There's still technically some time left in the summer of 2019 to enjoy a dip, or a frolic, in a swimming hole.
With photographs by Angal Field and words by Jenny Odell, the New York Times publishew a paean to Northern California's swimming holes.
Odell tells stories of swimming holes in Northern California:
I get the feeling that Northern Californians especially love swimming holes because our beaches are so un-beachy. Take Ocean Beach in San Francisco, an expanse of intimidating waves and frigid water. Sometimes swept with fog and a punishing wind, the beach has no lifeguards and, instead, a sign that says: “Danger – Rip Currents. People Have Died Swimming and Wading Here.”
And Field's images survey the entire span of the state, including images from Malibu Creek State Park and Aztec Falls in San Bernardino County. The images are as much about the people enjoying the water and the sun as they are about the natural beauty surrounding them.
Read the full story: The Magic of Swimming Holes
Friday Eye Candy: Mapping a World of Water Words
Cultures and geography have created a dictionary's worth of words for water. A new video from Vox maps (most of) them out.
Report: European Rivers Are in Trouble
Some of the continent’s most important rivers are suffering from overuse and pollution.
Annual LA River CleanUp Invites Residents to Protect Local Ecosystems
The Friends of the Los Angeles River will host its 34th Annual LA River CleanUp on October 5, inviting residents to help beautify the river, prevent litter from reaching the ocean, and promote equitable access to green spaces.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
Mamdani’s pied-à-terre tax survives legal challenge
A panel of judges found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate injury as a result of New York City's implementation of the tax.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Seattle passes record-breaking transit services expansion
Proposition 1 will double the city’s transit tax to add 95,000 more bus trips and preserve 180,000 bus trips annually.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority