This past Saturday marked the season's final Trestles Beach and Habitat Cleanup event. A beautiful spring day set the stage for 50 volunteers who grabbed one of the limited public spots — and together, we made an incredible impact on the ongoing restoration effort at Trestles.
Over the past four months, volunteers have rolled up their sleeves and put in the work. The results speak for themselves:
of invasive iceplant removed from |
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While those numbers are impressive on their own, as always with Surfrider, the impact goes beyond what we haul out.
Surfrider staff and Jerry Addison, CA State Parks Natural Resources Intern. weigh a bag of iceplant
Removing invasive iceplant creates space for native coastal plants to return and thrive — helping restore vital habitat that supports wildlife and protecting this endangered coastal ecosystem. And the data collected during our cleanups informs our local and statewide policy work, strengthening our advocacy for a cleaner, healthier coast.
This full-series volunteer gets the gold medal in data collection!
Trestles — and San Onofre State Beach at large — is a place of deep significance. Not only is it a world-famous surf break and a cherished recreation spot, it has also been a sacred gathering site for thousands of years for Tribal Nations, specifically the Juañeno Band of Mission Indians, Acjachemen Nation, who remain active stewards and community members to this day.
On this final restoration day, we were deeply honored to receive the first official Land Acknowledgement, adopted by the Acjachemen Tribal Council April 17, 2025, offered by Tribal Chairman Nathan Banda. His daughter, Nevaeh Banda, shared a traditional sage blessing with the volunteers — a powerful reminder of the long legacy of care for this coastline.
We are endlessly grateful to our restoration partners, California State Parks and the San Onofre Parks Foundation. This work wouldn’t be possible without their support and guidance. State Parks provided special access to this protected shoreline, and helped us welcome hundreds of volunteers ready to give back.
As we pause to allow State Parks to prepare for the busy summer season, we’re already excited to start back up again in the fall. Mark your calendars: the next Trestles restoration event will be Saturday, September 20, in coordination with the California Coastal Commission’s 2025 Coastal Cleanup Day.
Stewarding a place like Trestles is not only our responsibility to future generations — it’s a privilege and way we can honor those who came before us and fought to protect these coastal treasures.
Click to enlarge, and see each month's cleanup crew
Thank you to every single person who joined us this season. We can’t wait to see you in the fall!
Don’t want to wait until September to get involved?
Check out the South OC and San Diego Chapter events calendars for more ways to protect and enjoy your local coastline.