Day 4 (February 18, 2019): The wildlife of La Jolla and the (more human) wildlife of Mission Bay!

What do you do when you wake up at 1AM and can’t get back to sleep?  You go look at the moon, of course!  And that’s exactly I did.  The almost-full moon reflecting on the Pacific was stunning at 5AM, lit up in the early morning hours.

A couple hours’ extra sleep did eventually return at daybreak, and we got up and away by 9AM.  Breakfast was had at Denny’s and as was the case yesterday, the crowds were unbelievable.  I guess it was at least partially due to this being the actual Presidents’ Day holiday.

On the agenda for this morning: the quaint (if not overrun-with-tourists) seaside town of La Jolla, just north of San Diego.  The air wasn’t exactly warm, but the sun was very present, making a stroll along the ocean in La Jolla just perfect.  La Jolla is drippy with upscale shops and cafes, begging you to drop spend til it hurts.  But we were here to see seals, sea-lions and pelicans.  And see them did we ever!  Seal and sea-lion pups are born starting in December, so the beaches were littered with moms and pups.  Trying to narrow it down to which few pics to post was the challenge of the day!

Less cute, but just as impressive by number, were the pelicans.

We walked along the La Jolla coastline for almost two hours and by the time we were ready to leave, we felt we had truly seen an amazing spectacle of nature.

From La Jolla, we made our way to Mission Beach.  Mission Beach is central San Diego’s best beach scene – totally the stuff you see on those movies about Southern Cal.  A paved walkway follows the beach north-south, and it’s loaded with cyclists, joggers, in-line skaters, you name it.  We even saw a guy who was about 80 years old roller-blading on one-leg, with the other straight out behind him, and his arms spread-eagle.  And yes, we laughed.  Mission Beach has its own unique pier, with rental cottages built on it.  The SoCal piers provide a wonderful way to take in the beach scene and provide excellent vistas.

With our fill of Mission Beach, we headed back to the hotel to enjoy some time sitting around the pool – and why not?  All sightseeing and no R&R isn’t a recipe for balance, after all. 

This was Applebee’s night!  We headed to the neighboring city of Chula Vista at 6PM and had a great meal at one of our American favorites.  And that, as they say, was that!  Hard to imagine that pack-up-and-leave day is tomorrow.  Seems like we just got here.

Moon on the water at 5AM

The coffee mug at Denny's spoke volumes!


The seals -- and seal pups -- of La Jolla.






The seals had their space, and the sea lions had theirs, too!  Both in huge numbers.


Now THAT's what I call "living in community"!


Oh, and that's communitty #3:  the pelicans.


Pelicans of La Jolla.


the sea=carved coastline of La Jolla.


Mission Beach - San Diego's quintessential SoCal beach scene.  The hotel in the background is where we stayed on our first trip to San Diego, back in the 1990s.


The Pier at Mission Beach features immaculate cottages for rent.


The view from the Mission Beach Pier looking south.


Surfers were out in great numbers at Mission Beach.


We passed this sign several times on the I-5 South and found it almost ironic, given the drug and crime scene in Mexico, with its mass killings...


A little pause for some R&R at the resort in Imperial Beach.


A dramatic storm rolls in from the mountains at dusk. 

The sun sets on Surfer Dude on our last night in SoCal.