The Coast News Group
Before sand replenishment, the only good thing was the lack of traffic. Photo by Chris Ahrens
ColumnsWaterspot

On the rocks

It’s been a mere three decades since I did a story for the LA Times on beach rocks, you know, those rolling stones that became omnipresent on our beaches to the point where city boosters began referring to them as “large grain sand.”

Okay, that last part is not really true. What is true is that these river rocks were dislodged from their beds during San Diego’s rainiest years and carried to the ocean along with millions of cubic feet of sand.

Sand was, in fact, so plentiful on our beaches at the turn of the last century that cars were sometimes driven on the beach for 52 miles, from Torrey Pines to Dana Point. We began losing much of our beach sand after the lagoons were sealed up, roads were paved, bluffs were stabilized and seawalls were built.

Another major factor was a climate change that began occurring around the end of the 1800s. In 1884, a record 27.6 inches of rain fell on San Diego. It wouldn’t be until 1941 that we came anywhere near that number, when 24.9 inches soaked our city.

Conversely, the driest year was 1953 when 3.2 inches moistened the land. San Diego’s average yearly rainfall is 9.8, and this year we are slightly above that with 11 inches so far. Last year was a wet one with 14.4 inches. That was preceded by three dry years and several wet ones.

So, what does any of this have to do with surfing? Well, surfing, and more obviously beach-going, depends to a great extent on sand. As far as surfing goes, large amounts of sand in the summer and low amounts of sand in the winter greatly affect the shape of our waves.

The reason for this is that the best summer waves in North County are dependent upon south swells and sandbars, while the best waves in the winter waves rely on north swells and reefs that improve when the sand is swept from them.

Last year, the Solana Beach Shoreline Project transferred sand from the deep waters offshore onto our beaches. While I am generally against such invasive moves, this time they seemed to work in our favor. Not only have the waves seemed to be relatively unaffected, but the beaches are now covered with sand where only a few months ago they formed an endless rock garden from Ponto to Rock Pile.

It will be interesting to see how Oceanside does with its proposed sand replenishment program. The city intends building offshore reefs, something that could make our waves the envy of the state. Since making waves break far from shore in a pattern made specifically for surfing can keep them from loading up closer to shore, this seems like the ultimate win-win.

Imagine a world of perfect surf and clean sandy beaches. Then again, such a great attraction might require more parking, and more parking means more pavement, and more pavement means less sand. This is all too much to contemplate. I think I’ll paddle out and take my chances with what we have.

To learn more about the Solana Beach Shoreline Project, please visit cityofsolanabeach.org/en/beachsand

Leave a Comment