Man critical after caught in rip current – Local – Northwest Florida Daily News.
via Man critical after caught in rip current – Local – Northwest Florida Daily News.
June Grass Report Recommendations: Beach Apps
The June Grass Report recommends the Florida Beaches Android App. You can find it in the Google Play Store for FREE! Like all free things: you get what you pay for since it doesn’t always work. It works most of the time so I’ll recommend it.
The app gives you a map of Florida and you zoom into the area that interests you (the Panhandle) and then select a beach. It will also show your location (depending on your phone permissions) in case you want to choose a beach near you. The icons for the beaches are a green check if all is well and a red or yellow exclamation point if there is an advisory.
Advisories are usually for bacteria counts in the water. Other information supplied by the app includes: surf, water temp, air temp, weather, wind direction and speed, sunrise and sunset, tides, and date the data was last updated.
I specifically recommend this app because finding the water quality reports for the local beaches on the web can be hard and you want to know if there is a high bacteria count before you arrive and find a sign from the health department. This is especially relevant in Walton County if we’ve had heavy rain recently and for Crab Island in Okaloosa County.
Just think about all those people out there on Crab Island. They have to “go” somewhere and (unless there’s a porta-john on one of those little barges out there) you know where they’re “going”. Ewww! Then of course the tide will change and all that water will be coming out the pass and if you happen to be at the jetties or over on the Air Force beaches, well gross, you want to know. Check out this app and add any additional thoughts in the comments section.
Stay out of the water!
No june grass report today: again I could hear the surf from almost a mile away so I didn’t bother going down to the beach. There is also a rip current and high surf advisory in effect for the area. The lives of your loved ones are worth more than whatever you paid to vacation or buy a home here.
June Grass Update for Walton County 6/3/13:AM
June grass update for Walton County 6/3/13:AM
0 on the June Grass Grossness Index.
I wanted to go swimming this morning but the anticipated north wind was actually a west wind, so I opted to walk the beach between the Stallworth public access and the THPSP main access. I could have gone swimming but the water was murky, from the surf, and I usually swim to see fish. There was quite a lot of sargassum in the water and a bit on the beach. There were also a ton of small jelly-bodied organisms, which I think were larvaceans, washed up on the sand. Don’t worry: these organisms don’t sting. There were a couple of surf fishers in the water and three boats offshore. The were a pair of ruddy turnstones on the beach and the usual assortment of gulls.
At the time this report was made the beach flags were yellow and purple, but check them again before you head to the beach.
I would love it if you would share your personal June Grass and beach condition reports in the comments section. It would also be great if you left a comment to tell me where you’re traveling from to visit the beach!
If there isn’t a current June Grass report up on this site I suggest checking the link to local beach cams on the left side of this page. They can often give you an idea of what the water is like. It is also important to “Know Before You Go” and check local beach flags. They are updated twice daily at 9:30am and 1:30pm.
PLEASE ENJOY THE BEACH RESPONSIBLY!
Friday
I’m not doing a june grass report today because I can hear the waves breaking on the beach even though I’m nearly a mile away. There’s still a Rip Tide Advisory in effect. Stay out of the water. If you want to sit on the sand, fine, but stay out of the water. It looks like it might rain today.
June Grass Update for Walton County 5/30/13:AM
June grass update for Walton County 5/30/13:AM
0 on the June Grass Grossness Index.
While I was out exercising this morning I stopped by the beach just to check. I had absolutely no intention of swimming because the synergistic effects of the shift in winds Monday, the new weather front that just moved in, and our soft ever-shifting sand bars have resulted in a Rip Current Statement for the area.
DON’T BE STUPID. I’m a moderately good swimmer, I SCUBA and freedive, and I’ve gone island-hopping ocean kayaking in the past. I don’t get in the water when there is a red flag. If it is really hot (which it is not right now, in fact the Panhandle is downright balmy for this time of year), I may stick my feet in to cool off, but otherwise I find something else to do. Your life, and your kids’ lives, are worth more than whatever you paid to vacation or buy a house here. I’m working on a list, to be posted later this summer, of alternative things to do in the area in case of red and double red flags.
The yellow flies are still ATROCIOUS within a mile of the beach but they don’t appear to be biting on the beach. By “atrocious” I mean I was riding my bike and still getting attacked. There is some sargassum on the beach, but don’t let it bother you. I don’t know why the purple flag is up. I did see a stingray the other day and I got stung by the broken bits of jellies called “sea lice” around here.
At the time this report was made the beach flags were red and purple, but check them again before you head to the beach.
I would love it if you would share your personal June Grass and beach condition reports in the comments section. It would also be great if you left a comment to tell me where you’re traveling from to visit the beach!
If there isn’t a current June Grass report up on this site I suggest checking the link to local beach cams on the left side of this page. They can often give you an idea of what the water is like. It is also important to “Know Before You Go” and check local beach flags. They are updated twice daily at 9:30am and 1:30pm.
PLEASE ENJOY THE BEACH RESPONSIBLY!
Okaloosa Island Bayside
I was out on Okaloosa Island Wednesday morning. Everything looked clear on Crab Island and on the bay side. I didn’t stop on the Gulf side. There were a few rafts of sargassum floating in the the pass. If anybody else has information on the conditions for Okaloosa Island go ahead and post them in the comments section of this post. Thanks!
June Grass Update Sunday Afternoon
June grass update for Walton County 5/26/13:PM
0.5-3.5 on the June Grass Grossness Index.
My husband and I went for an evening swim. The wind had shifted to the Southeast and there were some moderate waves. Nice for some gentle body surfing, not so nice because they brought the June Grass back in. Fortunately it was only very concentrated in patches. The water was still a nice temperature, although I did find a few cold spots as we swam. We saw a school of ladyfish and some sort of jacks. I also noticed some live olive shells on the bottom, something I’ve never seen here before. We stayed in about 6-7′ of water in between the two sandbars. I have two new swimsuits from Ecostinger and unfortunately I chose to wear the shorty (instead of the full skin) and got stung on the calf by “sea lice”, so keep that in mind. I also got stung on the lip and hubby got several stings as well. Hubby saw a turtle and we both saw a small stingray.
At the time this report was made the beach flags were yellow, but check them again before you head to the beach.
I would love it if you would share your personal June Grass and beach condition reports in the comments section. It would also be great if you left a comment to tell me where you’re traveling from to visit the beach!
If there isn’t a current June Grass report up on this site I suggest checking the link to local beach cams on the left side of this page. They can often give you an idea of what the water is like. It is also important to “Know Before You Go” and check local beach flags. They are updated twice daily at 9:30am and 1:30pm.
PLEASE ENJOY THE BEACH RESPONSIBLY!
Concentrated patches of june grass but not too bad…Photo by Hubby
Clearer water further away from the beach…Photo by Hubby
The June Grass Report 