I arrived at the Coast Guard beach at 4 and launched around 4:30 in what seems to be a heat wave everywhere in Southern California. It was around 90 in Newport and humid.

The Wedge outside the breakwater was my first stop. The water was much cleaner outside the harbor and was very warm. Rolling was mandatory to cool off. After the wedge I paddled south towards the arch rocks and paddled in and around the swell for while while noticing the high numbers of the jellyfish that were everywhere. Along with the purple brown ones there were the large white ones with the purple stripes (man or war ?) and also some long loose sections of tentacles.

The weather was strange and went from hot and clear to cloudy, overcast and breezy.

As I landed at almost 7, Duane, Dave, and Wayne were on their way out to view the Jelly Fest.

Maybe I will see you guys next time.

A good day on the water with no stings. Paul Jonason

The three of us joined up at the Coast Guard Beach in Newport, Dave, Duane and myself. Duane thought we had a friend of his joining us, but he had arrived early and already done his paddle. (Sorry, did not catch his name.) He reported a seeing a lot of jellyfish out in the ocean, so off we went.

Being slow in my SOT I decided to sneak off with a little head start this time. This worked out well. We always get spaced out on the ocean, but it is nice to be in a bit tighter grouping for the ocean work. Conditions were great, with some monsoon weather that created a little head wind on our way down the coast. Tides were pretty high (full moon) and swell was small. I was practicing some new paddle strokes and I guess it was working out as I finally made it all of the way down to the Village where the guys take a quick break and head back up. They both commented that I was faster. That was great to hear. :) They gave me some tips to improve even more.

Jellyfish were everywhere, and the red tide seems to be cleared out. The most common jelly was about the size of a large softball and deep red or purple in color. I didn't spot that many on the way down the coast, but on the way up with the sun at a different angle I saw many of them. Also saw 1 larger white and black jelly. I had to stop at one point and watch them do their thing. Where I stopped there were about 5 jellyfish hanging out.

One our way back up the coast a Dolphin near the surf line decided to check out our little pack. It kept a distance from Duane and got a bit closer to Dave I figured I was next and thought I would rub my booty on the bottom of the boat to make some squeeking noises to attract the dolhins attention. Sure enough it came in very close behind me for about 20 seconds, then disappeared.

The sunset was great! Nothing better then a sunset from the seat of a kayak.

Upon returning to the Coast Guard beach we were greeted by the highest tide we had seen there. The sidewalk was actually under about 1-1/2" of water. I informed the coasty that his sidewalk was sinking... I'm not sure he understood the humor.

I worked hard on this paddle and hopefully learned some new tricks. Seeing all of the wildlife was great.

Hope to see some more of you out there soon. If you can't paddle with us, do make a point of getting out and taking advantage of these great summer evenings!