OC’s Teen Beach, Salt Creek Beach, is the place to see and be seen if you are a teen. It is open to the public and you’ll find all ages…moms, babies and even old ladies, but well-behaved teens have taken to this scene. Unassuming in its location, it sits at the bottom of the hill and cliff below the recently sold Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel. When school is back in session, the beach action mellows to a more adult crowd from locals and the resort (which offers rides in golf carts down to the beach). We’ve included a video of some local students who love Salt Creek…and also Strands around the bend.
Southern California is a little mixed up. It gets hot just as the kids head for school and the beaches clear out. The warmest days can come in September and October, sometimes hitting 100 on rare occasions. Still, the beaches will be emptying soon. But instead of saying sooo long, we’ll be saying hello to our favorite spots. A traveler formerly of Orange County, California wrote in the Oregonian newspaper that she was amazed Avila Beach wharf seemed nearly deserted during her California vacation. All she need do is go out on the beaches she came from (Seal, Sunset) on a warm winter day, and while 12 million people work and shop, the beach can be all hers. It is amazing, but true!
Today we posted new trip ideas and added photos to the mix. One of the prettiest spots is Anacapa Island, part of the Channel Island National Marine Park. Bodega Bay Lodge and Spa makes for a romantic bay area getaway. Sacramento urban tattoos from a talented travel writer/contributor is in the works. And Catalina Island’s Avalon just got a photo make-over with some new pictures to spice up the flavor of this beach vacation destination. A crew member on one of the cruise boats to the island told us the recent fires on Avalon only boosted tourism this year, making it more popular than ever! This is by no means the sum of our postings, but includes some highlights for you to peruse. Other information about California that came online included the cable car rides in San Francisco and something in the works about an Orange County beach city…kind of a lifestyle piece. Thanks for all your submissions of ideas, stories, events, etc. We’re working on them and getting them up as fast as we can! We hope you enjoy seeing California’s splendor as much as we do.
Are you yearnin’ for some chili? California’s chilliest season is nearly upon us, and that means it is time for those Chili Festivals and Contests. There’s a lot to chomp into about this cowboy soul food. Texans say “no beans, please.” But “con carne” is the popular choice for most contests in California. Beans were known to be a cheap filler to stretch meals while out on the range or on the dusty cowboy highways and trails back in the old days.
I wandered along the beach to re-connect with the local scene today. Lots of tourists were getting their bearings, taking photos, having fun. They came from all over the U.S. and elsewhere to experience C-A-L-I-F-O-R-N-I-A. I spoke with many, but one special new friend was Dwanna from Colorado. Her family loves to hike, fish, swim, bike and be outdoors, favoring the 4 seasons they enjoy in the Rocky Mountains. The beach is a nice vacation for them, however. Her son & husband were in the water body boarding and she took pictures of them with her new Nikon digital camera. I gave her some photo tips and wished her family well. While summer’s almost gone, top destinations for fall travel–Carmel and Monterey usually experience their best weather of the year during the fall season. Not all of California has dramatic, 4 seasons climate, but some places do. Many beach dwellers make annual winter trips to places such as Big Bear Lake, South Lake Tahoe and Yosemite National Forest for the Bracebridge Dinners, experiencing cooler temperatures, snow, skiing and sledding. Very cool, yes! But so special.
Have you made your plans for the great exodus…the last days of summer? In much of California, kids return to school the first or second week of September. The top visit day at the beach, in fact, is often on Labor Day Weekend, not the 4th of July. Some events we know about should offer a mix of things to see and do before you have to crack the books or drive the kids to their soccer practice once again. Sawdust Festival in Laguna Beach is finishing its season in early September. Huntington Beach will have a Civil War Re-enactment on Sept. 1 & 2. Los Angeles County Fair runs Sept. 7 - 30 at Pomona. Tall Ships Festival will be held in Dana Point on Sept. 8 & 9. Redondo Beach has the Lobster Festival Sept. 21 - 23. Santa Rosa has Snoopy’s Joe Cool Festival as a fundraiser for the Charles M. Schulz Museum Sept. 22. Other great events can be found on the California Events Calendar. Stick around and see California.
The family-friendly beach with an Amtrak train stop at North Beach is ideal for people with children. Kids frolic, parents bounce toddlers on their knees, and swings on the sand provide hours of entertainment for youngsters. There’s more to San Clemente than we’ve had time to discover, but from what we’ve seen, the location between Legoland California and Disneyland makes this a centrally-located beach option to please both kids and adults. Hop aboard the train to San Clemente!
Having just written a little spiel on the tide pools in Laguna Beach, it occurred to me that there are some awesome beaches that offer entertainment and education at the same time. Laguna is one. But a must-see stop on your road trip along the coast near Hearst Castle in San Simeon or romantic vacation on Moonstone Beach in Cambria is the Piedras Blancas beach where elephant seals molt, shedding their skin in the dry, warm sand. You can’t get down on the beach near these giant creature that run very fast and can even crush people with their weight, but you are so close to them that you really can almost reach out and touch them. They are located on Highway 1 just north of Hearst Castle near the Piedras Blancas Light Station.
Laguna Beach, the most beautiful Southern California beach destination with cozy coves, rocky cliffs and tidepools to explore, is the city of fine arts, fine food and great vacations. Are you looking for a family-friendly beach? Victoria Beach foots the bill, as seen in the video. Kids and skim boards go together, shown in the video of Thalia Street Beach in Laguna. Vacationers who want to relax on a lazy afternoon under the shade of an umbrella might enjoy through the eyes of a camera at Agate Street Beach, a gem near Surf & Sand Hotel and other ocean properties. We’ve been there. We tried them. Laguna Beach is just so pleasant. But for flat beaches and shopping at Fashion Island, stick with Newport.
California beaches offer oceans of opportunity for kids to learn about nature. Tidepooling in Laguna Beach, playgrounds on the beach throughout the state, beaches named “Mother’s Beach“, and sandy stretches and coves are all candidates for having fun with children. But there are a few exceptions that even adults need to be aware of . Throughout the state, the California west facing beaches are subject to powerful waves, riptides and sleeper waves, that are mostly seen from San Francisco to Northern Cali. Sleeper waves suddenly come up from nowhere and sweep the unsuspecting out into the ocean. The best advice in California is to hang onto your tots and keep a watchful eye as they get near the water. And at Mother’s Beach, do check water quality on healthebay.org. These inlet beaches should be monitored, as well as any beach you enter. And finally, do not go in the water with our without kids after it rains. The water is not fit for you to be in for at least 24 hours.
As summer rounds out in California and kids soon will return to school, travelers, vacationers and last minute revelers are amping up their hotel spending. Conservative at summer start, the trips may only be one or two night-stays now, but there seems to be no hesitation in spending anywhere from $150 to 350 per night for a hotel room or suite. While our tastes have gravitated in the past couple years to around $150/nightly charges plus tax, we’d spend more to get one of those ocean view suites at Embassy Suites Mandalay Beach. Or a balcony view room (not big, but nice), at Hyatt Huntington Beach Resort. Still, the room that nothing has ever lived up to is the Dolphin Bay Resort…it’s a condo instead of a hotel room. And it is nice…very nice! In fact, each time I look at the photos and recall the place, I think maybe I’m dreaming. The bed was an A+, the restaurant offered great menus, and the beach was down the steps in a cove. It was one of the most luxurious hotel getaways I’ve enjoyed (at my own expense, too!) While rates and availability have improved at the beach each year after summer season, places such as Santa Barbara never seem to let up. But as soon as summer’s over, I’m looking to travel and hoping to check out some California beaches I miss dearly, staying at Eureka’s Carter House Inn, perhaps, Bodega Bay Lodge and Spa, and San Diego’s Catamaran, or Loews Coronado Bay Resort. Great…all of them!
Every girl needs romance, or so the story goes. As a diversion from getting real work done, I took a couple photos and tried my hand at building a story, a California beach romance, around these pictures. What’s your “g” rated idea of a romantic time at the beach - no adult language, please. Our filters will block such.
What you like to do for your relaxation should shape where you go on vacation. Some people want sunbathing beaches where they can tan, stroll and roll in the sand. Others prefer sweaters, binoculars and rocky shores where they can watch sea lions and seals.
Top sunbathing beaches in California where it’s good to see and be seen include: Newport Beach; Laguna Beach; Manhattan Beach; Malibu; Santa Barbara and Ocean Beach in San Diego.
Top beaches for nature walks and sea life include The Sea Ranch; Moonstone Beach in Cambria; and Laguna Beach tidepools; the beaches of Big Sur and Mendocino Headlands. Get out and enjoy 1,000 miles of beauty!
I’d heard about this sports museum in Newport Beach, and it peaked my interest so much that I nearly ruined a friendship, commandeering my friend in her little Boxter car to find Newport Sports Museum at Fashion Island. Frustrated but determined, we scored big time when we finally figured out that the museum was inside “Hamilton Company” building. The signs are hidden so you have to be persistent and realize that although it looks like you’re walking into a commercial office, you will find the Sports Museum by walking past the company sign. It’s a trip worth taking, offering collectors items for nearly every type of sports fan.
San Diego wins as the friendliest beach city or town in California in a recent survey. Taking into account public transportation, number of hotel options and the biggie, friendliness of locals in helping visitors get around, San Diego beat out every other city. Having spent millions in developing a thriving downtown near the convention center, ball park and revival of the Gaslamp Quarter, all are connected by an easy-to-use system of buses. In addition, trolleys take passengers to the Mexican border for day trips to Tijuana, Amtrak and Coaster trains come directly into the downtown area, the airport is nearby and trolley tours are also available. Add to that the questions we like to ask in our test. “How do you find..” or “Where is…” While tourism bureaus exist, they cannot situate themselves on every corner, nor can they influence to a large degree how locals will react when stopped and asked questions. San Diego citizens are most willing of any city in California to offer directions, according to our on location tests. Over 60% had an appropriate answer to a question about directions, higher than any other beach destination in California. Said one former San Diego reporter, “When you’re in San Diego, you drive slower, stop more, and plan on helping people. There are so many tourists visiting that it becomes part of your daily routine.”
Laguna Beach–I got in my car, did some double parking, some hiking, and even got a driver to take me one day and let me off at many beaches so I could check them out, one by one. I did not see all of them (there are so many), but when I matched up the city’s list with the signs on the streets, I discovered more than had been reported. My count is around 27 to date. Maybe there’s some redundancy and names that overlap at a single beach. Laguna Beach seems to be the city with the most beaches in California.
With the recent bridge collapse and the media frenzy to find local stories about faulty bridges in your community, another infrastructure issue for Californians is the lack of adequate transportation options to get to work or a vacation in a timely manner when driving California’s roads and freeways. Each year the traffic slows more than the year before. And places that used to be “wide open” now come to a stop. Getting out of LA used to be faster going 10 miles out of my way on the 605 to the 210, rather than 405 Freeway. Trying to guess the optimal time to drive between San Diego and LA or LA and Central Coast has become a matter of luck, more than good guessing. Cars now stop in places that they never stopped before such as the Conejo grade on the 101 before descending into Camarillo. And if you assume it’s a wreck causing the delay, oftentimes it’s not that at all. It’s just too many people on the roads. Driving in these conditions is no vacation. Just take lots of water, keep the car filled with gas, have some tunes for your car, and a sense of humor to make the time pass.
We get so many requests from Europeans, especially, for nude beaches in California (here’s the few we know about). That’s why we cover this topic. Huntington Beach (an Orange County beach) saw fit to prohibit nudity in one’s own yard. But new wording permits such in your private areas (of your yard). That’s good news for my friends, a 60-something couple who swim in their backyard pool au natural. They planned on getting arrested if caught. Hopefully now they will be legit. I would hate to have to bail them out of jail. The city council of Huntington Beach, California approved a ban on nudity in Huntington Beach.
I like to check out the beach report cards regularly to see what beaches to be aware of. The water quality is looking pretty good for the first week of August, with some exceptions. Avalon Beach near the Green Pier & Busy Bee has been receiving a lot of D’s & F’s lately. In Orange County, San Clemente Poche Beach (F) and Dana Point Harbor Baby Beach (D) aren’t good for kids these days. Los Angeles County beaches have some gnarly water quality reports, sadly. Here goes: San Pedro Cabrillo Beach at harborside at life guard tower gets an F; Redondo Beach municipal pier 100 yards south gets a D; Venice fishing pier 50 yards south gets an F; Venice Beach at Rose Ave. - F; Santa Monica municipal pier - F; Castle Rock Beach at Topanga Creek - F. In Santa Barbara County, East Beach at Mission Creek gets a D; Leadbetter Beach at Honda Creek gets an F. In Santa Cruz County, Main Beach at the Boardwalk in Santa Cruz gets an F; In Humboldt County, Clam Beach County Park near Strawberry Creek gets a D. There are many beaches in the Bay Area especially that are not tested and have no reports as a result. Before heading out, why not take 5 minutes to see how your beaches stack up? The maps are under: Conditions: Beach Report Card in the top nav of healthebay.org.
The Laguna Beach Greeter was a Danish man who used to stand on a visible street corner and wave or say hello to people and cars passing by. Wearing a long beard, long hair and coveralls, people had mixed receptions to his gestures even then. Yet his positive spirit has been commemorated by a huge statue that sits next to the street on Pacific Coast Highway in Laguna Beach. It is located a the old Pottery Shack that’s been converted into an arts and entertainment plaza. The next time you drive through Laguna, wave back to the Greeter. Though he died in 1979, some say his spirit remains.