do the tire tracks up & down the beach bum you out ?

I am tired of seeing them. There weren't that many before the big storms. Afterward there was a lot of traffic from construction vehicles. I thought that they would diminish but there are still lots of them. I guess there's still a lot of work and inspections going on.

me too, spongegirl. I love your creative idea. :clap_1: Kurt, please give this young lady a free SoWal sticker. 😀

- you know, in theory, doesn't sound like it would be a hard thing to do -

really, just a small, conscientious effort from the ones whom DO tear up the beach,
would be a wondrous gift to all of us :clap_1:

isn't the beauty of the b e a c h why we live here ?

the tire tracks just make it look sooo urban - no likey !

peace*love

have been living here [and loving it] almost 5 years now, and gotta say, although our beaches are sublimely beautiful, these very unattractive tire tracks which run up and down the beach really destroy the pure aesthetic natural beauty of being at the beach - as far as i know, it's only the police & beaches of sowal vehicles that have authority to drive on the beaches, so here's a suggestion:
police & beaches of sowal vehicles must have some kind on mesh/screen/rake apparatus which attaches to the rear bumper somehow, where basically this screen drags across the fresh tires tracks covering them up
[similar to inbetween innings at a baseball game] leaving only nicely turned sand in it's wake

pretty pretty pretty

thoughts ?

~ sunbeams & peaceful vibrations ~

cheers ;-)

- do the tire tracks up & down the beach bum you out ?

They actually do have these screens - I've witnessed them being used from time-to-time. For some reason they are rarely used :confused:

Maybe they don't want to take the extra few minutes required to hook them up :idontno:

Hopefully Brad will see this thread and shed some light...
_____________________________________________

- you know, in theory, doesn't sound like it would be a hard thing to do -

really, just a small, conscientious effort from the ones whom DO tear up the beach,
would be a wondrous gift to all of us :clap_1:

isn't the beauty of the b e a c h why we live here ?

the tire tracks just make it look sooo urban - no likey !

peace*love

Are you talking about all vehicles, or just the official vehicles?

have been living here [and loving it] almost 5 years now, and gotta say, although our beaches are sublimely beautiful, these very unattractive tire tracks which run up and down the beach really destroy the pure aesthetic natural beauty of being at the beach - as far as i know, it's only the police & beaches of sowal vehicles that have authority to drive on the beaches, so here's a suggestion:
police & beaches of sowal vehicles must have some kind on mesh/screen/rake apparatus which attaches to the rear bumper somehow, where basically this screen drags across the fresh tires tracks covering them up
[similar to inbetween innings at a baseball game] leaving only nicely turned sand in it's wake

pretty pretty pretty

thoughts ?

~ sunbeams & peaceful vibrations ~

cheers ;-)

- do the tire tracks up & down the beach bum you out ?

Police & official SoWal vehicles...

They actually do have these screens - I've witnessed them being used from time-to-time. For some reason they are rarely used :confused:

Maybe they don't want to take the extra few minutes required to hook them up :idontno:

Hopefully Brad will see this thread and shed some light...
_____________________________________________

is that right ?????????

well for the love of elevation, if they have 'em, use 'em ! :roll:

hook 'em & drag 'em from rosemary to dune allen, several passes a day

- it's the right thing to do, don'tcha think ?

;-) warm cheery vibes ~

Some of the tracks I see are too deep for a screen to do any good.

In a pickle? Get Brad on it!!!

Are you talking about all vehicles, or just the official vehicles?

well personally, i'm not a big fan of vehicles on the beach, period
i understand the convenience and whatever of it, just not a fan -
but since it's centrally located only at grayton, guess i'm alright with that
- as long as those permitted vehicles don't drive wrecklessly in the sand
which i don't think they're allowed to -
guess my original comments were based on the deep tire tracks that run for miles,
and how it really just puts a tweak in my view & wondered if anybody else had any thoughts about it -

wouldn't it be great if all of a sudden we began seeing
these vehicles pulling a little screen thingies behind them :clap_1:

it's nice, there's alot of passion on this forum -

- thanks for sharing your thoughtful replies ya'll ;-)

peace*love

If we could just get rid of those darn human footprints...it would be so much nicer!

If we could just get rid of those darn human footprints...it would be so much nicer!

:rolling:

thank you.

sorry, tire tracks do not bother me in the least. they have been part of the beach as far back as I can remember...

as far as driving on the beach, I'm thankful we can still drive the truck out along with all the kayaks, surf boards and toys for a big day of funn! as we've done since we were wee babes!

I'm having a really hard time with this thread. While the idea of an unspoiled beach is nice, there are reasons that the tire tracks are there. They tell me that the trash has been picked up recently, and that if I have an emergency, somebody will be able to come help me.

Piles of seaweed and unleashed doggies (and their byproducts) on the beach bum me out worse than the tracks do. And, if nothing else, the tracks show you where NOT to set up your chair and go to sleep. 😀

Back by popular demand :cool: , I will try and answer your questions.

In regards to the TDC, we have a system to how we clean the beach and drive along the beach areas. We have to service approximately 400-420 trash receptacles every day by 10 am so we must drive along the beach. Our operating procedure is to drive as close to the water's edge as safe and only drive up to the bags when we reach one, and then go back toward the water. When we must drive higher on the beach, we try to stay in an existing track so that we are not creating new ones. In our opinion it is better to have one track then all of the many others. I reiterated with my guys this morning that we are continuing to do this and will strive to do better.

As for dragging a "rake" behind us, we do that in accordance with direction by the South Walton Turtle Watch Group. During turtle season, we are told by them to NOT rake during the early part of the season when the turtles are nesting because it makes it much more difficult to identify tracks from the mother. We are then asked to rake after the nesting portion of the season to assist the hatchlings in making it to the water.

One other huge issue that we are encountering right now is the condition of the beach itself. In many areas, peat is exposed and we cannot drag the rakes over without making a mess of the beach. Not to mention, we cannot drag our rakes through the Coastal Dune Lake Outfall areas. Additionally during the spring break and summer season, there are too many people to drag our rakes around without leading to a safety hazzard.

I can not speak for the Sherrif's Beach patrol or Code Enforcement so I would have to direct you to them at 267-2000 and 622-0000, respectively.

I hope all of this information clarifies how we try to limit our impacts on the beach. By the way, I am curious to see how people who drive on at Grayton feel about this issue as I personally don't drive there either.. ;-)

I'm having a really hard time with this thread. While the idea of an unspoiled beach is nice, there are reasons that the tire tracks are there. They tell me that the trash has been picked up recently, and that if I have an emergency, somebody will be able to come help me.

Piles of seaweed and unleashed doggies (and their byproducts) on the beach bum me out worse than the tracks do. And, if nothing else, the tracks show you where NOT to set up your chair and go to sleep. 😀

good point SN, tire tracks also tell me that we have Beach Patrol, doing their job, monitoring our safety and enforcing important laws concerning the protection of the beach and people.

regular folks driving on the beach have a very limited area for driving on Grayton Beach. way back when, we would drive for miles along the beach, but now most beaches in our area do not have any beach traffic at all.

Back by popular demand :cool: , I will try and answer your questions.

In regards to the TDC, we have a system to how we clean the beach and drive along the beach areas. We have to service approximately 400-420 trash receptacles every day by 10 am so we must drive along the beach. Our operating procedure is to drive as close to the water's edge as safe and only drive up to the bags when we reach one, and then go back toward the water. When we must drive higher on the beach, we try to stay in an existing track so that we are not creating new ones. In our opinion it is better to have one track then all of the many others. I reiterated with my guys this morning that we are continuing to do this and will strive to do better.

As for dragging a "rake" behind us, we do that in accordance with direction by the South Walton Turtle Watch Group. During turtle season, we are told by them to NOT rake during the early part of the season when the turtles are nesting because it makes it much more difficult to identify tracks from the mother. We are then asked to rake after the nesting portion of the season to assist the hatchlings in making it to the water.

One other huge issue that we are encountering right now is the condition of the beach itself. In many areas, peat is exposed and we cannot drag the rakes over without making a mess of the beach. Not to mention, we cannot drag our rakes through the Coastal Dune Lake Outfall areas. Additionally during the spring break and summer season, there are too many people to drag our rakes around without leading to a safety hazzard.

I can not speak for the Sherrif's Beach patrol or Code Enforcement so I would have to direct you to them at 267-2000 and 622-0000, respectively.

I hope all of this information clarifies how we try to limit our impacts on the beach. By the way, I am curious to see how people who drive on at Grayton feel about this issue as I personally don't drive there either.. ;-)

- seems this created a bit of dialogue, and that's good :clap_1:

especially want to thank BPickelTDC for taking the time to respond -
your thoughtful, forthright, concise & informative reply is very much appreciated
it certainly allows me the opportunity to see the tracks from a different angle ;-)

thanks again ya'll for your valuble time

~ peaceful reverberations ~

Thanks Brad. I am against raking the beach to clean it up and remove seaweed and other natural objects that wash up. Those things provide food for animals in the chain and also help to build up and hold sand. The screens I've seen don't rake the beach but are made of chain link and just smooth it over and I suppose don't do any harm.

I saw a sign the other day I had forgotten about "no cunstruction vehicles after April 30".

that is why the beaches at sandestin are soo nice...they get dragged in the morning and then again in the early evening

Yes, you are right Kurt. Our screens are to smooth tracks, not rake the beach.

Thanks Brad. I am against raking the beach to clean it up and remove seaweed and other natural objects that wash up. Those things provide food for animals in the chain and also help to build up and hold sand. The screens I've seen don't rake the beach but are made of chain link and just smooth it over and I suppose don't do any harm.

I saw a sign the other day I had forgotten about "no cunstruction vehicles after April 30".