There are no signs of summer slowing down, especially at the beach.
Several events coming up offer a good excuse to hit the sand and surf, a way to enjoy the last stretch of the season before the summer solstice on Sept. 20 and the fall season follows.
Here’s a few reasons to head to the coast before the weather turns and we start putting up Halloween decorations.
Welcome the paddlers
The Ben Did Go 8.0 is happening this weekend, a fundraiser in honor of fallen lifeguard Ben Carlson, who lost his life during a rescue in Newport Beach nine years ago.
The event was started by Newport Beach surfer Spencer Pirdy, who now sits on the board of advisors for the Ben Carlson Scholarship and Memorial Fund. The event has become an annual tradition, where paddlers travel 30 miles from Catalina Island to Newport Beach, greeted by the bronze statue of Carlson at the pier when they finish the grueling trek.
The paddlers will start before dawn on Saturday and should get in about 1 to 4 p.m., depending on the weather conditions, where supporters cheer them on as they reach the sand.
The group of about 100 prone paddlers and others have raised nearly $175,000, which will go toward water safety and lifeguarding programs for drowning prevention.
A Great Day in Stoke
The second annual A Great Day in Stoke will be held in Huntington Beach on Saturday, drawing hundreds of people to the sand and surf for an event to spotlight Black surfers and introduce others to the coastal community.
The goal of the mini festival on the sand is to foster the growth of Black competitive surfers, inspire the Black community to feel welcome in the water and offer attendees the chance to take their first surf lesson or partake in yoga.
The event last year drew an estimated 800 people to the south side of the pier.
Water competition
The world’s best skimboarders are getting ready to compete this weekend on the south side of the Balboa Pier and that means a chance to watch the up-close action as athletes take on the shorebreak.
This is the 18th year of the two-day event, which draws competitors from around the world who enter both amateur and professionals divisions.
Blessing of the Waves
The annual Blessing of the Waves, an event put on by the Greater Huntington Beach Interfaith Council, happens at 6 p.m. Sunday in the Pier Plaza.
The event is open to all ages, religious beliefs and faiths, with various denominations talking about their connection to water and the ocean.
The community leaders speak, say prayers and give blessings before a “paddle out” is held by surfers in the water.
California Surfing Day
On Wednesday, California Surf Day will celebrate the state’s rich surfing culture and, of course, encourage people to paddle out to catch a few waves.
Five years ago, a group of local dignitaries and surfers went up to Sacramento to talk lawmakers into proclaiming “California Surfing Day,” and the first big gathering was held on the Huntington Beach Pier to declare the day when the resolution passed in 2018.
“The annual day will celebrate the California surfing lifestyle, as well its history, culture, and future,” the proclamation reads.
Locally, the Dana Point Surf Club will be hosting a group of kids from the Boys and Girls Club of Capistrano Valley at Doheny State Beach to surf, many of them experiencing riding a wave for the first time.
California Coastal Cleanup
With the summer crowds gone, it’s time to do some end-of-summer cleaning before the rainy season hits.
Since the pandemic, the coastal cleanup campaign has turned into a month-long effort, with people encouraged to collect trash and other debris from beaches starting Sept. 1. But for those who want to be part of the bigger, one-day group effort, the 39th annual California Coastal Cleanup Day will be held on Sept. 23.
More than 50,000 volunteers are expected to gather at locations across California during the month, where they will help remove hundreds of tons of trash from beaches, creeks, rivers, lakes, and neighborhoods.
California Coastal Cleanup Day is the state’s largest annual volunteer event, with more than 1.7 million people since 1985 helping to remove more than 26 million pounds of trash from California’s beaches and inland shorelines.
