The ocean is a wondrous place. It’s also a dangerous one. For the unprepared, it can be deadly. Pacific Outfitters kayak guru Jason Self talks about how not to die today on Coastal Currents. Tune in at noon to 104.7 FM or via khum.com. The life you save could be your own.

Warmth and sunshine appear to be Humboldt’s new norm. Make the most of our new Santa Barbara-like existence (and remaining days) by spending more of your summer outside. You can celebrate the official start of summertime by joining the annual Friends of the Dunes’ Sand Sculpture Fest, Saturday, June 21 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Manila Dunes Recreation Area. 

Registration opens at 8 a.m. at the Manila Community Center, 1611 Peninsula Drive in Manila. The entry fee is $10 for teams of up to six people and $15 for teams of more than six. Best time for spectators is 12 to 2 p.m.

When you’re walking, kayaking, canoeing or otherwise recreating around the bay, you might notice a distinct lack of stink. In fact, thanks to the EPA and the then-fledgling Surfrider Foundation, only folks who’ve been utilizing the bay prior to 1991 will remember the bad old days when area surfers and beach goers complained of foul-colored and foul-smelling water near the two pulp mills, and reported skin and eye irritation, nausea and bacterial illnesses. Scientists found traces of highly toxic chemicals, dioxin and furan, created in the chlorine bleaching process, in smokestack emissions and in fish and crab samples near the mills’ discharge outfalls. You know how this story ends.

Since then, Humboldt Surfrider has ebbed and flowed depending on the issues at hand, rising up to challenge the appropriateness of an LNG plant on Humboldt Bay, attending to the BLM’s proposal to limit access to the King Range Wilderness, assisting with trail maintenance at Camel Rock, combating illegal dumping on the Samoa Peninsula, holding fundraisers for shark encounter victims and consulting with fishermen on their artificial reef project – and much more! 

Find out all about what’s happening with Humboldt Surfrider this Sunday, when the Humboldt Bay Tourism Center hosts a “Meet the Humboldt Maker” event featuring your local coastal stewards (and yours truly – I may even sport my customized “Ocean Bimbo” T-shirt). Very special guest: Marc McClenden of Flying Fish Boardworks.

Jennifer Savage serves as the Northcoast Environmental Center’s Coastal Programs Director and chairs the Humboldt Surfrider Chapter.