Sunday July 14, 2024
Details
Please come help clean Top Sante Beach in Hokota Town (google map code: 3JP5+98 Hokota, Ibaraki) on Sunday 14 July.
Top Sante is the same beach that we cleaned in 2019 and 2023: https://www.twmc.club/activities/2019/beach-onsen-trip-ibaraki
Lots of waste (mainly plastic) washes ashore on our coasts. The sun helps break the plastic waste into small and microparticles that become almost impossible to clean and enter the food chain. We will spend several hours gathering, sorting, and bagging waste, which we will leave in the parking lot for Hokota City to later pick up or there may be others there with a truck to haul the waste to the city incinerator. Bring sunscreen, hats, work gloves, plenty of water to drink, and lunch. Metal mesh for screening out sand from trash and long barbeque tongs can be helpful. I’ll bring a sun shade and cooler.
Beach toys, tents, and chairs for after the cleanup are optional. You are welcome to swim or surf, but note that there are no lifeguards on this beach. Usually the waves are not so big, but sometimes the surf is big and it is too far in advance to predict surf conditions for that day. Riptides do occur all along the Ibaraki coast and on this beach. Children are welcome, but should be supervised by adults at all times. There are no bathrooms at the beach, but there are public restrooms just up the hill in the onsen parking lot: https://topsante-hokota.com/
If participants like, we will stop for a soak in the Top Sante onsen (850 yen; less for kids and elderly) on our way home; a change of clothes is pleasant after onsen.
This will be a car based trip and participants with cars are particularly welcome. We will meet at the parking lot in Tsukuba Station at 7:30 on the 14th or you can meet us directly at the beach just before 9 am. I expect that the cleanup will last about 2 hours and those who like, can remain at the beach for relaxation, jogging, swimming, frisbee, kite flying, or surfing. Usually at least one car returns right after the cleanup.
To sign up, please email me with your name, cell phone number, whether you can drive, and if so, how many passengers your car can fit (excluding the driver). Costs: 300 yen club fee plus a share of the cost for car fuel (drivers excluded)
The organizer and TWMC accept no responsibility for participant safety.