On a misty night in the late 1980s, Dan Moss was driving north on Highway 1 along the cliffs at Devil’s Slide near Pacifica when a deer crossed in front of his car. He swerved to avoid the animal, and his car began to skid toward the side of the highway. Then, in a second, he was over the edge.

Moss dropped 50 feet down a nearly 200-foot cliff toward the water, totaling the vehicle before he climbed back up the jagged rock face and sought help.

He was lucky. He survived with just two broken ribs and a scar on his head.

About 30 years later, his son, Richard Moss, 22, was driving the same stretch of road in the early morning of May 25, 2017. A traffic camera inside the Tom Lantos Tunnels near Devil’s Slide captured his blue Hyundai Tiburon going through, but Richard was never seen again. Nearly a year later, after a lengthy search for him had ended, a beachgoer found his vertebra on Montara State Beach about 200 yards away.

“That spot there, if you’re not paying attention, you can go straight ahead into the ocean, and there’s nothing to stop you,” Dan Moss said of the area where officials believe his son went off the road. “There was no barrier. There was no guardrail.”

Between Pacifica and Montara on the western flank of the continent, Devil’s Slide is archetypal California, a beautiful stretch of coastline with stark, rocky cliffs descending into deep blue surf. Officially, it runs 1.3 miles along the water, but many locals refer to a larger span — from the tunnels to the Montara city limit — as Devil’s Slide.

For decades, the postcard-worthy landscape has befuddled engineers and terrorized drivers with its winding asphalt atop eroding bluffs. Dozens of people have driven off the road, many plummeting to their deaths on the rocks or in the surf below.

In 2013, Caltrans opened the Tom Lantos Tunnels, which bypassed a particularly treacherous stretch of the highway and promised to make the road safer. Yet, at least 9 people have died in accidents in the area around and just south of Devil’s Slide since the tunnels opened, according to the California Highway Patrol and Bay Area news reports. Today, according to Caltrans, this section of roadway has an accident rate more than 50% higher than the statewide average for similar highways.

Now, the state transportation agency is considering a new series of barriers along Highway 1 in the area near Devil’s Slide in an effort to curb accidents and prevent deaths. If environmental plans and contracts are approved on schedule, construction will begin in January 2024.

Dan Stegink, a volunteer rescue diver who for 30 years has helped search for missing people believed to have gone over the cliffs, said many factors can cause a person to drive off the road.

“There’s the weather, people who are unfamiliar with the coast, a sharp right angle, the fog, sudden text messages and some gorgeous scenery,” he said. “But if it was a safe place, all these accidents wouldn’t be happening within 600 yards of each other.”

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For as long as people have been traveling through Devil’s Slide, the road has been a problem.

Before a road traced the cliffs, people moving between San Francisco and the coastal area where Pacifica and Montara now stand traversed dangerous routes over the San Pedro and Montara mountains. In 1879, officials started carving a more direct path — the first coastal thoroughfare in the area that would become known as Devil’s Slide.

California State Route 1 opened in 1937, but the road was constructed without emergency shoulders and rockslides were common, especially during the rainy season. Just three years later, officials temporarily closed the Devil’s Slide section of the highway because of frequent landslides.

Left: In 1998, San Mateo County Sheriff’s Rescue team members check the cliffside on Devil’s Slide where a rental van went over the edge, ejecting the driver who was not found after witnesses said they saw him in the water. Right: The crumpled rental truck lies in the pounding surf. Photos by Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle Top: In 1998, San Mateo County Sheriff’s Rescue team members check the cliffside on Devil’s Slide where a rental van went over the edge, ejecting the driver who was not found after witnesses said they saw him in the water. Above: The crumpled rental truck lies in the pounding surf. Photos by Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

As more vehicles began traversing the road, more began falling from its edge.

During the 1960s, rescue attempts were so common that the Pacifica Fire Department regularly trained its teams in mountain climbing to tackle the formidable cliffs. Officials and residents began advocating for a safer alternative to the highway in the 1970s, but action was slow. Meanwhile, the accidents continued.

A review of news reports from 1990 through 2021 indicates at least 10 rescues and 30 deaths — including six people presumed dead after a minivan drove off the cliff in 1992 — or roughly one fatality per year. California Highway Patrol tracks fatalities only back to 2010, three years before the tunnels opened. Its data counts 167 collisions and eight deaths over the past 11 years, with seven occurring after the tunnels debuted.

But these statistics don’t account for every death: CHP doesn’t track missing persons cases or incidents classified as suicides, and some victims and vehicles are never recovered.

Richard Moss, who officials initially believed had gone missing, is still not accounted for in the CHP data. “The only reason we know that Richard died there is because of the effort that we all put into the search,” Dan Moss said. “But how many people have gone into that water and nobody knew?”

Cars now enter the tunnels and pass through the hillside instead of skirting the bluffs, and the former coastal roadway has become a popular hiking trail. But outside and just south of the tunnels, eroding cliffs with steep drops to the ocean and a lack of permanent barriers means the area around Devil’s Slide remains dangerous. The crumbling shoulder can prevent drivers from recovering after they leave the pavement, and vehicles continue to go off the highway past the tunnels and a half-mile south at Gray Whale Cove.

“There’s really only one specific location that I know of where the cars have been going off consistently,” said CHP spokesman Mark Andrews, referring to Gray Whale Cove. “There is no barrier, there is a raised embankment. Depending on the speed of the car or the angle that it’s traveling at, it could potentially avoid the embankment without much of anything to keep it from going over.”

But, he added, “as long as you’re not distracted or doing something else, you’re going to follow the roadway generally 99.9% of the time.”

However, in the last two years, the Devil’s Slide area and Gray Whale Cove, near where Richard Moss died in 2017, have been the site of three fatal incidents and a pair of dramatic rescues.

Yuri Kim, 54, of San Francisco died on Aug. 31, 2020, when her vehicle went off the road at Gray Whale Cove. Two months later, motorcyclist Ion Bolea, 26, of South San Francisco, died after going over the same cliffs. On Sept. 15, 2021, Anthony Colonnese Jr., 73, of San Francisco, was killed when his car veered off the road near the tunnels. Most recently, in November, a man was rescued from the bluffs at Gray Whale Cove after he drove off the highway and crashed into the ocean just south of the tunnel.

Many aren’t as fortunate as that driver.

“If a person makes it all the way to the water, it’s pretty rare that they survive,” Stegink said. “The vast majority of these people were going about their daily lives on their way to work or home, and they never saw it coming. Quite frankly, it could happen to anyone.”

Caltrans laid out the stakes in its report about the proposed safety measures: “If these issues are not addressed, there is a risk that vehicles may continue to drive off the highway, causing severe injury or death to motorists and passengers as well as Caltrans maintenance workers.”

Left: Glenda Cota and her fiancé Jason Affolter, who died on April 27, 2004, after his car went off the roadway near Devil’s Slide. Right: Cota with her son Jason, named after his father. Photos provided by Glenda Cota Top: Glenda Cota and her fiancé Jason Affolter, who died on April 27, 2004, after his car went off the roadway near Devil’s Slide. Above: Cota with her son Jason, named after his father. Photos provided by Glenda Cota

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On the morning of April 27, 2004, Jason Affolter, a 23-year-old father-to-be, left his Moss Beach home, driving north along Highway 1 to his construction job in Pacifica. Twenty minutes later, his fiancee, Glenda Cota, heard helicopters overhead.

“Oh, no,” she thought, “something must have happened on Devil’s Slide.”

Affolter’s car had gone off the road just south of Devil’s Slide, plunging 200 feet into the ocean. His body washed up on shore two months later, just days before his son was born.

A year later, Caltrans broke ground on the Tom Lantos Tunnels, which would bypass a mile of landslide-prone slopes and avoid one of the road’s most dangerous sections.

“Now it’s going to be a boon for people who used to take this road with trepidation,” Caltrans spokesman Jeff Weiss told The Chronicle in 2005. “It’s a happy moment to be able to put Devil’s Slide behind us.”

Caltrans had begun lobbying for a bypass around Devil’s Slide in 1971, but local property owners and environmentalists, who wanted to preserve the natural beauty of the area, fought to prevent construction. The issue stalled until the 1990s, when hazardous weather caused several major closures of the highway, including mudslides in 1995 that shuttered it for months and sparked a vehement debate about how best to fix the highway.

Some of the discord was recorded in letters to The Chronicle:

In 1995, Greg Bayol, then head of public affairs for Caltrans, sent a verse to famed Chronicle columnist Herb Caen about the ongoing challenges of maintaining the road: “Since Herby was a little kid / The road at Devil’s Slide has slid / Fixing and patching that road’s a hassle / Never getting it done like a bypass’ll / But we’ll keep paving and spending the dough / Never once saying ‘We told you so!’”

Opponents of the tunnels said the project was not sufficiently planned and would not adequately prevent deaths and landslides in the area.

“The major issue is that we will not have safe and adequate transportation with a tunnel, period,” Mary Ann Sabie, the co-chairwoman of the committee against the project, told The Chronicle in 1996. “The tunnel fixes one mile. Devil’s Slide is 3.5 miles long.”

In November 1996, San Mateo County voters approved the tunnel project. Caltrans, which had advocated for a mountain bypass, changed its position and agreed that a tunnel was the best and most economical method to address the problems at Devil’s Slide.

“The only realistic option was a tunnel,” said Nicholas Sitar, a UC Berkeley professor of civil and environmental engineering. “And the only unusual thing about it is that it took them 30 years to finally decide to do it.”

Boring for the two 30-foot-diameter tunnels began in September 2007. The nearly mile-long tunnels opened to drivers on March 26, 2013, with well-lit corridors, heat and carbon monoxide sensors and 24-hour video monitoring.

“This puts the spotlight on the coast,” Cherise Hale McHugh, the executive director of the Half Moon Bay Coastside Chamber of Commerce, told The Chronicle at the time. “It’s going to be easier and safer to get here, and we don’t have to worry about our road falling into the ocean every six to eight years.”

The Tom Lantos Tunnels were built to make the road safer — and they have — but the danger in the area south of Devil’s Slide has continued. According to the CHP, in the two years before the tunnels opened, there were 29 incidents, including 16 injuries and one fatality. In the two years after, from 2013 to 2015, there were 42 incidents nearby, including 16 injuries and two fatalities.

Sitar said the tunnels have made a meaningful difference in road safety. But the cliffs south of Devil’s Slide, near Gray Whale Cove, are still the site of off-the-road incidents and deaths.

Glenda Cota thinks the safety measures haven’t been enough.

Left: Dan Moss with his wife Kathleen Penfold and son Richard. Richard Moss died May 25, 2017, after his car went off the road on Highway 1 near Devil’s Slide in San Mateo County. Right: Richard Moss, aged 22. Photos provided by Dan Moss Top: Dan Moss with his wife Kathleen Penfold and son Richard. Richard Moss died May 25, 2017, after his car went off the road on Highway 1 near Devil’s Slide in San Mateo County. Above: Richard Moss, aged 22. Photos provided by Dan Moss

“I was a child when there were talks about creating a tunnel for the parts that were thought to be more dangerous. And then it was built and just left at that,” Cota said. “People thought that sufficed, even though there were still multiple and constant deaths.”

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Four years after the Tom Lantos Tunnels opened, Richard Moss drove through the southbound corridor and disappeared.

Two days after they learned their son was missing, Dan Moss and Richard’s stepmother, Kathleen Penfold, flew from their home in Hawaii to look for him. Dan Moss circulated fliers, recruited volunteers at town halls and created the “Finding Richard Moss” Facebook page, which grew into a community of about 1,500 people offering tips and support in the search for his 22-year-old son.

Desperate, Dan Moss rented a helicopter and flew up and down the coast. The sheriff’s department deployed drones, boats and divers to search the ocean for Richard or his vehicle, and local fishermen used sonar to scan for remains. Richard’s friends, a tight-knit group of skateboarders in El Granada, also joined the effort.

Left: In July 2017, about a month after Richard Moss went missing, his AAA card washed up on Montara State Beach. Soon after, searchers found pieces of his blue Hyundai Tiburon. Right: His vertebra washed up about a year later. Photos provided by Dan Moss Top: In July 2017, about a month after Richard Moss went missing, his AAA card washed up on Montara State Beach. Soon after, searchers found pieces of his blue Hyundai Tiburon. Above: His vertebra washed up about a year later. Photos provided by Dan Moss

But for weeks there was no trace of Richard.

In early July, more than a month after he had vanished, Richard’s AAA card washed up on Montara State Beach. Soon after, searchers found his car’s wheel with the brake still attached at the north end of the beach. Then the vehicle’s front bumper.

“It was pretty evident that Richard died in the crash going over Devil’s Slide,” Dan Moss said. “So we turned our energy towards Caltrans.”

Dan Moss connected with a group of people who had lost loved ones on Highway 1 near Devil’s Slide, and together they protested at the suspected site of the accident, demanding that Caltrans make the road safer.

“It wasn’t until meeting Dan that we really felt like we could have our voices heard and show up in numbers, making it hard to ignore the effects of the losses caused by the unsafe part of Highway 1 at Devil’s Slide,” Cota said.

Following the demonstrations, Caltrans installed 36-inch-high temporary concrete barriers to replace the shorter stone wall where Richard and several others had gone off the road.

Dan Moss believes the barriers have prevented other people from going over the cliffs where Richard likely died, but accidents are still happening nearby.

After the deaths of Kim and Bolea at Gray Whale Cove in quick succession in 2020, concerned residents began advocating more fiercely for additional safety measures.

That year, Caltrans installed an additional 140 feet of temporary barriers along the bluffs at Gray Whale Cove as a “safety enhancement” measure, and the agency said it would develop a long-term plan to address the persistent problems.

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Late last year, as the tunnels approached their 10th anniversary, Caltrans unveiled a new safety project on Highway 1 to replace or install 11 taller and bulkier “see-through” barriers along the road between Devil’s Slide and Montara. The proposed barriers, which will replace temporary k-rail barriers and metal beam guardrails, include an updated guardrail system and two kinds of concrete blockades — all with gaps that allow for scenic views.

As of June this year, the project was in the planning and estimates phase. Final designs and permissions are expected to be completed in August 2023, with construction beginning in winter 2024.

“It’s finally happening,” Dan Moss said of the project. “What happened to Richard can happen to anybody. I would rather have (drivers) hit the barrier and crash the car in the roadway. Yeah, you got to get a new car, but that’s easy, right? You can’t get a new life.”

Caltrans project manager Kerry Morgan said officials expect the project to prevent at least 13 off-the-road incidents over 10 years.

“I’m incredibly grateful to Caltrans for making it happen. But for me, ultimately, the question will always be, what took so long for it to happen?” Cota asked. “This has been an issue since way before me and long before all these other deaths that could have been avoided.”

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Glenda Cota and her son Jason, who turned 18 in June, now live in Arizona, but they occasionally return to Half Moon Bay.

“It’s hard to hate such a beautiful place,” Cota said. “I grew up there thinking it was the most beautiful part of California, with the sunset and endless ocean by the gorgeous cliffside. You’re literally at the end of California — that’s what you’re seeing on that road.”

Cota told her son early on about his father and the accident at Devil’s Slide that “took him away.”

“It’s really hard raising a son as a single parent,” Cota said. “Regardless of how much time goes by, you’ll be left with a certain amount of ‘what-ifs’ and ‘should’ve, could’ve.’ I can’t help thinking about how things would be now if they panned out differently, but we continue to move on and live our lives.”

Jason, who’s named for his father, has been learning to drive, but he has some anxiety, especially about the idea of driving Highway 1 around Devil’s Slide.

“He hopes that he gets closure the first time that he drives on that road and finishes what his dad didn’t,” Cota said. “As a mother, knowing that the road is safer than it has ever been gives me a lot of comfort.”

After several unsuccessful searches in 2017, Dan Moss gave up on finding Richard.

“I’m not interested in taking him out of the water anymore,” he told volunteers then. “All I would probably end up doing is cremating him and then putting him back in the same place. So let’s just let him rest in peace.”

More than 200 people attended Richard Moss’s memorial in Half Moon Bay on Aug. 27, 2017. A second service was held a few weeks later in Waialua, Hawaii, where Richard attended his last three years of high school. In lieu of flowers, the family asked that donations be made in Richard’s name to the Tony Hawk Foundation.

Dan Moss now lives on Oahu, more than 2,000 miles from Devil’s Slide. The last time he was in San Mateo County was four years ago, when he collected his son’s ashes and closed his bank accounts. But he returned to California this June to visit family, friends and Richard at his resting place — marking the fifth anniversary of his son’s death.

He drove along Highway 1 and paused at a turnout north of Montara State Beach — where steep bluffs lead down to a sandy beach shore — the same spot where he had protested for a safer road years ago. This time, he threw flowers into the Pacific.

Though he doesn’t regularly drive the road anymore, he’s still concerned about the risk to those who travel it during their daily commutes and continues to champion more safety measures.

“I’m pretty strong about this stuff. I’m not going to let it go,” he said.

Two skateboards shaped like a cross adorn the side of a skate ramp in a beachside parking lot in El Granada, a village about 7 miles south of Devil’s Slide, where Richard and his friends often skated. The memorial is dedicated to Richard, his name written in large letters surrounded by heartfelt messages from loved ones: “Skate in paradise.” “We love you!”

If you approach the memorial on a sunny weekend afternoon, someone might walk up and ask, “Did you know Richard?”

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To mark World Environment Day, Coca-Cola System, which consists of Coca-Cola Nigeria, Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), and Chi Limited, has cleaned up Elegushi Beach in collaboration with the Mental and Environmental Development Initiative for Children (MEDIC).

The cleanup is to empower young people and women in the coastal community through recycling in addition to achieving seven of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, with a focus on clean water and sanitation for all.

Along with the beach clean-up, a recycling bank was established as a legacy project to empower the Elegushi community’s women and youth, who may now deposit their recyclables to earn a reward or money. The Coca-Cola system now sponsors 21 recycling banks across various communities, bringing the total to 21.

By 2030, The Coca-Cola Company hopes to collect and recycle the equivalent of one bottle or can for every one it sells, this was stated in 2018.

According to Patricia Obozuwa, vice president, Africa operating unit, Coca – Cola the beach cleanup supported Jamii, a recently launched sustainability platform for all of Africa. Jamii focuses on waste management, water stewardship, and wealth creation for women and youth with the aim of encouraging a better-shared future for communities and the planet while minimizing human activity’s negative effects on the environment.

The beach cleanup, according to Obozuwa, was also in support of its recently launched Africa-wide sustainability platform, Jamii, which focuses on waste management, water stewardship and wealth creation for women and youth, with the goal of promoting a better-shared future for communities and the planet while minimizing the impact of man’s activities on the environment. Our focus on water to support the planet would be incomplete unless we clean up our beaches which have a direct path to the ocean,” she remarked.

“Families converge at beaches to create magical moments, and the continued deterioration of our beaches with waste materials proves a continued challenge which we must all come together to tackle,” Obozuwa added.

In addition, Olajide emphasized that the company intends to help ensure the wellness of host communities while also promoting sustainable development in the nation through employee volunteer actions that fall under the “Jamii Deeds” pillar of our Jamii sustainability platform.

“Cleaning the beaches and extracting as much waste material as we can, continues to drive our World Without Waste agenda through which we have collected over one billion PET bottles already. It is also part of our commitment to our global goal to make all consumer packaging 100 per cent recyclable by 2025 and to enable 100 percent collection of all packaging material by 2030”, Olajide said.

Ekuma Eze, Managing Director of Nigerian Bottling Company, who was represented by Matthieu Seguin, Corporate Affairs & Sustainability Director stated that the cleanup effort was described as an extension of the System’s resolve to make the right decisions with consideration to the communities, and as leading manufacturers, it recognizes its obligation to contribute towards ensuring a safer and healthier environment and preserving the future for the generations to come.

“The ocean is the largest life-sustaining resource on earth, and we all have a responsibility to preserve it. Humans rely on the ocean for food and transport, and it regulates our climate and is home to an abundance of biodiversity. This is why environmental sustainability has continued to be a part of our growth strategy which is further encapsulated in our World Without Waste agenda. Our vision as a System is a world where plastic does not become waste, and this requires very urgent action and collaboration.”

Present at the event were; Ibrahim Odumboni, Managing Director, Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA),; Dolapo Fasewe, general manager, Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), represented by Micheal Bankole Ministry of Environment, Doyinsola Ogunye, founder, Recycling Scheme for Women and Youth Empowerment (RESWAYE), amongst many others.

Read also: Stakeholders advocate collaborative regulatory environment for industrial development

Odumboni stated that there is a constant need to capture plastic waste so that it does not overwhelm and represent harm to the ecosystem. He also praised the practice and emphasised that a value chain on plastic and trash management has been developed with assistance from waste management companies, food and beverage organizations, and recycling partners.

According to Bankole, the Ministry of Environment emphasized on creating and implementing environmental and water rules to promote a clean and sustainable environment is consistent with this advocacy. To achieve circularity in Lagos State, he asked for increased stakeholder collaboration.

Doyinsola Ogunye, founder of RESWAYE and Mental and Environmental Development for Children (MEDIC), thanked everyone in attendance for taking time out of their busy schedules to come to help clean up the beach and emphasized the significance of protecting the environment and waterways as well as reducing, reusing, and recycling plastic waste for long-term sustainability on both an economic and environmental level.

Following the cleanup exercise, which included key stakeholders as well as notable environmentalists and partners, a total of 248.68kg of waste was recovered.

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SAN DIEGO, California – Kové, an alternative craft beverage brand, announced the grand opening of its new tasting room in Miramar, California accompanied by the specialty release of a limited collaboration flavor, Dragon Fruit Margarita, created in partnership with Pitaya Foods. Kové launched the world’s first hard Yerba Mate beverage and officially opened its new tasting room on Saturday, June 25. Brewed sustainably in San Diego, each unique flavor contains high-quality ingredients with transparent and ethical sourcing.

Following the success of its flagship Barrio Logan tasting room, Kové’s Miramar location brings a modern and eclectic visual experience to life that integrates the brand’s botanical elements into a physical space designed by Kové’s Creative Director and mixed media artist, Christine Flannigan. The 1600-square-foot space is adorned by Flannigan’s hand-woven rugs and a gallery of specialty curated artwork as a visual representation of Kové’s mission to celebrate the art of living. Designed to seamlessly transition from day to night, guests can expect Kové’s second location to be as thought provoking and unique as the beverages being made behind the scenes.

“We are thrilled to continue supporting and expanding within the Southern California community with our new Miramar tasting room,” said Alex Montelbano, co-founder and CEO of Kové. “Our values and goals as an alternative craft beverage brand come to life in this space, bringing together the curious and creative people of the world to celebrate the art of living. We’re excited for our guests to enjoy everything the tasting room has to offer.”

In conjunction with the opening of the Miramar location, Kové also debuted its new flavor, Dragon Fruit Margarita, developed in collaboration with fellow San Diego-based brand, Pitaya Foods. With coinciding missions emphasizing the importance of ethical sourcing and sustainability, the like-minded brands teamed up to create a flavor that truly embodies southern California summer, with fresh tropical dragon fruit, crisp tangy lime and a hint of pineapple.

Kové’s Dragon Fruit Margarita offers a “better-for-you” buzz as a beverage that is vegan, gluten-free and made with organic ingredients. The new flavor will be available for purchase in four packs of 12-ounce cans and on tap at both Kové tasting rooms in San Diego.

“Throughout my time in the craft beverage industry, I have been eager to work with Pitaya Foods. The brand’s sustainable farming, fair working conditions and organic sourcing practices have made it a leader in San Diego and the perfect partner for our new Dragon Fruit Margarita flavor,” said Josh Makler, co-founder and world-famous brewer at Kové. “The launch of this new flavor accompanied by the opening of our Miramar Tasting Room is a testament to our team’s commitment to creating a sophisticated and elevated drinking experience for all guests.”

“We’re excited to be partnering up with a local San Diego brand that shares the same ethical ingredient sourcing values,” said Chuck Casano, founder and CEO of Pitaya Foods. “Our collaboration will help educate our customers on the positive impacts we make in the local and international communities we source from.”

In addition to the new Dragon Fruit Margarita flavor, the tasting room features 14 taps with Kové’s core flavors, including Passion Berry, Mojito and Grapefruit Spritz, as well as rotating brewer’s batches and seasonal offerings.

Kové’s Miramar tasting room is located at 9030 Kenamar Drive Suite 309, San Diego, CA 92121. Hours are Monday and Tuesday, 3 p.m. to 9 p.m., Wednesday and Thursday, noon to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Kové is available for purchase at select bars, restaurants and liquor stores across California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Oregon with an SRP of $9.99.

About Kové

Launched in 2021, Kové is an alternative craft beverage company best known for creating the world’s first line of boozy Yerba Mate beverages. Sustainably brewed in San Diego, California, Kové is made with high-quality, organic ingredients. With a mission to create transparent and ethically sourced beverages, Kové also donates a portion of sales to support environmental nonprofit organizations through an ongoing partnership with 1% for the Planet. Kové has San Diego tasting rooms in Barrio Logan and Miramar and can also be purchased at retailers across California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Oregon. 

About Pitaya Foods

The farmers and producers are the heart and soul of Pitaya Foods, with first-hand relationships allowing the brand to help support local communities through sustainable farming practices, fair working conditions, organic certification and more. Pitaya Foods’ super-fruits are on a mission to improve communities, people’s health and the planet.

For More Information:

https://www.drinkkove.com/

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Summer is officially here – the peak season for swimming outdoors. Heal the Bay releases its annual scientific reports on bacterial-pollution rankings for hundreds of beaches in California and dozens of freshwater recreation areas in Los Angeles County.

SUMMARY

California beaches had excellent water quality in summer 2021, according to the thirty-second annual Beach Report Card that environmental nonprofit Heal the Bay released today. Heal the Bay assigned “A-to-F” letter grades for 500 California beaches in the 2021-2022 report, based on levels of fecal-indicator bacterial pollution in the ocean measured by County health agencies. In addition, the group ranked water quality at 35 freshwater recreation areas in Los Angeles County for summer 2021 and shared findings from the third annual River Report Card.

The good news is 94% of the California beaches assessed by Heal the Bay received an A or B grade during summer 2021, which is on par with the five-year average.

Even so, Heal the Bay scientists remain deeply concerned about ocean water quality. Polluted waters pose a significant health risk to millions of people in California. People who come in contact with water with a C grade or lower are at a greater risk of contracting illnesses such as stomach flu, ear infections, upper respiratory infections, and rashes. Beaches and rivers usually have high-risk water quality following a rain event. Less rain typically means that reduced amounts of pollutants, including bacteria, are flushed through storm drains and rivers into the ocean. Last year, rainfall across coastal counties in California was 24 percent lower than the historical average. Only 66% of California beaches had good or excellent grades during wet weather, which was a little above average, but still very concerning.

“A day at the beach and the river shouldn’t make anyone sick,” said Tracy Quinn, President and CEO of Heal the Bay. “It is wonderful news that most beaches in California have good water quality for swimming. But there are areas with poor water quality that need improvement and infrastructure upgrades. We can’t forget that our marine ecosystems are still threatened by the climate crisis and other pollution sources, and we need solutions to address these pressing issues as well. We expect people to increasingly seek out ocean shorelines and freshwater swimming holes to cool off as temperatures rise, so safe, clean, and healthy water is needed now more than ever.”

Heal the Bay’s Beach Report Card and River Report Card provide access to the latest water quality information and are a critical part of our science-based advocacy work in support of strong environmental policies that protect public health.

Download Beach Report Card

Read Beach Report Card summary en Español

BEACH BUMMER LIST

Heal the Bay’s Beach Bummer List ranks the most polluted beaches in California based on levels of harmful bacteria in the ocean. The 2021-2022 Beach Bummer List includes beaches in San Diego, San Mateo, Los Angeles, and Humboldt Counties, and for the first-time ever a beach in Baja California, Mexico makes the list (this beach is monitored by San Diego County).*

• Playa Blanca (Baja California, Mexico)
• Erckenbrack Park (San Mateo County)
• Marlin Park (San Mateo County)
• Santa Monica Pier (Los Angeles County)
• Marina del Rey Mother’s Beach, at lifeguard tower (Los Angeles County)
• Moonstone County Park (Humboldt County)
• Newport Bay, Vaughn’s Launch (Orange County)
• Lakeshore Park (San Mateo County)
• Marina del Rey Mother’s Beach, between lifeguard tower and boat dock (Los Angeles County)
• Tijuana Slough, North of Tijuana River Mouth (San Diego County)

BEACH HONOR ROLL LIST

Heal the Bay’s Honor Roll List includes 51 California beaches that scored perfect water quality grades year-round (compared to 35 beaches in the prior year). Most beaches on the Honor Roll are in Southern California because many counties in Central California and Northern California do not sample frequently enough during the winter months. Orange County had the most beaches on the Honor Roll. Los Angeles, San Luis Obispo, San Diego, and Santa Barbara Counties also had beaches with perfect water quality grades. San Francisco, Ventura, and Alameda Counties had no beaches on the Honor Roll.

• Venice City Beach, at Brooks Ave. drain (Los Angeles County)
• Rancho Palos Verdes, Long Point (Los Angeles County)
• Royal Palms State Beach (Los Angeles County)
• Palos Verdes Estates, at Malaga Cove trail outlet (Los Angeles County)
• Las Tunas County Beach, at Pena Creek (Los Angeles County)
• Nicholas Beach, at San Nicholas Canyon Creek (Los Angeles County)
• Dana Point Harbor Youth Dock (Orange County)
• Dana Point Harbor Guest Dock (Orange County)
• Poche Beach (Orange County)
• Doheny Beach (Orange County)
• Doheny State Beach, end of the park (Orange County)
• Doheny State Beach, at last campground (Orange County)
• Corona Del Mar (Orange County)
• Crystal Cove (Orange County)
• Marine Science Institute Beach (Orange County)
• Dana Point, Capistrano County Beach (Orange County)
• Doheny State Beach, Pedestrian Bridge (Orange County)
• Dana Strands Beach (Orange County)
• Huntington City Beach, at 17th Street (Orange County)
• Bolsa Chica Reserve, at Flood Gates (Orange County)
• Surfside Beach, at Sea Way (Orange County)
• San Clemente, at Avenida Calafia (Orange County)
• Salt Creek Beach (Orange County)
• Laguna Lido (Orange County)
• Treasure Island Beach (Orange County)
• Del Mar, at 15th Street (San Diego County)
• Carlsbad, at Tamarack Ave. (San Diego County)
• Carlsbad, at Poinsettia Lane (San Diego County)
• Carlsbad, at Encina Creek (San Diego County)
• Carlsbad, at Palomar Airport Rd. (San Diego County)
• Carlsbad, at Cerezo Drive (San Diego County)
• Oceanside, at Forster Street (San Diego County)
• Oceanside, Harbor Beach at Harbor Drive (San Diego County)
• Point Loma, Lighthouse (San Diego County)
• Point Loma, Point Loma Treatment Plant (San Diego County)
• Sunset Cliffs, at Ladera Street (San Diego County)
• Mission Beach, Belmont Park (San Diego County)
• La Jolla Shores Beach, 1000 ft south of Scripps Pier (San Diego County)
• La Jolla Shores Beach, 250 feet south of Scripps Pier (San Diego County)
• La Jolla Shores Beach, 500 feet north of Scripps Pier (San Diego County)
• Guadalupe Dunes (Santa Barbara County)
• East Beach, at Sycamore Creek (Santa Barbara County)
• El Capitan State Beach (Santa Barbara County)
• Sands, at Coal Oil Point (Santa Barbara County)
• Cayucos State Beach, downcoast of the pier (San Luis Obispo County)
• Pismo Beach, at Ocean View (San Luis Obispo County)
• Pismo Beach, at Wadsworth Street (San Luis Obispo County)
• San Simeon State Beach, at Pico Ave. (San Luis Obispo County)
• Morro Strand State Beach, at Beachcomber Drive (San Luis Obispo County)
• Pismo State Beach, 571 yards south of Pier Ave. (San Luis Obispo County)
• Pismo State Beach, 330 yards north of Pier Ave. (San Luis Obispo County)

“The World Surf League is incredibly proud to partner with Heal the Bay to upgrade the Beach Report Card for all ocean lovers to be informed about water quality prior to heading to their favorite beach. Through the partnership we are investing in improvements to the user experience of the Beach Report Card website and app, and we will be activating local surfers to protect the health of 150 million beachgoers in California,” said Emily Hofer, Chief People Officer and Executive Director WSL PURE at World Surf League (WSL).

Heal the Bay graded 35 freshwater recreation areas in Los Angeles County within the L.A. River, San Gabriel River, and Malibu Creek Watersheds during summer 2021. 59% of the grades across all LA freshwater sites and all dates indicated a low risk of illness, 17% indicated a moderate risk of illness, and 24% indicated a high risk of illness.

“Our River Report Card identifies a disturbing trend between development and water quality. The natural areas in our watersheds, rivers and streams with muddy bottoms and ample flora, have the best water quality and are the safest for the public. While heavily developed areas, waterways encased with concrete (including within the L.A. River channel), tend to have lower water quality. We recommend checking out the River Report Card before heading out to the L.A. River because bacteria levels are often at unsafe levels and you can find a safer spot for cooling off,” said Luke Ginger, Water Quality Scientist and author of the River Report Card and Beach Report Card.

Download River Report Card

Read River Report Card summary en Español

FRESHWATER FAILS LIST

Top 10 river recreation sites in Los Angeles County that are high-risk places to contact the water.

• 1-5. L.A. River at Riverfront Park – Lower L.A. River Watershed
• 1-5. L.A. River below the Rio Hondo Confluence – Lower L.A. River Watershed
• 1-5. L.A. River at Hollydale Park – Lower L.A. River Watershed
• 1-5. Compton Creek – Lower L.A. River Watershed
• 1-5. L.A. River below the Compton Creek Confluence – Lower L.A. River Watershed
• 6. Tujunga Wash at Hansen Dam – Upper L.A. River Watershed
• 7. L.A. River at Willow Street – Lower L.A. River Watershed
• 8. L.A. River at Rattlesnake Park – L.A. River Watershed: Recreation Zones
• 9. Las Virgenes Creek – Malibu Creek Watershed
• 10. Bull Creek – Upper L.A. River Watershed

FRESHWATER HONOR ROLL LIST

Top 10 river recreation sites in Los Angeles County that are low-risk places to swim or boat.

• 1-7. San Gabriel River East Fork at Cattle Canyon – San Gabriel River Watershed
• 1-7. San Gabriel River East Fork at Graveyard Canyon – San Gabriel River Watershed
• 1-7. Eaton Canyon – Upper L.A. River Watershed
• 1-7. Hansen Dam Lake – Upper L.A. River Watershed
• 1-7. San Gabriel River Upper East Fork – San Gabriel River Watershed
• 1-7. San Gabriel River Upper West Fork – San Gabriel River Watershed
• 1-7. Mill Creek at Hidden Springs – Upper L.A. River Watershed
• 8. L.A. River at Balboa Blvd. – L.A. River Watershed: Recreation Zones
• 9-10. San Gabriel River Lower West Fork – San Gabriel River Watershed
• 9-10. San Gabriel River below North and West Forks – San Gabriel River Watershed
• 9-10. San Gabriel River at Upper Cattle Canyon – San Gabriel River Watershed
• 9-10. San Gabriel River Upper North Fork – San Gabriel River Watershed

TIPS TO STAY SAFE AT OCEAN AND FRESHWATER AREAS

• View beachreportcard.org and healthebay.org/riverreportcard for the latest water quality information.
• Avoid shallow, enclosed beaches with poor water circulation.
• Swim at least 100 yards away from flowing storm drains, creeks, and piers.
• Stay out of the water for at least 72-hours after a rain event.
• Follow all local health and safety regulations, including all local pandemic-related regulations.
• Check in with the lifeguard or ranger on duty for more information about the best places to swim.

ACCESS TO WATER RECREATION

The COVID-19 pandemic, record-setting wildfire seasons, and extreme heat have compounded the already dire need for equity in our recreational waters, and exposed major systemic failures; open spaces, including beaches and rivers, are not equally accessible to all people. Low-income communities of color tend to be the most burdened communities, bearing the brunt of environmental pollution, socioeconomic disparities, and limited access to safe, healthy, and clean water recreation. Heal the Bay is committed to expanding the user base of our Beach Report Card and River Report Card. We have started by working with local community-based organizations that are taking down barriers to water recreation for communities of color. Through this work, we will amplify what “safe, healthy, and clean access to water recreation” means in the communities where it is needed the most.

☀️ 📢 Announcing Heal the Bay’s Annual Beach Report Card & River Report Card: https://t.co/LOlD4YLcOb https://t.co/FHkL8mhUKg

— Heal the Bay (@HealTheBay) June 22, 2022

About Heal the Bay: Heal the Bay is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 1985. They use science, education, community action, and advocacy to fulfill their mission to protect coastal waters and watersheds in Southern California. Heal the Bay Aquarium, located at the Santa Monica Pier, welcomes 100,000 guests annually and hosts a variety of public programs and events that highlight local environmental issues and solutions. Learn more at healthebay.org and follow @healthebay on social media.

About Beach Report Card: Beach Report Card with NowCast, in partnership with World Surf League, is Heal the Bay’s flagship scientific water quality monitoring program that started in the 1990s. For thirty years, the Beach Report Card has influenced the improvement of water quality by increasing monitoring efforts and helping to enact strong environmental and public health policies. Learn more at beachreportcard.org and download the free app on Apple and Android devices. The Beach Report Card is made possible through generous support from SIMA Environmental Fund, SONY Pictures Entertainment, and World Surf League.

About River Report Card: Currently, there is no statewide water quality monitoring mandate for rivers and streams in California, like we have for the ocean as a result of the Beach Report Card. Heal the Bay started the River Report Card in 2017 to push for new public health protections for freshwater areas in addition to serving the immediate need for increased public awareness about the risks at popular freshwater recreation areas in Los Angeles County. Learn more at healthebay.org/riverreportcard. The River Report Card is brought to you by Garfield Foundation, Watershed Conservation Authority, Environment Now, and Rivers and Mountains Conservancy.

Download Press Release in English

Download Press Release en Español

Download Social Media Images

View the Beach Report Card and River Report Card from last year.

*EDITOR NOTE: An earlier version of this blog post included Santa Cruz and Santa Barbara Counties within this paragraph description of the Beach Bummers, which was in error. Neither of these Counties have beaches on Heal the Bay’s Beach Bummers list this year.

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SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Taking off on the flight line at MCAS Miramar were hundreds of marines, sailors and civilians enjoying the first Wings Over Miramar Flightline 5k run.

“He heard about it and immediately signed us up and said hey you need to be here,” said Toni Mason.

She and her significant other Mason took selfies ahead of the run.

“I’ve been going to air shows my whole life and I’m a pilot civilian local so I just wanted to get out on the flight line— plus, Top Gun just came out so we wanted to get out here to Miramar,” said Mason Oren.

From start to finish, it was the ultimate Marine Corps experience.

Warm-up stretches were directed by a Marine veteran and the planes San Diegans see overhead during the week line the flight line.

“We want to be friends with the locals here. Pardon the sound of freedom it gets a little loud here sometimes but we love being here and we love that California just invites us to stay,” said Staff Sgt. Matthew Rearic, MCAS Miramar EOD.

Staff Sgt. Rearic is with MCAS Miramar’s bomb squad.

He and many other Marines serving in San Diego showed off what they do to the runners who were excited to be back on base.

The 5K run was just a taste of what the community can expect to see at the long-awaited Miramar Air Show on September 23-25.

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HALF MOON BAY – All lanes of Highway 92 have reopened Friday afternoon after a crash involving an overturned big-rig forced the closure of the roadway for more than three hours.

The Cal Fire San Mateo – Santa Cruz Unit said shortly before 1 p.m. the crash took place on the highway near Spanishtown, located east of Half Moon Bay.

Photos posted by firefighters showed the big-rig on its side and striking the front of a pickup truck. Firefighters said minor injuries were reported.

The crash led to the shutdown of Highway 92, one of the few roads connecting the San Mateo County coast to the rest of the Peninsula, between Main Street in Half Moon Bay and Skyline Boulevard.

Around 3:30 p.m., authorities said all lanes of the highway were open once again, with some residual delays reported.

Additional details about the crash were not immediately available.

SAN DIEGO, Calif.— Kové, an alternative craft beverage brand, announced the grand opening of its new tasting room in Miramar, California accompanied by the specialty release of a limited collaboration flavor, Dragon Fruit Margarita, created in partnership with Pitaya Foods. Kové launched the world’s first hard Yerba Mate beverage and will officially open its new tasting room on Saturday, June 25. Brewed sustainably in San Diego, each unique flavor contains high-quality ingredients with transparent and ethical sourcing.

Following the success of its flagship Barrio Logan tasting room, Kové’s Miramar location brings a modern and eclectic visual experience to life that integrates the brand’s botanical elements into a physical space designed by Kové’s Creative Director and mixed media artist, Christine Flannigan. The 1600-square-foot space is adorned by Flannigan’s hand-woven rugs and a gallery of specialty curated artwork as a visual representation of Kové’s mission to celebrate the art of living. Designed to seamlessly transition from day to night, guests can expect Kové’s second location to be as thought provoking and unique as the beverages being made behind the scenes.

“We are thrilled to continue supporting and expanding within the Southern California community with our new Miramar tasting room,” said Alex Montelbano, co-founder and CEO of Kové. “Our values and goals as an alternative craft beverage brand come to life in this space, bringing together the curious and creative people of the world to celebrate the art of living. We’re excited for our guests to enjoy everything the tasting room has to offer.”

In conjunction with the opening of the Miramar location, Kové will also debut its new flavor, Dragon Fruit Margarita, developed in collaboration with fellow San Diego-based brand, Pitaya Foods. With coinciding missions emphasizing the importance of ethical sourcing and sustainability, the like-minded brands teamed up to create a flavor that truly embodies southern California summer, with fresh tropical dragon fruit, crisp tangy lime and a hint of pineapple.

Kové’s Dragon Fruit Margarita offers a “better-for-you” buzz as a beverage that is vegan, gluten-free and made with organic ingredients. The new flavor will be available for purchase in four packs of 12-ounce cans and on tap at both Kové tasting rooms in San Diego.

“Throughout my time in the craft beverage industry, I have been eager to work with Pitaya Foods. The brand’s sustainable farming, fair working conditions and organic sourcing practices have made it a leader in San Diego and the perfect partner for our new Dragon Fruit Margarita flavor,” said Josh Makler, co-founder and world-famous brewer at Kové. “The launch of this new flavor accompanied by the opening of our Miramar Tasting Room is a testament to our team’s commitment to creating a sophisticated and elevated drinking experience for all guests.”

“We’re excited to be partnering up with a local San Diego brand that shares the same ethical ingredient sourcing values,” said Chuck Casano, founder and CEO of Pitaya Foods. “Our collaboration will help educate our customers on the positive impacts we make in the local and international communities we source from.”

In addition to the new Dragon Fruit Margarita flavor, the tasting room will feature 14 taps with Kové’s core flavors, including Passion Berry, Mojito and Grapefruit Spritz, as well as rotating brewer’s batches and seasonal offerings.

Kové’s Miramar tasting room is located at 9030 Kenamar Drive Suite 309, San Diego, CA 92121. Hours are Monday and Tuesday, 3 p.m. to 9 p.m., Wednesday and Thursday, noon to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Sunday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Kové is available for purchase at select bars, restaurants and liquor stores across California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Oregon with an SRP of $9.99.

About Kové

Launched in 2021, Kové is an alternative craft beverage company best known for creating the world’s first line of boozy Yerba Mate beverages. Sustainably brewed in San Diego, California, Kové is made with high-quality, organic ingredients. With a mission to create transparent and ethically sourced beverages, Kové also donates a portion of sales to support environmental nonprofit organizations through an ongoing partnership with 1% for the Planet. Kové has San Diego tasting rooms in Barrio Logan and Miramar and can also be purchased at retailers across California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Oregon.

About Pitaya Foods

The farmers and producers are the heart and soul of Pitaya Foods, with first-hand relationships allowing the brand to help support local communities through sustainable farming practices, fair working conditions, organic certification and more. Pitaya Foods’ super-fruits are on a mission to improve communities, people’s health and the planet.

For More Information:
https://www.drinkkove.com/

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For the uninitiated it would be easy to guess the biggest waves in the world likely break off the shores of Hawaii or perhaps Australia. But over the last ten or so years, a wave known as Nazaré (pronounced ‘Naz-a-ray’) located off the beach of Praia do Norte in a picturesque town on Portugal’s rugged west coast has been drawing the best big wave surfers in the world like moths to the proverbial flame – or in this case, inferno.

Nazaré is a true monster – the wave it’s claimed is most likely to break the magical one-hundred-foot-high barrier that has long been the Holy Grail of big wave surfing. It is a freak of nature created by the Canhão da Nazaré, the largest underwater canyon in Europe. Reaching depths of 16,500 feet, the canyon tapers to a point as it meets land, funneling the swells that have been building and traveling through the Atlantic Ocean upwards into gargantuan towers of water that, when they crest, have nowhere to go but down. It is the faces of these titanic waves where surfers as brave as they are talented place themselves, whipped in by jet skis to try and ensure they have enough speed to outrun the foaming beast chasing them. It’s quite the arena.

That these waves break directly in front of a cliff top viewing platform that puts onloookers so close to the action they can as near as see the whites of the surfers’ eyes has only heightened Nazaré’s notoriety. It’s like it was perfectly sculpted and designed for the video sharing multimedia age.

It was here on 29 October 2020 that German (not a nation famed for its giant surf or professional surfers) Sebastian Steudtner was towed into what has just been ratified by Guinness World Records as the biggest wave ever surfed – an 86ft tower that reduced Steudtner to an almost comical, ant-like scale. It was a record that took nearly two years to award.

Speaking to Spanish newspaper Marca, Steudtner said of his wave, “I had tears coming out of my eyes because of the wind, my face was melting. It was crazy. I didn’t imagine that could happen in surfing until that day.” Speaking to Magicseaweed he added, “I remember thinking, ‘oh that’s fast’. The wave was chattery, crazy. It felt big, but at the time, I wasn’t really sure how big. That’s how it is out there, you just keep going.”

‘Keeping going’ is something Steudtner is very familiar with. He has form in the realm of big waves, but his recent achievements were subject to a strange mishap that cost him dear – both emotionally and financially. In 2018, an enormous wave Steudtner surfed (again at Nazaré) went viral with, to-date, more than a billion views across different platforms making it the most watched and shared wave ever. But for Steudtner the glory and reward was cruelly denied him, as most news outlets and even the odd celebrity incorrectly attributed the footage to the then-World Record holder, Brazilian surfer Rodrigo Koxa. Some but not all have since rectified the mistake.

Despite the missed opportunities for funding and sponsorship such coverage would have undoubtedly afforded him, today Steudtner is more philosophical. “The way I look at it now is, maybe I didn’t get the credit for it – we’ll never know why it went out wrong – but it’s probably one of the most successful surfing releases of all time – for me personally, the acknowledgment of the public in that sense, makes it ok for me. People are correcting it when they see it now. The people have spoken. On the business side, it’s messed up [laughs].”

Indeed, it must now be quite satisfying to know he now has – officially – the record for the biggest wave ever surfed. “I’m really proud of this achievement and of my whole team’s performance. It was a dream since I was a kid to become a surfer and I’ve always stayed true to that. I hope my journey and this World Record will inspire lots of others to chase their dreams as well,” he told Magicseaweed. And what it means to him and his future career? “It is great to have, feels like it was destined to be. I’ve been putting all my energy into this, I don’t know who else cares as much as I do out here, it’s great to have this one on the resume, let’s see what comes from it.”

Whether Steudtner has inspired you to don a wetsuit, grab a board and motor into the lineup yourself (don’t do this) or you just want to see one of the most awe-inspiring examples of the raw power of nature balanced with mankind’s overwhelming desire to challenge it, Nazaré is a fantastic vacation destination. A traditional old fishing town fronted by a huge sandy beach steeped in Portuguese tradition, its warm but mild climate makes it a year-round option. But for big wave surfing (watching), October until March offers the best window for those massive winter swells.

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