The first Saturday of summer saw consistent crowds all day at the beaches in Oceanside, California.

Visitors Kassidy, 8, and Kaidance, 3, found kelp leaves on the sand near the pier.

The City of Oceanside, located on the coast of northern San Diego County, claims to have some of the widest, sandiest beaches in all of Southern California. Oceanside does have the longest wooden pier on the West Coast, it struts 1,954 feet into the ocean and was built in 1888. The current pier is in its sixth construction.

Oceanside claims “the best vacation weather anywhere in the world.” Yesterday, the first Saturday of summer, topped out at 74 degrees Fahrenheit, with the hottest hours between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. The “mean” temperature was 66 degrees, and the lowest temperature bottomed out at 57 degrees.

Besides the lovely beaches and picturesque pier, Oceanside has a harbor with slips for one thousand boats.

The City of Oceanside measures itself as 42 square miles, including one square mile of water.

“Those who visit here always come back,” the City claims on its website.

There are 169,350 residents in Oceanside, according to the City, but Wikipedia puts the number at 183,095 residents.

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http://sandiegoreader.com/users/photos/2013/jun/23/47968/