Schedule of Events

Schedule of Events

See our Bios page for information on our lecturers!

-OCTOBER-

Friday, Oct. 2

Edge of the Sea Art Reception– 6:30 to 8 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: Free

Description: Enjoy wine and tasty hors d’oeuvres during the Edge of the Sea art reception, which coincides with Pacific Grove’s popular First Friday community art walk.

Saturday, Oct. 3

Asilomar nature walk and lecture with State Parks Staff, Lisa Bradford – 10 to 11 a.m.

Location: Asilomar Conference Grounds, 800 Asilomar Avenue, Pacific Grove

Cost: Free

Description: Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds is participating in the Pacific Grove Public Library’s Celebration of Rachel Carson’s life by inviting Monterey Peninsula residents and visitors to participate in one of three monthly tours focused on environmental protection at Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds.

Friday, Oct. 9

Lecture: Lecture about the destruction and restoration of the Asilomar Natural Dunes Preserve with Wesley Gray, Environmental Scientist, Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds – 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: Suggested $10 donation, free to Friends of the Library (FOL)

Description: This presentation will tell the story of the Asilomar Dunes complex from its prehistoric condition, to its development for human use, it becoming a State Park, and now the restored portions of the Asilomar State Beach.

Friday, Oct. 16

Lecture: California’s Wild Edge: Poetry of the Monterey Peninsula with Tom Killion – 5:30 to 7 p.m.

L0cation: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: Suggested $10 donation, free to Friends of the Library (FOL)

Description: Tom will be sharing selections from his new book, “California’s Wild Edge.” This new volume captures the beauty of the California coast from Mendocino, Point Reyes, and the San Francisco Bay down through Carmel, Big Sur, Santa Barbara, and Santa Monica. Woodcut artist Tom Killion’s prints combine exquisite color with dynamic composition to portray the coast’s ever-changing moods and diverse formations: storm tides crashing at Point Lobos, serene moonlit coves at Mendocino, fog encircling the Golden Gate Bridge. Deepening our experience are poetry and prose from Gary Snyder, as well as selections from Native Californian traditional stories, accounts of travelers, and poems by Jane Hirshfield, Robert Hass, and Jaime de Angulo. As Tamalpais Walking and The High Sierra of California did for lovers of mountains, California’s Wild Edge will delight anyone who has seen (or wants to see) the meeting of land and sea.

Saturday, Oct. 17

Kids mural with local artists Margie Anderson and Julie Heilman – 1 to 3 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: $10 donation/child or $15/family

Description: With the guidance of local artists, children will create a beautiful sea mural that will grace the Children’s Room of the library.

Friday, Oct. 23

Library Lecture: “Pages of Inspiration: Rachel Carson and the Power of the Pen” with Jim Covel – 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: Suggested $10 donation, free to Friends of the Library

Description: Jim Covel is a lively speaker who will share stories of Rachel Carson from the perspective of the writer and the library.

Saturday, Oct. 24

Kids mural with local artists Margie Anderson and Julie Heilman – 1 to 3 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: $10 donation/child or $15/family

Description: With the guidance of local artists, children will create a beautiful sea mural that will grace the Children’s Room of the library.

Friday, Oct. 30

Lecture: Sustainability with Passionfish Restaurant owner Cynthia Walter – 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: Suggested $10 donation, free to Friends of the Library (FOL)

Description: Cynthia Walter will speak about Rachel Carson’s influence on her life and career and the need for creating a sustainable lifestyle.

-NOVEMBER-

Sunday, Nov. 1

Paddle Out hosted by the Wahine Project – 10 a.m. to noon

Location: Lovers Point, Pacific Grove, 630 Ocean View Boulevard

Cost: Free

Description: A Dia De Los Muertos Memorial Paddle Out at Lover’s Point in honor of Rachel Carson and Julia Platt. The Wahine Project Women’s and Youth Surf Organization will supply Surfboards and Stand Up Paddle Boards for their annual dedication in the sea in Celebration of Dia de Los Muertos. A traditional altar will be erected on the beach and attendees are invited to share memories of loved ones past. Flowers will also be provided as offerings into the sea. Meet below the volleyball court.

Thursday, Nov. 5

Short Films: The Sanderling and a Premiere – 7 to 8:30 p.m.

Location: The Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History, 165 Forest Avenue

Cost: $5 admission, free to Museum members

Description: Local filmmakers Steve and Mary Albert have premiered three of their exceptional natural history films at the P.G. Museum. This event will feature their recently completed documentary, along with one of their earlier titles (The Sanderling).

Friday, Nov. 6

Lecture: History of Hopkins Marine Station with Don Kohrs – 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: Suggested $10 donation, free to Friends of the Library

Description: Don will share the history of the first decades of the seaside laboratory, introducing several of the many women who participated in the summer sessions. In addition, Don will introduce Rheinhart P. Cowles, mentor to Rachel Carson, who as a student at Stanford, spent summers of 1887-1889 at the Hopkins Seaside Laboratory.

Saturday, Nov. 7

Asilomar nature walk and lecture with State Parks Staff, Lisa Bradford – 10 to 11 a.m.

Location: Asilomar Conference Grounds, 800 Asilomar Avenue, Pacific Grove

Cost: Free

Description: Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds is participating in the Pacific Grove Public Library’s Celebration of Rachel Carson’s life by inviting Monterey Peninsula residents and visitors to participate in one of three monthly tours focused on environmental protection at Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds.

Monday, Nov. 9

Friends of the Library Book Club meeting – 2 p.m.

Location: The “Little House” in Jewell Park, Pacific Grove

Cost: Free

Description: The Book Club will be discussing Rachel Carson’s book “The Edge of the Sea.”

Friday, Nov. 13

Lecture: “Stubborn, passionate and dedicated: The way Julia Platt helped save Monterey Bay, and why it worked” with Steve Palumbi – 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: Suggested $10 donation, free to Friends of the Library

Description: Dr. Stephen Palumbi, Director of Hopkins Marine Station, is the author of the 2010 book, The Death and Life of Monterey Bay. He will be speaking about Julia Platt, the renegade scientist who became Pacific Grove’s mayor barely a decade after American women got the right to vote – and she didn’t mind resorting to pistols and axes to make her point.

-DECEMBER-

Friday, Dec. 4

Lecture: Rachel Carson and the Origins of Environmentalism with William Souder – 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: Suggested $10 donation, free to Friends of the Library

Description: On a Farther Shore: The Life and Legacy of Rachel Carson, was published in September 2012 on the 50th anniversary of Carson’s Silent Spring. It was a New York Times Notable Book of the year, and was named one of the Top 25 Nonfiction Books of the Year by Kirkus Reviews, as well as one of the Ten Best Biographies of the year by Booklist.

Saturday, Dec. 5

Asilomar nature walk and lecture with State Parks Staff, Lisa Bradford – 10 to 11 a.m.

Location: Asilomar Conference Grounds, 800 Asilomar Avenue, Pacific Grove

Cost: Free

Description: Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds is participating in the Pacific Grove Public Library’s Celebration of Rachel Carson’s life by inviting Monterey Peninsula residents and visitors to participate in one of three monthly tours focused on environmental protection at Asilomar State Beach and Conference Grounds.

Friday, Dec. 11

Lecture and demonstration: Painting on the Edge – 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Location: Pacific Grove Public Library, 550 Central Avenue

Cost: Suggested $10 donation, free to Friends of the Library

Description: Sibyl Johnson and Christine Crozier are plein-air artists who live and paint on the Monterey Peninsula. These award-winning artists will demonstrate their painting techniques while they share their experiences and insights about painting at the Edge of the Sea.

Sunday, Dec. 13

Lecture: Our Beaches and Dunes – Connecting the Dots, with biologist David Shonman – 3 p.m.

Location: The Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History, 165 Forest Avenue

Cost: $5 admission, free for Museum members

Description: Over the past 30 years, David has focused on understanding our region’s beaches and dunes. Join David as he weaves a story about how the wind, waves, ocean currents, and rivers interact with plants and animals (including people) to create, maintain and sometimes damage these simple but intriguing coastal systems.

Tuesday, Dec. 22

Winter Solstice Beach Cleanup, Bonfire and Poetry Reading – 4 to 6 p.m.

Location: Nature reading at the fire pit: Asilomar Conference Grounds Fire Pit, 800 Asilomar Avenue, Pacific Grove – 5-6 p.m.

Cost: Free

Description: Following a beach cleanup from 4-5 p.m., attendees will gather around the Asilomar Conference Grounds Fire Pit for Nature Readings facilitated by Monterey author and poet, Patrice Vecchione, from 5-6 p.m. A book signing of Patrice’s new book, Step into Nature, takes place from 6-7 p.m. in the Phoebe Hearst Social Hall. Books will be available for purchase at the Park Store.

Please park on Sunset Drive for easy access to the Asilomar State Beach. The group will walk to the Asilomar Conference Grounds for the nature reading following the beach clean up.