Success for Surfrider! Our work paid off!
Beach-goers have enjoyed open fires at OB for over 100 years, starting when the booming San Francisco Fishing fleet supplied huge public "fish-fry" banquets out on the sand. Since then, thousands of San Franciscans from multiple generations have enjoyed this tradition. However, in recent years, the impacts of these fires have grown increasingly damaging to the fragile ecosystem of the beachscape, and poor usage has often left the beach trashed, challenging the National Park Service to maintain it to acceptable standards.
After years of slowly reducing the area reserved for fires, the NPS finally moved to ban fires outright in spring of 2007. Responding to the concerns of our membership, The San Francisco Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation agreed to organize the community to help the NPS maintain a series of new fire-pits, designed by local artists specifically for Ocean Beach, so that open fires would continue to be permitted. read more
General Information:
- Fires are permitted only in installed fire-rings--never directly on the sand.
- Glass is prohibited at Ocean Beach
- Please refrain from burning non-organic material
- LEAVE NO TRACE!!! Pack out everything you bring (and more!)
Read the Complete Bonfire Rules at the National Park Service website.
SHIPPING PALLETS CONTAINS BETWEEN 40 AND 60 NAILS EACH. Only kooks who like stepping on nails while jogging out to the surf would burn them on the beach.
OB Community PARTNERS
Surfrider has been fortunate to collaborate with the following organizations on this project, and we look forward to continuing to work together to improve Ocean Beach. The National Park Service , which manages OB, has responded admirably to the concerns of the community regarding the state of maintenance at the beach, and has worked closely with us to develop a creative solution to the bonfire issue. The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy has proven an able and dependable ally, and has done wonders to steer volunteers towards Surfrider's cleanup events, while also hosting clean-ups of their own. Burners Without Borders solicited original designs for the new fire rings from local artists, advised the community on the submission review process, and, together with The Ocean Beach Foundation , led the fundraising effort. The memberships of both organizations will join us at Surfrider in our efforts to keep Ocean Beach clean.
If you would like to help clean up fire pits on Ocean Beach, cleanups are held most Sunday mornings at 10am.
