The glass comes from the fact that this area was a dumpsite for trash in the early to mid-1900s, and over the years, the ocean flattened and broke down the glass to what it is today. Captain Forrington, founder, owner and curator of the local Sea Glass Museum, is a strong advocate for a full time research facility studying the benefits to the marine environment of the minerals used to make and clarify the glass, with a supporting aquarium that highlights the rich diversity of life found in Fort Bragg's waters, with the ultimate goal of promoting the formation of glass reefs to initiate new food chains worldwide on all the badly depleted continental shelves. If you are a resident of another country or region, please select the appropriate version of Tripadvisor for your country or region in the drop-down menu. We loved it here. Phone number: 707-357-1585. Though we're glad we stopped to check it out, there isn't as much glass as you might expect from photos. Sorry, there are no tours or activities available to book online for the date(s) you selected. "Glass Beach" is on the Mendocino Coast in Fort Bragg, California, 120 miles north of San Francisco. Glass Beach gets its name from the smooth colorful glass pieces that you can find in the pebbly beach. It's still an interesting beach to explore. Much of it is spread out and it seems those who take photos of all of the glass often seem. If you have enjoyed the posts. Please choose a different date.

There are actually three glass beaches — all former city trash dump sites — that are layered with beautiful sea glass. Believed to have the highest concentration of sea glass in the world. All in all, this is a beautiful beach and a unique place to visit on the, The Big List of Strange, Fun & Unique Attractions in Southern California, Pacific Coast Highway: Where to Stop on Your Road Trip, Fun Stops on the Drive from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, Donner Pass, Summit Tunnel Hike: Old Abandoned Railroad. [2] Locals referred to it as "The Dumps. It's definitely a good place to visit as it offers a very unique experience. Following completion of the clean up, the California Department of Parks and Recreation purchased the 38-acre (15 ha) property adjacent to Glass Beach, and it was incorporated into MacKerricher State Park in October 2002.[4]. A former city dump, bits of colored gla. Yes, there was lots of glass, but mostly clear and brown. Most water-fronted communities had water dump sites discarding glass, appliances, and even vehicles. [2][3] Various cleanup programs were undertaken through the years to correct the damage. CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (, California Department of Parks and Recreation, California State Water Resources Control Board, California Integrated Waste Management Board, "The Fort Bragg City Council has Voted to Let Our Magnificent Glass Beaches Just Disappear!

A little green maybe a little red. In Fort Bragg, the mean high water mark is 5.2', and all of Glass Beach, Site 3, is below that water mark. There are three Glass Beach sites in Fort Bragg where trash was dumped into the ocean between 1906 and 1967. Most beaches that produce sea glass are open to the sea, so even if the site was originally a town dump, where a lot of material was deposited in one place, like in Fort Bragg, the glass is drawn off the beach by the sea and distributed up and down the coast by the "longshore currents", making it difficult and rare to find, which explains its normally high cost. The International Sea Glass Museum is located at: 17801 North Highway 1, Fort Bragg, CA 95437. more, Mendocino Coast Model Railroad & Historical Society, Points of Interest & Landmarks, Scenic Walking Areas, Gardens. In 1998, the private owner of the property began a five-year process of working with the California Coastal Conservancy and the California Integrated Waste Management Board for the cleanup and sale of the property to the state. Glass Beach is very attractive - a short walk takes you to tide pools, rocks to climb, cliffs to watch the surf, for whales and to gaze North to the Lost Coast.

From here, you will drive to the intersection with Glass Beach Road, and you can follow signs into the new parking lot that was developed in 2017. A Striped Shore Crab scurrying around in Glass Beach. Similar beaches are found in Benicia, California and Eleele, Hawaii. The beach is covered with small glass pebbles. You have to climb around a barrier if you want to even look down at glass beach. All of the actual "Glass Beach", Site 3, is adjacent to MacKerricher State Park.

All entities in California end at the mean high water mark (MHW), according to Article 10 of the state constitution. Log in, This blog is simply a hobby and labor of love for me. Not as big or amazing as the photos show. It is illegal to remove any glass from Glass Beach. Unsubscribe at any time.

Several endangered and protected native plants occur at Glass Beach including hybrid Menzies' wallflower.[4]. The parking lot is nice and then it is a short walk to trails or cliffs depending on where you want to fall--Ha! From Glass Beach, go 3.2 miles south on Highway 1 and you will see the Sea Glass Museum on your left. Coronavirus September 2020 Update: Please note that some information in the posts may have changed and some places may be closed. It did not diminish the enjoyment of spending a few hours near the beach. About 1,000 to 1,200 tourists visit Fort Bragg's glass beaches each day in the summer. I took these photos and video at the 1943 – 1949 dump site which is just south of MacKerricher State Park. [3] Collecting is discouraged by State Park Rangers on the section of "Glass Beach" adjacent to the state park,[2] where they ask people to leave what little glass is left for others to enjoy, although most of the sea glass is now found on the other two glass beaches outside the state park area. When this beach became full in 1949, the dump was moved north to what is now known as "Glass Beach", which remained an active dump site until 1967. We won’t send you spam. Maybe Glass Beach looks better in the sunshine. [6] On December 10, 2012, the City Council of the City of Fort Bragg discussed the beach glass depletion and declined to move forward with replenishment efforts due to the cost and perceived likelihood that required permits would not be approved.[7]. Sites 1 & 2 are located south of "Glass Beach" and do not abut the state park area, though they abut the new city park area, which also ends at the mean high water mark (MHW). Keep in mind it's garbage - not natural, they've stopped the practice of throwing garbage into the sea, eventually it will all but, The day we went was very foggy and cool. Glass Beach is very attractive - a short walk takes you to tide pools, rocks to climb, cliffs to watch the surf, for whales and to gaze North to the Lost Coast. The beach is now visited by tens of thousands of tourists yearly.

", "City Council of the City of Fort Bragg 12-10-2012 City Council Minutes", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Glass_Beach_(Fort_Bragg,_California)&oldid=979940172, Protected areas of Mendocino County, California, CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 23 September 2020, at 17:17. Glass Beach is the well-known southern beach of MacKerricher State Park in Fort Bragg.

The one that is most famous is part of MacKerricher State Park (CA) and was the Fort Bragg dump from 1949 – 1967. There are actually 3 Glass Beaches in Fort Bragg. Glass Beach is a popular attraction in Fort Bragg, California, where the beach is covered in small pieces of smoothed glass. We are glad we went. Glass Beach is one of the most unique beaches in the world, not only because nature's beauty, but because time and the pounding surf have corrected one of man's mistakes. There is currently a movement by Captain J.H. I came here twice with my husband while on vacation to Fort Bragg for our anniversary.

Ha! Site One (1906–43) is 1/4 mile south of Site Two and has become accessible by foot as of January 2015 when the northern section of the new Coastal Trail in Fort Bragg opened.

When the original dump site filled up in 1943, the site was moved to what is now known as "Site 2", the active dump site from 1943 until 1949. The area is continuously changing with people taking from it every day, so it is hard to say what …

Fort Bragg currently trucks its glass over the Sierra Nevada mountains to a landfill in Sparks, NV, even though 90% of the 7 foot depth of glass that used to cover Glass Beach, Site 3, was locally recycled, being used in things like the pathways to the Guest House Museum and Skunk Train, and in art like the beautiful back-lit mosaic created by high school students that adorns one of the local temples. for me. This is just past the Botanical Gardens and roundabout, on the east side the highway. We enjoyed searching for glass among the sand and rocks and searching for small creatures in the tide pools. to collect it before photographing it. Fort Bragg, CA 95437. Because of this and also because of natural factors (wave action is constantly grinding down the glass), the glass is slowly diminishing. Google it and find out where it is at. Everyone was saying that there is not as much glass as was there in the past. Over the next several decades, what was biodegradable in the dump sites simply degraded and all the metal and other items were eventually removed and sold as scrap or used in art.

The water is cold. This is the version of our website addressed to speakers of English in the United States. The pounding waves broke down the glass and pottery and tumbled those pieces into the small, smooth, colored pieces that often become jewelry-quality, which cover Glass Beach and the other two glass beaches (former dump sites) in Fort Bragg.[3]. Search for rare ruby reds (from pre-1967 auto tail lights) or sapphire gems from apothecary bottles. Besides looking for the glass, you may take a walk along the beach, wade in the tide pools, even take a short dip.