Un Mar de Colores · Mission Beach, CA
Climate change and coastal resilience modules connect Mission Beach youth to the beaches they swim and steward.
Un Mar de Colores's Watershed Explorers program brings Mission Beach youth into the full watershed-to-ocean story of San Diego County. Day trips and overnight summer cohorts trace mountain streams from Cuyamaca State Park to the coast, including your own Mission Beach beaches. We partner with San Diego Unified School District and community organizations including Mission Bay Aquatic Center and Mission Beach Elementary to recruit from Mission Beach Elementary. Every program integrates the Tijuana River watershed case study — the only cross-border river in Southern California.
Summer cohorts + year-round school field trips · Completely free
Mission Beach's 2-mile peninsula gives our programs direct access to both open-ocean surf and the protected waters of Mission Bay for paddle fundamentals. We partner with Mission Beach Elementary and the Mission Bay Aquatic Center for water-comfort programming before open-ocean sessions. The South Mission Jetty area provides beginner-friendly protected waves on most swells.
Watershed Explorers overnight program in San Diego gives Mission Beach youth multi-day immersion from Cuyamaca to coast — commercial environmental overnight camps often charge $400–$600 per student. Un Mar charges $0.
Policy advocacy training in watershed curriculum teaches Mission Beach youth how California coastal and water commissions affect their beaches.
Mission Beach's Spanish-speaking households (19%) get parent communications in both languages, every time. Coastal access fails when language is treated as an afterthought.
Serving Mission Beach means meeting families where they are: San Diego schools, community centers, and partner orgs that already hold trust. We don't wait for families to find the beach — we bring youth to the water.
Used for intermediate progression; too exposed for first-time students on most days.
Mission Beach is home to the historic Belmont Park wooden roller coaster (1925), one of the oldest surviving seaside amusement parks in the United States.
In partnership with San Diego Unified School District and local community organizations, we recruit youth from 1+ Title I schools.
The Watershed Explorers program is Un Mar de Colores's flagship environmental education offering. Summer overnight cohorts trace the journey from Cuyamaca Rancho State Park's mountain streams to the San Diego coast, with special focus on the Tijuana River watershed — California's most cross-border and pollution-impacted river system. Curriculum integrates hydrology fundamentals, Indigenous Kumeyaay perspectives on water, and California coastal policy. Year-round day trips serve school field-trip groups across our 15+ Title I partner schools, and all programming is free with transportation included.
Our impact is measured in youth served, school partnerships, and watershed stewardship hours — published annually in our impact reports at mar-de-colores.org.
“"He used to approach new activities with extreme anxiety — to the point where sometimes we couldn't even get out of the car. Now he goes much deeper into the water."”
Yes — we partner with 15+ Title I schools for year-round day-trip field trips. Teachers contact Un Mar to schedule NGSS-aligned hydrology, climate resilience, and advocacy modules with transportation included for Mission Beach classrooms.
Watershed Explorers is Un Mar de Colores's flagship watershed education program — summer overnight cohorts tracing water from Cuyamaca Rancho State Park mountain streams to the San Diego coast. Mission Beach youth experience multi-day immersion in hydrology, Kumeyaay water perspectives, Tijuana River case study, and clean water advocacy.
Yes — bilingual curriculum materials and field instruction are standard. In Mission Beach, where 19% of households are Spanish-speaking, educators deliver watershed science in English and Spanish.
Yes. All Un Mar de Colores programs in Mission Beach are 100% free — including 3/2mm wetsuits, soft-top surfboards, transportation from partner schools like Mission Beach Elementary, and certified bilingual instruction. Funding comes from the San Diego Foundation, community grants, and individual donors. No Mission Beach family has ever paid for our programming.
Primary water sessions run at Mission Beach. Classroom components happen at Mission Bay Aquatic Center and other partner sites. All water activities happen within lifeguard-flag zones.
We serve youth ages All ages. In Mission Beach specifically, our recruitment runs through San Diego Unified School District — with priority enrollment for students from Mission Beach Elementary. Cohorts are age-appropriate (One Ocean for 6–12, Ocean Stewards for 13–17).
No. We begin every cohort with ocean-safety fundamentals in chest-deep whitewater at Mission Beach, supervised by instructors certified by the San Diego Fire-Rescue Lifeguard Division. Water comfort is built progressively. In Mission Beach, we also run pre-cohort pool-familiarization sessions at local community pools for students who request extra comfort-building.
Yes. All Un Mar de Colores programs are bilingual — and in Mission Beach, where 19% of households are Spanish-speaking, we intentionally pair at least one bilingual coach to every session. Cultural programming is delivered in both languages, and parent communications are always sent in Spanish and English.
Three ways: (1) everything is free, while most Mission Beach surf programs charge $50–$150 per lesson; (2) we are BIPOC-led and our coaches reflect the 37%-BIPOC Mission Beach community we serve; (3) our curriculum includes environmental justice, Kumeyaay coastal history, and cultural arts — not just surf skills. We exist because the ocean should belong to everyone in Mission Beach, not just those who can afford access.
Visit our sign-up page or contact us directly. Priority enrollment goes to students of Mission Beach Elementary and referrals from Mission Bay Aquatic Center and Mission Beach Elementary. Summer cohorts fill 3–4 weeks before start, so early contact is recommended.
Volunteer, donate, or enroll — however you join, you're helping Mission Beach youth access the coast.
All Un Mar de Colores programs are free for Mission Beach youth. Reach out to enroll, volunteer, or support the movement.
Un Mar de Colores is a BIPOC-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Oceanside, California. We provide free surf, ocean, and environmental programming for youth across San Diego and Tijuana — bridging cultures, coasts, and communities since 2018.
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