1st Bay Day to celebrate local treasure

Three months after it was the subject of an unprecedented ninecounty tax measure, the body of water that gives the Bay Area its name is the focus of something that’s not so political: a regional tip of the hat.

Billed as a local counterpart to Earth Day, the first Bay Day will take place Saturday with more than 40 themed events, ranging from bicycle tours and discounted kayak rides to a shoreline tai chi gathering.

And while nobody expects the turnout to rival this weekend’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival in Golden Gate Park, the organizers say they’re confident this year’s event will be the start of a tradition all its own.

“This is sort of a trial effort,” said David Lewis, executive director of Save the Bay. “People know the bay is a treasure central to our quality of life, and there should be at least one day a year to appreciate and celebrate it.”

The nonprofit organization dates to the early 1960s, when cities along the bay routinely turned shallow waters into sites for dumps, industrial parks and whatever else was on the agenda. By the time the remaining founder, Berkeley’s Sylvia McLaughlin, died in January, Save the Bay was one of the region’s leading environmental advocacy groups.

The group’s most recent achievement was the successful campaign for Measure AA in the June election, a regional parcel tax that is intended to raise $500 million over the next 20 years for marsh restoration and other bay improvements. It passed with 70.3 percent support distributed across the nine counties.

Saturday’s festivities will include events in all nine counties, and Bay Day has been given official status by 39 cities and counties.

Some of the planned events are for earnest devotees of the bay, such as hikes to showcase the challenges of sea level rise in East Palo Alto’s Ravenswood Open Space Preserve. There will be kayak tours around the bay and an afternoon discussion of bay-related environmental issues at the Exploratorium on San Francisco’s Embarcadero.

Other events have a less obvious connection to the topic — such as $4 pints of ale at the 21st Amendment Brewery’s tasting room in San Leandro, several blocks inland from the shore. Or the 9:30 a.m. tai chi session at Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge in Alviso.

“This is a first version of what will be an annual event,” said Lewis, who added that planning didn’t begin in earnest until after the passage of Measure AA. “In the future, we expect to be adding bigger events in major spots.”

For a full list of events, go to www.bayday.org.