Alviso Marina County Park attracts thousands of visitors throughout the year. People go to hike, paddle, bird watch, hunt and more. The area was once a hub of industry for canning and shipping goods to other parts of the bay and is now home to millions of migratory birds, endangered species, sea creatures and plant life. The marina was purchased by the County of Santa Clara from Leslie Salt in the 1960s. It is also where Santa Clara County Parks staff host people for the Alviso Boat Tours.
“Will I learn about the birds and the ecological significance of the land,” said one guest.
Another rider posited, “How has the South Bay landscape changed over time?”
Luke Bailey, a Santa Clara County Parks Interpreter, was ready to answer these questions and more as he was preparing to lead an educational tour from Alviso Marina.
Thousands of people gather every summer to board a pontoon boat, cruise down the Alviso Slough and take in the sights, history and sounds of Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The tours started in 2016 to bring Ecotourism and climate change education to the Santa Clara County waterfront.
“The Alviso Boat Tours foster a sense of public ownership of San Francisco Bay’s health and future,” said Bailey. “This is a rare California landscape. These wetlands help protect our community from the effects of a changing climate, and our tours offer our community a chance to experience and learn about their value and significance firsthand."
The pontoon boat seats 35 people and first set sail in 2018. It traverses visitors down the length of Alviso Slough to the edge of San Francisco Bay’s open waters. Alviso Slough is the channel through which the Guadalupe River empties into the Bay, and the surrounding marshes serve as homes to endangered species and are living laboratories for science and nature enthusiasts. It allows riders to explore the largest tidal wetland restoration project on the west coast.
“We use this course because it’s the only outlet to the bay from the Santa Clara County Parks System,” said Alex Perez, Captain Alviso Boat Tours for Santa Clara County Parks. “We plan these tours around high tide. Being able to provide the tour and seeing people take away things from the program and seeing people smile when they leave the boat. It’s an awesome time out here!”
Santa Clara County Parks also leads tours for school programs and floating classrooms during the year. The Alviso boat programs raise awareness of the importance of the South Bay wetlands as habitat for plants and animals, and as a protection against the effects of climate change-caused sea level rise on nearby communities. The restored salt ponds in the portion of the Refuge nearest Alviso are examples of successful projects that provide habitat and coastal flooding protection at the same time.
“I pursued a career with Santa Clara County Parks because I believe climate change is the biggest issue of our time,” said Bailey “I feel lucky to facilitate connections between our visitors and the public lands that they own and I’m grateful that our civic leaders act to protect them.”
Get more information and register to go on the next tour at https://parks.sccgov.org/santa-clara-county-parks/alvison-marina-county-park/alviso-boat-tours.
