A Line in the Sand

Against a backdrop of steaks grilling on barbecues and dune buggies roaring over sand dunes, a crowd gathers here every summer weekend to pay tribute to two mainstays of California life--the motorized vehicle and the Pacific Ocean.

Oceano is the only place left in Central or Southern California where the public can drive cars and campers across wet beach sand and unload off-road vehicles at the water’s edge. Driving on this stretch of sand south of Pismo Beach goes back almost 100 years.

These days, mammoth circle-the-wagon encampments sprout up on holiday weekends, with recreational vehicles, tents and campers all protected from blowing sand by hastily erected plywood barriers.

“We came from 100-degree weather,” said Terry R. Johnson, 47, of Las Vegas. He and his friends had pulled their RVs and all-terrain vehicles together under cool and slightly overcast skies.

“Here, we can wake up in the morning and walk along the beach collecting seashells if we want.”

But what is an idyllic state park to off-roaders is an ugly anathema to environmentalists. And both sides are priming for battle as the California Coastal Commission prepares for an August hearing to determine how many vehicles are too many at Oceano Dunes State Vehicle Recreation Area.

Environmentalists contend that the vehicles harm prime habitat for two endangered shore birds and that they ruin the beach for other recreational users.

“We are going to be starting . . . with letters to the editor, mailings, getting the word out that this is a window of opportunity to get these vehicles off the beach,” said Amy Shore, interim director of the Environmental Center of San Luis Obispo. “Businesses may feel this is good for the economy, but clearly there are plenty of people who refrain from going to Oceano for safety reasons and to avoid being buzzed by these vehicles,” she said.

Off-roaders, in turn, vow to fight back, saying they have seen oceanfront vehicle access dwindle to just six miles along California’s 1,200 miles of coastline--five at Oceano and a small stretch near Eureka.

“I remember when you could enter this beach from the town of Pismo Beach and drive 17 miles south to Vandenberg Air Force Base,” said Jim Bramham, past president of the California Assn. of 4-Wheel Drive Clubs. “Considering all the losses up and down the state, we’re down to a postage stamp.”

One million people visit Oceano Dunes every year. Vehicles are allowed in less than half of the 3,600-acre park.

Supervising Ranger Juventino Ortiz said the park estimates that there were 55,000 visitors over the Memorial Day weekend, and even more were expected this weekend.

The California State Parks Department limits Oceano to 4,300 vehicles a day, although Ortiz said that number is reached on only the busiest weekends.

But the Coastal Commission staff now believes that setting a fixed maximum limit is a flawed idea and is expected to recommend that a team of state officials, biologists, business leaders, off-roaders and environmentalists review and adjust the numbers on an ongoing basis.

Off-roaders have tremendous clout in this fight, state officials say. The Legislature has specifically set aside Oceano and seven other areas for off-highway use by recreational vehicles. The park is funded in part by off-highway vehicle taxes collected as part of the state gasoline tax.

“The Coastal Commission doesn’t have the authority to simply ban vehicles,” said Peter Douglas, executive director of the commission. “But it does have the authority to limit the range of uses to protect natural resources.

“But really, whether we like it or not, it’s a legitimate recreational activity that a big segment of the population likes and does.”

Complicating the issue is the fact that the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Complex, stretching from south Pismo Beach through Oceano to the Santa Barbara County line, is prime habitat for the California least tern and the western snowy plover. Both are listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act, and both like to nest out in the open on dunes.

Park Supt. Dennis Doberneck said the park biologists are constantly on the alert for new plover and tern nests.

“As of yesterday, we have 14 snowy plover nests. Most of them are within the area for off-highway vehicle use. But they can nest wherever they want, and we’ll put up enclosures to protect the nest,” he said.

Despite debates over wildlife, it’s the humans who take up the vast majority of the park staff’s time. Ortiz heads a crew of rangers who patrol the park in four-wheel-drive vehicles, issuing citations for open containers, breaking up fights, telling people to wear helmets and giving tips on how to avoid jellyfish.

Rangers also respond to a large number of accidents, particularly on holiday weekends. Last year, over the Fourth of July holiday, park personnel responded to more than 25 accidents that caused injuries, including one in which the victim had to be flown out by helicopter. A mother and son died in December 1997 when their dune buggy went over a 30-foot dune cliff.

The most severe accidents tend to take place on the interior dunes, where moving sand can reshape hills into cliffs overnight.

However, the most common and mundane problem is getting stuck in the sand. Lowering tire pressure is advised at the gate, and a towing service is available. But a shovel is often a driver’s best friend, as park ranger Ortiz illustrated when his own four-wheel-drive Ford Expedition got stuck on the ridge of a dune with the wheels spinning in open air.

“Rangers don’t get stuck,” he said with a laugh as he got a shovel and started to dig his way out. “We just give occasional demonstrations on how to get unstuck.”