Annual Coastal Clean-Up Day

Steve and I almost never go to the beach. Sure, a couple times a year we'll go down to the boardwalk to ride the Giant Dipper and get a corndog. I'm really more of an indoor kid, and unapologetically so. But it does seem to be a bit of a waste that we live so close to really lovely coastline and rarely visit. So when I heard about the annual coastal clean-up day sponsored by Save Our Shores, I figured it'd be a good opportunity for Steve and I to visit a new beach.

Slathered with sunscreen and warmly dressed, we headed out yesterday to Four Mile Beach. It is, as you might infer, four miles north of Santa Cruz.

The clean-up started at 9 am. It was a very cold morning (especially for this time of year) with light, chilly winds. We spent about an hour wandering the beach collecting trash. The beach we picked was relatively small and not one of the more popular beaches in the area, and thus not as rubbish-ridden as others. But we did collect about half a bucket full of debris.

Steve among the kelp:

I survey the beach, our tally sheet in hand, with Andy (the high school kid we were grouped with for the clean-up, since his friends had apparently slept in) taking a break in the background:

Despite the less than ideal conditions, Steve and I really enjoyed ourselves. We are thinking at this point of joining more of their monthly clean-ups. It'll be a chance to get to know more of the local beaches... and get me out of the house occasionally.