Great Family-Friendly Hikes Around the Estuary

The boardwalk path through the elfin forest winds through eight different habitat types, and offers beautiful views of the estuary.

It can be hard to find family-friendly hikes, but we’re lucky to have quite a few to choose from around Morro Bay. Here are a few that allow you to enjoy views of the estuary with your holiday guests! Marina Peninsula Trail This accessible boardwalk trail is only .5 miles long, and it begins close to the parking lot at the Morro Bay State Park Marina. It winds through a variety of habitats, and offers views of the Morros, the salt marsh, the mud flats, the sandspit, the estuary, and Morro Rock. Your view will be different depending on …

Clean Water, Great Life – Bay Water Quality Update Part II

December 9, 2015 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program algae bloom algal bloom bay water clean water dissolved oxygen DO estuary monitoring morro bay national estuary program Blog Posts

Volunteers monitor DO levels in the early morning hours because that is typically when we find the lowest levels of the day.

The Morro Bay estuary is a special place that is central to many of our lives, providing a beautiful place to live, work, and visit. We play in these waters and enjoy the food they provide. These waters are also home to countless species of plants, fish, and invertebrates. The monitoring efforts of the Estuary Program and its volunteers help to determine if Morro Bay provides clean waters that can support sensitive marine life, as well as activities such as swimming, boating and fishing. Last week, we looked at what the Estuary Program’s monitoring efforts can tell us about …

Clean Water, Great Life – Bay Water Quality Update Part I

December 3, 2015 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program bacteria clean water estuary morro bay national estuary recreation volunteer Blog Posts

The Morro Bay estuary is a special place that is central to many of our lives, providing a beautiful place to live, work, and visit. We play in these waters and enjoy the food they provide. These waters are also home to countless species of plants, fish, and invertebrates. This week, we’ll discuss our findings on bacteria in the bay. Morro Bay – is it safe for swimming? Each month, Estuary Program volunteers monitor bay shoreline sites at popular access points. They test the waters for indicator bacteria like Enterococcus and E. coli. If these indicator bacteria are present, …

What we’re thankful for

November 26, 2015 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program estuary morro bay morro bay national estuary thankful thanksgiving thanksgiving 2015 Blog Posts

Today and every day, we are thankful for you, our supporters. The Estuary Program was established through a grass roots movement, fueled and funded by passionate people in the local community. Your interest in the estuary, and your desire to protect and restore it, is a big part of what keeps us going. Thank you! Hear about the Estuary Program’s roots from founder Bill Newman. We are also thankful for the estuary itself. As the best-preserved estuary in central and southern California, it’s something to be proud of. It acts as a nursery for many plants and animals, sustains …

Clean Water, Great Life: Creek Water Quality Update

November 19, 2015 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program central coast creek health creeks estuary morro bay national estuary program south central California coast steelhead steelhead water quality Blog Posts

The Morro Bay watershed, the area of land that drains into the estuary, is a special place. Our watershed’s creeks provide valuable habitat to aquatic life, including iconic steelhead. These fish are anadromous, meaning they are born in freshwater, such as our watershed creeks, and then venture out to the ocean. After several years in the ocean, they return to the creeks where they were born to spawn and continue the life cycle. Here on the Central Coast, we are host to a distinct population of steelhead known as the South Central California Coast Steelhead. The formerly …

Have a Happy, Bay-Friendly Halloween!

October 30, 2015 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program bay bay-friendly estuary green halloween Halloween Blog Posts

Halloween is a lot of fun; it means candy, costumes, and light-hearted mischief for everyone. But—between candy wrappers, disposable decorations, and party supplies—it can also create waste. If you’re celebrating, don’t fret; you can make it a bay-friendly day by following the tips below. Have your candy, and keep the bay clean, too. Food wrappers and containers are consistently one of the most common forms of trash picked up during International Coastal Cleanup Day. (This year, according to the Ocean Conservancy, volunteers snagged 1,140,222 wrappers and containers—wow.) If light-weight candy wrappers escape from eager trick-or-treaters’ hands, they can easily land on …

Give a Day for the Bay Success by the Numbers

October 23, 2015 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program cleanup depth perceptions diving Eco Rotary ecoslo elfin forest estuary morro bay morro bay in bloom morro bay national estuary program Small wilderness areas preservation surfrider SWAP volunteer Blog Posts

We picked up 18 pounds of trash from the sandspit, which is essential habitat for many birds, including the snowy plover.

Our Give a Day for the Bay volunteer campaign came to a close this past weekend, and we are very happy with the results! Here is a breakdown by the numbers: 6 partner organizations offered volunteer opportunities to benefit the bay. 10 cleanups happened, with 9 along the water’s edge, and 1 under the water. 192 volunteers gave a total of 572.5 hours to keeping Morro Bay clean and healthy! Thank you partners and volunteers for your hard work! Below, you’ll find pictures of Give a Day for the Bay volunteers in action. Enjoy! Tsunami Debris Cleanup on the Sandspit at Montana de Oro …

Microbeads and Ocean Pollution

October 8, 2015 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program estuary garbage patch gyre microbead ban microbeads microplastics morro bay ocean health pacific garbage patch trash Blog Posts

Microbeads and other microplastics show up on beaches worldwide.

Your toothpaste might have more in common with the Pacific garbage patch than you ever thought possible. Microbeads—tiny little particles of plastic that have a way of getting into everything—are often found in both places. They’re used in many health and beauty products, including toothpastes and face washes, because they can help scrub surfaces clean. Unfortunately, once you spit out your toothpaste, or rinse off your face, they go right down the drain, and eventually end up in our oceans. Once there, they are extremely difficult to get rid of. Microbeads, along with other small pieces of plastic, compose …

Give a Day for the Bay with Morro Bay in Bloom

September 17, 2015 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program bay-friendly estuary gardening give a day for the bay morro bay in bloom succulents Blog Posts

Thomas, a long-term volunteer with Morro Bay in Bloom, surveys the succulent bed at the top of Centennial Parkway’s staircase.

Every Saturday morning at 9 a.m., Morro Bay in Bloom volunteers spring into action. They meet at different locations each week, and work together to beautify Morro Bay. When they landscape and tidy public spaces, they follow bay-friendly practices like planting drought-tolerant plants, avoiding the use of herbicides, and removing invasives. We are happy that Morro Bay in Bloom has dedicated three of their regularly scheduled cleanups this summer and fall to our Give a Day for the Bay campaign. This past weekend, the “Bloomies” (as they sometimes call themselves) met at the top of the stairway in Centennial …

Assessing the quality of aquatic habitats with CRAM

August 27, 2015 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program CRAM estuary floodplain restoration habitat assessment MBNEP morro bay national estuary program NEP riparian restoration Blog Posts

A small waterfall with healthy Poison Oak (Toxidendron rydbergii) pictured in the foreground, growing along Chorro Creek. Poison oak is a native plant that some consider beautiful.

The California Rapid Assessment Method, or CRAM for short, is used to determine ecosystem quality for aquatic habitats. These habitats include wetlands, rivers, estuaries, and lakes. The Morro Bay National Estuary Program has used the CRAM assessment both before and after habitat restoration projects throughout the Morro Bay watershed to monitor habitat improvements over time. This method involves evaluating stretches of streams for their vegetation, stream bed complexity, bank stability, and the health of the surrounding ecosystem. To truly determine how healthy a stretch of stream is, you have to get your feet wet! Estuary Program staff have recently …