Hello, Point Loma and Ocean Beach!
As I’ve walked along the Sunset Cliffs this summer it seems like the number of people cliff jumping off the popular “Arch” rock formation has grown exponentially. I recall past summers the area getting busy when the water would get warmer but the flocks of tourists and locals alike gathering on the cliffside is overwhelming.
The virality of the spot on social media hasn’t helped either. If you are tapped into local San Diego content, you might have seen the video of a 17-year-old boy jumping from the top of the cliff only to hit the shelf below him and then fall into the water. The failed jump resulted in six fractured vertebrae, a bruised tailbone and a cut on his foot which required stitches.
Then another video surfaced of a man climbing up the cliffs after a jump losing his footing and falling into the shallow water below. The man needed to be rescued by firefighter’s Rescue 44 cable system — a modified cable rig on the firetruck designed for cliff rescues.
The Arch has always been a popular cliff jumping spot despite San Diego’s municipal code making it illegal to jump off a ledge more than five feet above the water. Fines for violating the code start at $100. Clearly though, that has not stopped people from gathering at the cliffs and attempting the jump themselves.
Recent hype around the spot is leading some to believe that the popular jumping spot’s days are numbered. And, I am starting to think so too.
What do you think? Should The Arch be closed off to the public?
Steve Anderson
Peninsula Beacon newsletter host
Peninsula Beacon story spotlight
Thrill seekers love Sunset Cliffs. But with rescues on the rise, cliff jumping at ‘The Arch’ faces an uncertain future
By Thomas Murphy • Special to Times of San Diego
The Sunset Cliffs tradition may be illegal, but that hasn’t stopped divers. Recent rescues have drawn renewed attention to the escapade.
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