Coastal Discovery Fair marks marine sanctuary’s 25th year

Celebrate all things oceanic at the annual Coastal Discovery Fair at San Simeon Bay. This year’s festivities — free, as always — will be held from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 26, at the Coastal Discovery Center at Hearst Memorial Beach.

Opportunities for fun and education at the event will include making remotely controlled underwater robots (ROVs), fish prints, ocean paddleboard boxing and learning about native plants, gray whales and sea otters. Center visitors can see live rainbow trout, take a video voyage to the deep sea and explore a living touch tank.

This is the 25^th anniversary of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, which operates the center and puts on the fair each year in cooperation with State Parks. The agencies work together to protect natural and cultural resources and encourage stewardship for these resources.

The first Coastal Discovery Fair was held in 2007.

The entrance to Hearst Memorial Beach is on a loop road in Old San Simeon Village, across Highway 1 from the entrance driveway to Hearst Castle.

Participants can park in the Hearst Castle lot and take a free shuttle provided by the Cambria Community Bus.

Organizations planning to participate include Girl Scouts of the Central Coast. Visitors will have an opportunity to meet animals from Pacific Wildlife Care, Willow Tree Wildlife and the TOO SLO Turtle and Tortoise Club.

Willow Tree Wildlife, run by Dani Nicholson, is a Cayucos-based nonprofit dedicated to education about native wildlife and habitats. The group is known for Morro the brown pelican, who was injured in 2009 and can’t fly because of a permanent wing disability. Nicholson visits various groups with Morro as a way to educate them about ways to avoid harm to pelicans and other sea birds.

Pacific Wildlife Care, San Luis Obispo County’s only licensed wildlife rehabilitation center, treats nearly 3,000 wild animal patients from 200 species each year, with the goal of returning them to the wild. PWC also provides educational presentations for local organizations and schools.

TOO SLO, founded in 1989, works to provide proper homes for turtles and tortoises via adoptions. It also provides guest speakers and protects captive turtles and tortoises, and supports local veterinarians.

Sammy Steelhead, a life-sized costumed greeter at the Discovery Center, will be on hand for photos.

For more details on the Coastal Discovery Fair, contact Carolyn Skinder, Coastal Discovery Center, at 927-6575 or carolyn.skinder@noaa.gov.

This story was originally published August 16, 2017 at 9:05 AM with the headline "Coastal Discovery Fair marks marine sanctuary’s 25th year."