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Dear Friend,
Dig out your rain gear, it's supposed to be a very wet rain year which officially starts October 1st! At least we hope so...
Anyway, we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Coastal Act at their party on Oct. 10th at 1pm. We also have a new board member (yay!) we want to introduce you to. And lastly, we wanted to take a moment to give a big shout out to the volunteers who came to help on Coastal Clean Up Day!
Hope to see you at the party, and have a safe and spooky October!
Until next time, see you on the trails.
| | CA Coastal Act's 50th birthday party! | |
Come celebrate 50 years of coastal access in California!
More than half a century ago, California declared that its coast belongs to everyone! Please join a public celebration of the 50th anniversary of California's Coastal Act at 1 pm on October 10, 2026 at Junipero Beach.
Enjoy live DJs, music, food, and fun along with special guest speakers and people like you who have helped keep California's coast open, healthy, and accessible to all!
We will have a table at the event, so come say hi!
Free to attend, hope to see you there!!
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We are thrilled to welcome Rick Taketomo to the Bolsa Chica Land Trust Board of Directors! Rick has a Bachelors, Masters, Engineer of Electrical Engineering and Masters in Business Administration from the University of Southern California. He was a lead systems engineer on several aerospace programs and projects over 48 years for Hughes Aircraft and several successor companies including the Boeing Company.
Since retirement, he expresses his passion for the outdoors through participation in BCLT’s Miracles of the Marsh as a docent, photography, and bird studies. He does public outreach though BCLT’s Sunday Table & Tour, and he has served on the Wings Over Bolsa calendar committee. Rick lives in Huntington Beach with his wife of 38 years; and they have a son, daughter, and rescue dog, Blitzen.
| Thank you Coastal Clean Up volunteers! | |
A giant thank you to all the volunteers who came to pick up trash out the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve on Sept. 19th, Coastal Clean Up Day!
We had 40 volunteers help us clean about a quarter mile area below the bluff. We removed at least 60 bags of trash, as well as some large pieces of trash such as a political sign, mattress cover, a kite and lots of shoes. That's more than 4 wagons full!
If you want to come help cleanup Bolsa Chica and restore the Mesa with homegrown native plants, sign up on our website under Volunteer. We hold events twice a month and sometimes hold special volunteering events.
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BCLT Stewards Habitat Restoration Volunteering
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Dates
Sunday Oct. 4th, 9am- 12
Saturday Oct. 17th, 9am- 12
The Stewards meet to restore native habitat at the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve. Restoring the mesa to a native habitat is important for the native wildlife that call Bolsa Chica home. Volunteer slips are available for school credit.
Pre-registration and sign up on our website is required. Capped at 50 volunteers for each event.
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Miracles of the Marsh Docent Volunteering
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“Miracles of the Marsh from Wetlands to Wildlife” is our elementary school education program which brings children to the Bolsa Chica. Our docent-led tour focuses on plant life, water, wildlife, and history. Join our dedicated and fun team as we educate our local 3rd graders to the wonders of Bolsa Chica.
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BCLT Outreach and Free Public Tour
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Date
Sunday Oct. 11th, 10am- 12
Monthly free guided walking tour of the Bolsa Chica wetlands and mesa. Learn about the history of Bolsa Chica, its wildlife, and plant life with a Bolsa Chica Land Trust docent.
Or, come hang out at our table and help spread the word about the cool and important elements of Bolsa Chica as an Outreach volunteer! Interested in becoming a docent volunteer? Shadow one of our docents to get started.
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November - March
Beach Clean Ups
(ON HIATUS)
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When: Every Monday at 8:30am from November to March
Where: 20th Street entrance to Huntington City Beach
Who: Everyone! Most of the supplies are provided, but if you want, please bring a reusable bucket or bag, and gloves.
*If you have a group that you want to bring, please email Info@BCLandTrust.org and we can work to accommodate your group.*
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October's Animal of the Month: Great Blue Heron
The Great Blue Heron is found year-round at Bolsa Chica, fishing in the wetlands and hunting up on the Mesa. It uses its dagger-like bill to skillfully catch fish, crustaceans, frogs, small mammals, lizards, and snakes. It is a successful fisher and hunter and is the most widely distributed bird in North America. Its habitats vary from freshwater and brackish marshes, to mangroves, rivers, and lakes. Great Blue Herons are solitary birds except during nesting season when the breeding pair together make the nest, incubate the eggs (for 28 days), hunt, and feed the chicks (for two months). Nesting is colonial and high up in trees where adults can share babysitting duties and ward off predators like crows, hawks, and owls.
46” long; 72” wingspan; 5.3 pounds
photo: Ken Furuta
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Reminders When You Visit Bolsa Chica
Here are some things to remember during your visit:
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Please stay on the trails. Not only could you disturb nesting birds, but snakes are often not far off the trails.
- Enjoy the flowers, but please do not pick them.
- Do not feed the animals.
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Do not litter. Please pack out your trash, including food scraps.
- No bikes or ebikes.
- No dogs.
- No drones.
- Enjoy being with nature!
- If you see any BCLT Stewards working along the trail, say hi! We are happy to answer any questions.
| | Support Bolsa Chica Today! | |
The mission of the Bolsa Chica Land Trust is the acquisition, preservation, and restoration of all of Bolsa Chica and the education of the public to its natural wonders and cultural significance.
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Photo Credits:
Spooky bridge- Brian Chambers, Rick- Rick Tatetomo, volunteers- Paris Ramirez, Tabling and Stewards- Bequi Howarth, Miracles docent with kids outreach table- Jeff Rokos, volunteers on beach- Mike McMahan, landscape-Eileen Rizzacasa, Great Blue Heron- Ken Furuta
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