Rob ‘Birdlegs’ Caughlan, Bay Area environmental crusader and renowned surfing enthusiast, dies at 82

SAN MATEO COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) — Bay Area political strategist, environmental crusader and renowned surfing enthusiast Rob “Birdlegs” Caughlan has died.

Caughlan helped lead the fight to maintain public access to Martin’s Beach in San Mateo County.

He co-founded the Friends of the River in the 1970s, served on President Jimmy Carter’s Solar Energy Taskforce and was the first president of the Surfrider Foundation.

Surfing was his passion. He actually competed well into his 70s.

Caughlan was being treated for colon cancer, but his daughter told the San Francisco Chronicle he died of a broken heart last Saturday, just four days after the death of his wife.

Caughlan was 82 years old.