procedures and techniques, as well as serving as the central repository of the 

 data. A pilot study was implemented at New Brighton State Beach, California, 

 to evaluate instrumentation, data recording forms, and field procedures. Sub- 

 sequently, volunteer observers were recruited by the California Division of 

 Beaches and Parks, and the full-scale program was put into effect in the 

 spring of 1968. The initial phases of the program were described by Berg 

 (1968). 



III. SITE SELECTION 



In selecting the LEO sites, data needs for planning, design, construction, 

 operation, and maintenance of possible future projects were taken into con- 

 sideration. The existence of other data collection programs and the proximity 

 to adjacent LEO sites were also factors. Since the program was a cooperative 

 effort with the State of California, the selection of site locations was based 

 on accessibility of the Division of Beaches and Parks' volunteer observers. 

 The distribution of sites was fairly uniform along the northern California 

 coast from the northernmost site at Pelican Beach State Park near the Oregon 

 border to the site at Sunset Beach just north of Moss Landing. Inaccessible 

 beaches and rocky areas were generally not considered; however, the density of 

 sites selected increased in heavily used sandy beach areas such as northern 

 Monterey Bay near Santa Cruz. There were six sites in Monterey Bay and five 

 sites in the San Francisco area between Drake's Beach in the north to Pacifica. 



Two LEO sites, Pelican (05310) and Enderts (05313), were established in 

 Del Norte County between the Oregon border and Point St. George. The northern- 

 most site (Pelican) has a sandy beach backed by sand dunes, while at Enderts 

 the terrain is rocky and the shore is backed by vertical cliffs. 



The Humboldt County shoreline forms the western border of a number of 

 parks, e.g., Redwood National Park and Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, and 

 includes many beaches. Two sites, Prairie Creek Redwoods (05036) and Redwood 

 Creek Beach (05307), were located in this area south of the Klamath River. 

 The Mad River (05306) and Centerville Beach (05302) sites were situated be- 

 tween Trinidad and Cape Mendocino, a distance of about 40 miles (64 kilo- 

 meters) . This part of the coast is a continuous sandy beach broken only by 

 the entrance to Humboldt Bay and the outlets of several rivers. An additional 

 site was established to the south at Shelter Cove (05301), which occupies a 

 hook-shaped bay with a very rocky shoreline and backshore. 



A total of five LEO sites were located in Mendocino County. The segment 

 of coastline reaching from the Humboldt County line to Mistake Point, devoid 

 of beaches and with limited access, is rocky and backed by cliffs. These 

 shoreline characteristics are essentially the same for the MacKerricher (05026), 

 Russian Gulch (05025), Van Damme (05024), and Navarro (05300) sites. The 

 Manchester (05023) site was on a short stretch of sandy beach backed by dunes. 



The majority of the Sonoma County shoreline is rocky and rugged. Goat 

 Rock (05020) and Wright's Beach (05021) sites were located south of the Russian 

 River. This reach is also rocky with cliffs occasionally reaching heights of 

 20 to 50 feet (6.1 to 15.2 meters). 



The Drake's Beach (05355) site was situated within the Point Reyes National 

 Seashore in Marin County. From Point Reyes south, the shoreline is crescent 



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