San Diego is often called America's finest city - and La Jolla is the gem of San Diego - a beautiful community situated along San Diego's Pacific Coast. People flock to La Jolla, captivated by its trendy boutique-lined streets gemmed with art, clothing, jewelry, gifts and other shopping destinations. Indulgent soft sand beaches, amazing weather, laid back people and an abundance of activities make La Jolla a visitor's paradise. Here are five activities that should not be missed.
Originally designed as a safe place for children to wade, Children's Pool is a man-made pool-into-the-ocean that one was a children's beach but is now a famous haven for wild Harbor Seals. Visitors enjoy venturing out along a cement walkway over the water to watch the seals and their youngsters lounging, playing and slipping away into the ocean. Nearby, you will find the beautiful La Jolla Cove bathing beach and tide pools.
La Jolla is home to one of the most spectacular waterfronts in Southern California, complete with remarkable caves, rugged sandstone cliffs, soft sandy beaches and picturesque sunsets. La Jolla Cove is a protected marine sanctuary with an idyllic crescent of sandy beach sheltered from the ocean waves. The Cove is a wonderful place for swimming, snorkeling or just people watching. Continuing south you'll pass through the grassy Scripps Park- a staging area for family picnics, Fourth of July fireworks and free summer concerts.
A visit to The Cave Store affords visitors the opportunity to descend a 100 year old stairway, into a manmade tunnel, down into the fascinating and mysterious Sunny Jim Cave - the largest of several ocean caves in La Jolla Cove. The cave's first owner, Sunny Jim, hired two Chinese laborers in the early 1900's to dig this underground tunnel down to the cave. Using only picks and shovels, they carried all the dirt out by hand. In the 1910's, the only way the public could get to the cave was by lowering themselves down a rope. Today, you can take 145 stairs from The Cave Store. Sunny Jim Cave is the only sea cave in California that you can enter from a stairway.
Mount Soledad has the best drive-up views of San Diego. Take Nautilus Street up to the park at the top where you are met with incredible views. On a clear day you can look north along the coast into Orange County or south into Mexico. The park is home to an enormous cross that looks majestically down from the mountain, visible from more than 10 miles away. Interestingly, Mount Soledad holds the last home lived in by Dr. Seuss. His widow, Audrey Geisel still lives on Mt. Soledad in an abandoned observation tower that is referred to as "the Seuss House" by local residents.
Situated over the ocean on sandstone bluffs north of La Jolla, between Torrey Pines Park and La Jolla Farms, The Torrey Pines Gliderport is designated specifically for today's gliders. On days when the winds are just right, gliders line the cliffs, waiting for the perfect gust to carry them into the sky. The graceful navigators riding the sea breezes in their brightly colored gliders attract admiring spectators up and down the Torrey Pines shoreline year-round. You can fly like a bird by going tandem with an instructor after a 30-minute ground school, then up and away off the edge of a 300 foot cliff out over the ocean, a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Originally designed as a safe place for children to wade, Children's Pool is a man-made pool-into-the-ocean that one was a children's beach but is now a famous haven for wild Harbor Seals. Visitors enjoy venturing out along a cement walkway over the water to watch the seals and their youngsters lounging, playing and slipping away into the ocean. Nearby, you will find the beautiful La Jolla Cove bathing beach and tide pools.
La Jolla is home to one of the most spectacular waterfronts in Southern California, complete with remarkable caves, rugged sandstone cliffs, soft sandy beaches and picturesque sunsets. La Jolla Cove is a protected marine sanctuary with an idyllic crescent of sandy beach sheltered from the ocean waves. The Cove is a wonderful place for swimming, snorkeling or just people watching. Continuing south you'll pass through the grassy Scripps Park- a staging area for family picnics, Fourth of July fireworks and free summer concerts.
A visit to The Cave Store affords visitors the opportunity to descend a 100 year old stairway, into a manmade tunnel, down into the fascinating and mysterious Sunny Jim Cave - the largest of several ocean caves in La Jolla Cove. The cave's first owner, Sunny Jim, hired two Chinese laborers in the early 1900's to dig this underground tunnel down to the cave. Using only picks and shovels, they carried all the dirt out by hand. In the 1910's, the only way the public could get to the cave was by lowering themselves down a rope. Today, you can take 145 stairs from The Cave Store. Sunny Jim Cave is the only sea cave in California that you can enter from a stairway.
Mount Soledad has the best drive-up views of San Diego. Take Nautilus Street up to the park at the top where you are met with incredible views. On a clear day you can look north along the coast into Orange County or south into Mexico. The park is home to an enormous cross that looks majestically down from the mountain, visible from more than 10 miles away. Interestingly, Mount Soledad holds the last home lived in by Dr. Seuss. His widow, Audrey Geisel still lives on Mt. Soledad in an abandoned observation tower that is referred to as "the Seuss House" by local residents.
Situated over the ocean on sandstone bluffs north of La Jolla, between Torrey Pines Park and La Jolla Farms, The Torrey Pines Gliderport is designated specifically for today's gliders. On days when the winds are just right, gliders line the cliffs, waiting for the perfect gust to carry them into the sky. The graceful navigators riding the sea breezes in their brightly colored gliders attract admiring spectators up and down the Torrey Pines shoreline year-round. You can fly like a bird by going tandem with an instructor after a 30-minute ground school, then up and away off the edge of a 300 foot cliff out over the ocean, a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
About the Author:
In 2007 Terry Hunefeld retired as CEO of a training company to pursue his passion of sailing the Pacific Ocean to study pelagic seabirds and marine mammals. Hunefeld and his wife Ann own and operate the lovely Inn At Moonlight Beach in a small surf town just north of San Diego. For more information visit: La Jolla B&Bs or La Jolla California Hotels.
