Black's Beach



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Solstice and Perihelion:

This December 21st will be the winter solstice, meaning that the sun reaches its southern-most point in the sky. That will be at about 4am. It also means that will be our shortest day, starting at 6:51am and ending with sunset at 4:44pm. There will be only 9 hours and 53 minutes of daylight. Although this marks the first day of winter, it also means the days begin to get longer.

Perihelion occurs January 3rd. This means Earth is closest to the sun, about 91.5 million miles instead of the typical 93 million miles. The fact that perihelion occurs during our winter makes our winters short and mild.

The Beach in General:

October has been a very warm and dry month this year, which is typical here. Often there are only dozens of people on the beach, but there have been over a hundred people on hot days. Water temperatures have ranged from 61-66°F.

Calendars:

We are currently designing Black's Beach Calendars. There will likely be another sunset calendar, and maybe another wildlife. Check the website periodically, if interested. Once ready, they will be visible on the main page.

Sunsets and the Green Flash:

With a sharp horizon and a clear sky, it should be possible to see the green flash following sunset. Once the sun gets low enough in the sky and the refraction of our atmosphere separates colored images of the sun, we can see the green image after the brighter, red image goes over the horizon. Watch for a moment of green light after sunset.

The Naturist Minority:

When we are surrounded by like-minded people, we forget that we are an oppressed minority. We have only a few oases where clothing is optional. Without the Naturist Society (TNS), even these oases would not exist. Many of us feel secure on our oasis. Things have gone well here, but we can’t count on that forever. We all hope for the best, but joining an organization is the first step in preparing for the worst. The best way to avoid a fight is to show that we’re ready for anything.

Giving Thanks:

While you're sitting down for Thanksgiving dinner, don't forget to thank The Naturist Society for saving Black's Beach so many years ago. They saved San Onofre earlier this year, and in so doing secured Black's Beach. Give thanks for that too.

Spring Tide:

Spring tide is a condition of very high and very low tides in the same 24 hours. The highest tides this time of year typically occur at about 9am. If the waves are big, they will crest over our sand ridge and take away some sand, narrowing the beach for the rest of the season.

| | |moon |low |high |

|Nov |12 |full |-1.2 |7.3 7:30am |

|Nov |27 |new |-0.6 |6.5 7:59am |

|Dec |12 |full |-1.9 |7.7 7:53am |

|Dec |27 |new |-0.8 |6.3 8:20am |

Keep in mind that the tides a few days before and after are comparably high. While the highest tides are closely bound to the new and full moon, these two months give us even higher tides a few days after full.

Gliderport History:

I've decided to include an occasional feature in newsletters, Black's Beach factoids. This month's feature is a brief history of flight here.

Sailplane flights started here about 1928 with the city leasing the beach to pilots for $1/year. They used a car to tow and launched them from the beach. In 1930 they started using a rope tow from up top, but they still landed on the beach. There were even launches by plane tows from the beach.

The gliderport was shut down during WWII. It became an army base, Camp Callan, with a coastal gunnery. Sailplane instructor pilots from Torrey Pines trained Army pilots for stealth glider flights, loaded with troops and equipment, into Germany.

They have branched out from sailplanes to other types of powerless flight. Remote controlled gliders have been here since 1957, hang gliders since 1969 and paragliders only since 1988.

Sailplanes were launched by aircraft as recently as 1982, but now they are only launched by winch. They only fly during spring months, and mostly only on weekends.

Dave Jebb acquired the lease from the City in 1996, but it has expired and he's currently operating month to month. The gliderport was once 180 acres, but now approximately half has been given to UCSD in 1960. The other half of the original gliderport is owned by the City of San Diego. The active gliderport as we know it today is situated on the City property occupying less than 5 acres.  

Currently the gliderport is under court order not to water their grass, which will make their landing area unsafe. A dormitory under construction on UCSD will change wind patterns, making sailplanes flights too risky. A stem cell research facility is to be built on the sailplane runway.

We the citizens must keep informed to ensure that the open space and natural environment remain free of high-rise buildings and over development. Development will ruin us with less parking, more complaints and visitors who always expect more than they deserve.

Clothing Optional Oases:

I’m providing a list of some of the other clothing optional opportunities in and around San Diego, for the benefit of readers who don’t yet know. There are links to all these clubs through the Black's Beach Bares website, on the "clubs" page.

Camping Bares is a travel club that meets for potlucks, day hikes and camping. Naturists in the Orange County (NitOC) works closely with Friends of San Onofre Beach, and they organize nude activities at the Huntington Beach City Pool and Gym. They have one coming up December 6th.

There is only one nudist resort in the area, De Anza Springs. A little farther away are Glen Eden and Olive Dell.

Up north near Hesperia is Deep Creek Hot Springs. Hot water spills out and is caught in an assortment of natural pools. Access is not easy though. There's a long washboard road and a two-mile hike. It is well worth it.

Membership and Subscriptions:

Both are rather casual. There is no official list of members, only subscribers. Subscriptions are $10/year, and I ask $2/year for email subscriptions.

Free copies from the bulletin board and website will continue because keeping people informed is the point. There are monthly expenses for operating the website. Donations can even be directed to Black's Beach Diggers for trail work. You decide if the newsletter, the website or the trail have made your visit better, and donate accordingly.

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