We received an email recently saying that the Agua Hedionda Lagoon is now “a death trap for kayakers, sailors, paddle boarders.” According to this source, the buoys that formerly separated the “passive use area” from the “powerboat area” near the Bayshore Drive public access walkway have gone missing and powerboats are now using the entire back end of the lagoon (in clear violation of lagoon regulations), leaving little or no space for human propelled water craft. The email continued:
Last week a No Fear helicopter filming a wake boarder and another boat that was filming too, ran amuck using every space off the lagoon for over an hour. They we’re going all the way to the back of the lagoon almost capsizing a children’s kayaking class that was in the passive area. . . The police we’re called and did nothing. . . The police have been called to put up the buoys again to protect the area and they have done nothing.
Sounds like the City of Carlsbad needs to step up and get the Police Department out to do some regulating. Or at least put the buoys back up.
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Yeah, what fun the lagoon is now.
Launch from Bayshore beach where all the dogs off their leashes pee on your equipment then go out and get run over by power boats.
I’ve even had them yell “get out of here” while blasting me in the passive area.
The police and the city sure have a “blind eye” on what’s been going on in the lagoon now for a least a couple of years.
I dare any Carlsbad cop or counsel member to go out there and “enjoy” their paddle.
Thanks for the warning! I was hoping to paddle in Agua Hedionda Lagoon for the first time tomorrow, and found the city’s website lacking in details such as directions — though it gives plenty of info about the lagoon use fees.
Googling led me to Carlsbadistan, where I learned that for my $12 day use permit, I could get run over by power boats and buzzed by a helicopter!
So I used the City of Carlsbad “Contact Us” link and copied Yak’s post to Parks and Recreation. I said they just lost my tourist dollars, and could be heading for a lawsuit if someone gets injured due to nonenforcement of the regulations. Let’s hope someone there takes it seriously.
In case peace does get restored in the lagoon, can any paddlers answer these for future reference? The city website doesn’t say:
1. Where do you buy the permits?
2. Where do you park to haul in your kayak?
3. How far is the haul? Do-able for someone who uses a cane? (Those wheelie carts for kayaks don’t work for my inflatable.)
4. Are there toilets or porta-johns nearby?
Permits are at the pool center next to Carlsbad High.
Use Bayshore drive to lauch – DON”T LEAVE ANYTHING ON THE BEACH OR ALL THE LOOSE DOGS WILL URINATE ON YOUR STUFF! Another thing the police don’t enforce -LEASH LAWS.
They just put a few buoys in the middle Thursday – it needs twice as many to keep them from coming in on the south end of the lagoon to the passive area.
You will be buzzed by a couple boats since there are to big of holes between the buoys.
You give them an inch and they think the whole thing is theirs I guess.
Hopefully the Police will do their job and fine anyone that takes their power boat past the buoys like the law says and doing what they are hired to do!!!
WHY IS THE SKI COURSE IS THE PASSIVE AREA?
“Passive” means NO POWER BOATS doesn’t it?
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