundred photos–so I’ll blog about that cool event later. But first, here are some interesting pics which I took during a walk along San Diego’s Embarcadero this afternoon. As I strolled along Tuna Harbor, between Seaport Village and the USS Midway Museum, I noticed a lot of activity beside one of the live bait boats which docks at the G Street Pier. So I investigated.
Turns out, fishermen were removing a huge seine net from the Cougar, a commercial fishing boat which catches live bait. The bait is then distributed to local sportfishing vessels. I don’t claim to be an expert on these matters or to thoroughly understand what I saw, but I believe the captions I wrote are correct. I hope so! If a correction is required, leave a comment!
A crane is utilized to help transfer the heavy net from the boat’s big cylinder-like winch drum at its stern to the pier.Lots of seagulls were attracted to this picturesque scene on San Diego Bay. Perhaps they expected to spot some fish.Wrestling with the huge live bait encircling seine net, which is lined at the edges with yellow and white floats.Commercial fishing requires a lot of hard physical work on both land and water.Winch and crane operators work in tandem to keep the net moving from boat to pier smoothly and neatly.Working with a smile on a sunny summer Saturday on San Diego’s busy Embarcadero.Just a great photo of nets, gulls and human activity on a working public pier.
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Bronze sculptures of Our Silences, by Mexican artist Rivelino, are loaded onto a truck for transport from San Diego to San Francisco. Each figure weighs about a ton.
Last January I posted the blog: Our Silences and precious freedom of speech. I had walked down to Ruocco Park, just north of Seaport Village, to investigate an eye-popping new installation of public art titled Nuestros Silencios (which translated from Spanish means Our Silences).
The mysterious, monumental bronze sculptures, created by noted Mexican artist José Rivelino Moreno Valle, convey the importance of freedom of speech. The mouths of the huge anthropomorphic figures are each blocked by a metal plate; voices are censored and silenced. The emotional reaction the artwork produces is quite strong. In the past six months millions of San Diegans and visiting tourists have had the opportunity to be directly influenced by Rivelino’s thought-provoking artwork.
This morning I made another discovery! I was walking along San Diego’s waterfront when I noticed a crane lifting large objects near Tuna Harbor. I thought it was some sort of boating equipment being loaded onto a truck. As I approached, I suddenly saw the large objects were Rivelino’s sculptures!
I soon learned that Our Silences is on its way to San Francisco! (The sculptures were supposed to move to Los Angeles in March, but those plans changed.) The amazing public artwork will soon be situated on the north end of Harry Bridges Plaza, on San Francisco’s Embarcadero in front of the Ferry Building! They should arrive in time to take part in San Francisco’s Mex I Am festival, which showcases performing arts, culture, and ideas from Mexico.
Our Silences has been traveling around the world for about 4 years, making its potent statement in San Diego, Mexico City, and in numerous major cities throughout Europe.
But wait! Would you believe it? I was fortunate this morning to meet the artist himself! He was hanging out at Seward Johnson’s famous Unconditional Surrender statue just across the Fish Market’s parking lot, and I was graciously introduced and allowed to take a photograph!
Rivelino, smiling, showed me on his smartphone a new piece of public art that he’s been working on. Called Equality, it’s going to be installed in historic Trafalgar Square, at the center of London, England! Equality will consist of two huge sculpted index fingers, each pointing at the other. It seems that each massive finger is blaming the other. But people can stand in a space between the two sculptures, reach out and touch the tips of each finger, uniting both! I can’t wait to see photos when Equality is finally installed!
Very cool, indeed!
Rivelino smiles broadly as he supervises the movement of his monumental works of art!Our Silences will soon be exhibited at Harry Bridges Plaza, in front of San Francisco’s landmark Ferry Building.
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Sculptures on display on San Diego’s Embarcadero near Tuna Harbor.
My walk early this morning took me down to Ruocco Park, just north of Seaport Village. I wanted to check out something I saw on the news that looked really interesting.
Few people were about. Sunrise was slowly brightening the sky. Ten imposing human-like sculptures rose before me. As I approached, the figures loomed larger, silent, heavy-lidded, facing the fishing boats in Tuna Harbor, and a handful of joggers passing by.
This temporary installation of public art opened yesterday to the public. Our Silences, created by Mexican sculptor Rivelino, is composed of a row of ten massive bronze figures, whose mouths are shut and silenced with a metal plate. The object of the art is to provoke thought, feeling and discussion about freedom of speech. One wonders if the small prison-like black box nearby contains a political prisoner, or someone’s trembling, innermost thoughts. This very jolting artistic statement is on display for the first time in the United States. It will remain in San Diego through March 15.
Our Silences, by Mexican artist Rivelino, concerns freedom of speech.People walk past provocative public art as day dawns near Seaport Village.This harsh black cube appears to be an oppressive prison cell.The steel box might contain someone who would like to speak.Mysterious abstract designs on backs of the human-like sculptures.Here comes the sun and another day of freedom on San Diego’s waterfront.Walking past artwork that reminds us of liberty’s precious gift.
Here’s a pic I took after a sign explaining Our Silences was installed nearby…
Sign explains Our Silences, now in San Diego. (Click to enlarge.)
Where will I walk next? Life is an adventure!
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Bright new ropes and floats among lobster traps on San Diego’s Tuna Harbor pier.
Early this year I published a blog post about delightful heaps of junk on a working pier. As I recall, those heaps of junk were indeed quite delightful.
But they don’t compare with the extraordinarily awesome piles of stuff I saw today!
Very late this afternoon I took a walk along the same G Street Pier, on San Diego’s picturesque Embarcadero. Just minutes before sunset, the sunlight was beaming almost horizontally across the glittering blue water.
Here are a few things that I saw:
Late afternoon sunlight brings out some startling bright colors.
My friend Jeremy reports that lobster season is just a few weeks away, so that probably explains all the brand new, unfaded lobster-catching gear that I saw along much of the pier.
Just a delightful mess of stuff touched by slanting light beside the bay.Steel rebar, nets and tarp form interesting patterns of light and shadow.A pleasing pile of rusted metal frames of some sort.Resting on the pier, a huge cylinder-like drum used by commercial fishing boats to haul in a seine net seems to glow.Seagull flies off tall mound of fishing nets while another gull watches.White rope curled softly atop parallel shining rods of metal.Crazy ship structure lying on the pier almost conceals a fishing vessel docked in Tuna Harbor.Part of San Diego’s shining skyline rises beyond angular steel jumble.Another delightful visual tangle on the wonderfully untidy pier.Ghostly white dried material clings to stacked lobster traps.Sun-touched purple floats strung on cheerful green and yellow rope.Faded face on a crumpled protective tarp smiles happily upside down.
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