Ocean Beach Bulletin has lots of icky photos of the thousands of jellyfish that overtook Ocean Beach in the last 24 hours. Apparently the last time this happened was in 2004, but no one really knows why.
Sarah B.
As you may have read previously on the blog, a new visitor center is in the works for Lands End. It will be located next to the Merrie Way parking lot above Sutro Baths.
Next Saturday, November 6, the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy will host a site tour of the project beginning at 10am. Project Manager Anne Baskerville will share the current site plan, renderings, and construction schedule for the project.
The new 2,500 square foot center will be called the Lands End Lookout, and will include 500 square feet of food service. A separate, 1,000 square foot building will house restrooms. The center and restrooms will be built on a triangular patch of land on the south end of the Lands End parking lot along Point Lobos Avenue.
To join the tour, meet in the Merrie Way parking lot at 10am, just up the hill from Louis’ restaurant. Write trailsforever@parksconservancy.org or call 561-3054 to RSVP.
This tour will kick-off a monthly series of walks and talks focused on Lands End. On Saturday, December 4, Alex Hooker, San Francisco Stewardship Program manager, will describe restoration techniques with native plants. And in January 2011, Peter Winch from the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary will talk about the marine mammals off the coast of Lands End. To be added to the mailing list, email trailsforever@parksconservancy.org.
Sarah B.
10:25 am | Posted under Events, Recreation | Add comments
The National Park Service has identified 45 trees in the Fort Miley area that require removal. They were found to be dead or infected with pine pitch canker and bark beetles.
Several of the trees are in the area of the Fort Miley Adventure Challenge Course (aka the ropes course). Not a great situation when you have people walking through regularly, as well as climbing and swinging from trees.
If you are interested in learning more about the plans for this project, join the National Park Service for a walk on Saturday morning from 10am until 11am entitled “Destination Lands End: Managing a Healthy Forest in Your National Parks and at Home” (see flyer).
You’ll have the opportunity to learn about tree health and how to detect tree diseases from a local arborist. And I imagine you’ll learn a few things about Fort Miley along the way.
Meet at the trailhead at the Merrie Way parking lot at 10am for the tour. Due to the impending rain, the tour may be canceled if there is a big downpour. Call 561-4993 on Saturday morning after 8am to check the status.
Keep in mind the USS San Francisco Memorial parking lot below Fort Miley (at Merrie Way) is still closed for repairs. So park in the lot above Sutro Baths or in the neighborhood.
Sarah B.
New dance classes are starting at the Richmond District Recreation Center for kids age 3 to 13 years, put on by the Cultural Arts Division of the SF Recreation and Parks Department.
Each class includes 9 sessions for $72, and takes place at the Richmond Rec Center on 18th Avenue between California and Clement.
Registration opens this Saturday, October 2 at 10am on the SF Rec & Park website at http://sfreconline.org, in person at McLaren Lodge in Golden Gate Park (501 Stanyan Street, 10am-3pm), or at the Richmond Recreation Center (251 18th Avenue, 10am until 3pm). Scholarships are available.
3-4 yr olds: Busy Bees – Creative Movement
Fridays 3:30pm-4:15pm | Oct. 15 – Dec.17 OR
Saturdays 11am-12pm | Oct. 16 – Dec.18
This dance class is designed to develop children’s motor skills, body awareness, verbal / social abilities, and basic understanding of rhythm and dance. Students are taught movements such as turning, hopping, rolling, galloping, and skipping. Additionally, students will begin learning basic ballet, modern, jazz, and Afro-Haitian dance movements and placement. This class is designed to develop the student’s strength and flexibility overall as well as dance skills.
5-8 yrs old: Monkey Motion – Dance Basics 1
Fridays 4:30-5:30 | Oct. 15 – Dec.17 OR
Saturdays 12pm-1pm | Oct. 16 – Dec. 18
In this class children will be taught beginning ballet, jazz, modern, and Afro-Haitian movement. The emphasis of this class is learning the Dunham Technique – a modern / jazz style of dance that is a blend of African and Caribbean movement. This class is perfect for first time students that are new to dance, as well as students that are more experienced dancers.
9-13 yr. olds: Graceful Gazelles – Dance Basics 2
Saturdays 1pm-2pm | Oct 16. – Dec. 18
This is an Intermediate/ Advanced version of Monkey Motion, described above.
In an effort to educate more residents about the Recreation Centers across San Francisco, SF Rec & Park is hosting “Back to Rec Night” at over 30 locations, including the Richmond Recreation Center (251 18th Avenue), the Golden Gate Park Senior Center (6101 Fulton) and Rossi Pool (Arguello at Anza). The event runs from 6pm until 8pm on Wednesday night.
It’s a great chance to stop in at your Rec Center and find out more about what they offer, including dance classes, sports, arts & crafts, swim programs, continuing education or other activities for both adults and kids.
The Examiner reports that Wednesday night’s event is meant to celebrate the new operating model that Rec & Park has undertaken, which involved some staff members losing their jobs while others’ roles became more specialized.
Note that the Golden Gate Park Senior Center will be running an early bird special, instead hosting a “Back to Rec Day” from 10am until 12noon on Wednesday. 
Sarah B.
1:37 pm | Posted under Kids, Recreation | Add commentsAre those stars in your eyes?
Amateur astronomer Jeff Schwartz will be out by the big fountain in Golden Gate Park’s Music Concourse tonight with his telescope, starting at 7:30pm. Stop by to take a look at the moon and Jupiter in the fall sky. He’s testing out the location for possible star parties for SF Amateur Astronomers while the Lands End parking lot is under construction.
Geeks get all the glory
Starting tonight and running for one week is the documentary Whiz Kids at the Balboa Theater. It’s about a diverse group of high school students competing for a national Science Fair award. But this isn’t just for science fans. It is an inspiring, fascinating, suspenseful and funny 90 minutes. Whiz Kids is directed by San Francisco’s own Tom Shepard who will be there in person before the 7pm and after the 8:45pm show this Saturday night for Q&A. Check out the trailer below.
The workout of all workouts
If you see a lot of sweaty people running around with backpacks filled with 25 lbs. of bricks on Saturday at Ocean Beach, be sure to cheer them on. They’re taking part in the Tough Mudder Go-Ruck Challenge, where “ocean running, stairs, natural obstacle courses, city running through billions in real estate and the big bridge in the background of wet shoes all play an important part.” Green Berets will be running the workout so it ain’t gonna be easy, guaranteed.
Have a great weekend!
Sarah B.
After teaching in various yoga studios in the Richmond and Marina districts for the past 15 years, Jennifer Durand has opened up her own home on 22nd Avenue for classes.
Known as the Tea and Yoga Society, Durand offers classes five mornings a week to both beginning and advanced yoga enthusiasts (class schedule).
Her small group and individual yoga instruction includes asana (postures), pranayama (breath awareness), meditation and practical philosophy through the study of the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali.
If you’ve ever tried yoga and abandoned it, it may have been because you couldn’t keep up with the more advanced movements and grew frustrated. To avoid this, Durand focuses on fitting the movements to each student in the class, rather than forcing the body into uncomfortable positions. As she told me, “If you can breathe, you can do yoga!”
For more information on classes, schedule and prices, visit the Tea & Yoga Society website.
Sarah B.
7:30 am | Posted under Recreation | Add comments
A little marine biology lesson for your Sunday… Some diners at the Cliff House today noticed a strange red streak out in the Pacific Ocean, so the restaurant posted some photos on their Facebook page and asked, “Is it a red tide, a phosphorescent toxic spill, or a natural event? The glowing line stretches from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Zoo.”
Thanks to the power of social networking they got a quick response – it’s an algal (algae) bloom. According to Wikipedia:
An algal bloom is a rapid increase or accumulation in the population of algae in an aquatic system. Algal blooms may occur in freshwater as well as marine environments. Typically, only one or a small number of phytoplankton species are involved, and some blooms may be recognized by discoloration of the water resulting from the high density of pigmented cells.
Although there is no officially recognized threshold level, algae can be considered to be blooming at concentrations of hundreds to thousands of cells per milliliter, depending on the severity. Algal bloom concentrations may reach millions of cells per milliliter. Algal blooms are often green, but they can also be other colors such as yellow-brown or red, depending on the species of algae.
Of particular note are harmful algal blooms (HABs), which are algal bloom events involving toxic or otherwise harmful phytoplankton such as dinoflagellates of the genus Alexandrium and Karenia. Such blooms often take on a red or brown hue and are known colloquially as red tides.
No word on whether this one is considered a harmful red tide, but one Facebooker commented that the Coast Guard has been keeping an eye on it.
Sarah B.
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