Travelin' Local » Torrey Pines

Torrey Pines Beach – Up Close and Personal

Lisa Newton — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 12:32:14 +0000

This is last story from my Torrey Pines series, featuring its ocean shore.

Although Torrey Pines was named for the pines trees that have prevailed for centuries, a major part of the park is the ocean and it’s view from the ground level.

I’ve shown it to you from afar, but not up close and personal.

The day I was Travelin’ Local to Torrey Pines, it was Spring Break, so the beach was busier than most normal non-summer weekdays.

Under the careful eagle eyes of the lifeguards, this family was boogie boarding on the waves. The Grandmother, who came prepared with her big beach umbrella and snacks, was also keeping a watchful eye, as the children played in the surf.

In full spring blossom, the cliffs surrounding the beach presented quite a contrast between the flowers blooming against the natural color of the cliff walls. It’s amazing how much color just a simple cliff can have.

If you look closely, you can see the “holes” in the cliff wall. I’m sure that over the centuries, the ebb and flow of the ocean waves caused these holes. I found myself wondering what they will look like in the next thousand years.

I took my shoes off, and made a foray into the shoreline water. Watching the play of waves, sand, and rocks has always been a fascination of mine.

What causes the rocks to be the colors they are? What events have taken place that placed pink, black, and white to appear on this rock?

The old adage that every picture tells a story, so as I wrap up this series chronicling my visit to Torrey Pines, I’ll leave you with a picture that moved me.

These young lovers are acknowledging and appreciating the majesty of the ocean, its power and all-encompassing strength.

Growing up in Ohio, I was very far removed from the ocean.

And then after high school, even though I lived for the next 20+ years on the East Coast, the ocean was somewhere I went for a few vacations, only able to enjoy and appreciate it for snippets of time, but never really understanding its grace and elegance.

Now I live only a heartbeat away from the magnificent Pacific Ocean, which I’m able to visit whenever I want. It’s become a part of me, the sound, the beat, and the rhythm. I can’t see it without being moved.

Do you have a place of seclusion, a place of relaxation, a place of enjoyment that makes you feel this way?

No matter whether it’s sojourning to Torrey Pines, walking high at Coldwater Canyon, going for a bicycle ride at Ballona Creek, or checking out the latest scene downtown, by Travelin’ Local the joy of visiting my “sweet spots” only make them sweeter, because I don’t have to go far, or spend a lot of money to appreciate what others around the world come here for every single day of the year.

Torrey Pines, Dolphins, and another day in San Diego

Lisa Newton — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 11:42:17 +0000

When we last left Torrey Pines, I was at the top, looking in all directions.

A few yards down from the trail, I saw that several people were looking out at the ocean; so of course, being the naturally curious person I am, I stopped to see what they were looking at.

Low and behold, as you can see here, dolphins were frolicking in the midday ocean’s sun and were having a swim. Although, they were pretty far from the shore, you can clearly see one of the dolphin’s fins peaking out. Needless to say, I was very excited because I had never seen one in its natural habitat.

The coastal strip of San Diego is more than a hundred miles long, and with its Mediterranean climate of mild wet winters, and warm dry summers, results in a long growing season, and probably the best weather anywhere in the world.

San Diego’s average temperatures, range from a January minimum of 45F, to an August maximum of 80F, with a yearly average of 62F!

Hey, Life’s a Beach.

The majority of rainfall comes during the winter and early spring, with a seasonal average of less than 10 inches.

The salt marsh, pictured above on the right, is a highly productive ecosystem—,creating an extremely important wildlife habitat. It serves as both a nursery for fish and shellfish and a feeding and nesting ground for resident and migratory birds.

BTW, my car is parked in the little strip located to the left of North Torrey Pines Road, so my walk was literally onto Torrey Pines, which is seen from this mountaintop looking north.

Located to the south are Blacks beach and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography pier.

This woman and her companions were using one of the most interesting “Wheelchairs” I had ever seen.

I talked to Susan for a few minutes, and she told me that she was a “Guinea Pig” for this particular model, and loved it. And it’s obvious why:

As you can see from the picture–it’s a beach wheelchair. Amazingly, although it took a little bit of effort to get it onto the hill, once there, I was very impressed with its ability to move on the trail.

Its maneuverability was fantastic as opposed to a traditional wheelchair; which for all intents and purposes, would’ve been near impossible to navigate here; it didn’t get stuck in the sand, and easily afforded her the ability to go where she couldn’t have gone in a normal chair.

I love this idea and I know that Susan did, too; because she told me!

As I turned and reached the final corner facing the beach, I suddenly found myself enclosed in a harbor of pines—, glorious and stunning.

Torrey Pines

This pine is probably the remnant of an ancient coastal forest which has been reduced during the drying period of the last ten thousand years to the sandy soils of the sandstone bluffs and ravines of Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve and Santa Rosa Island. Extensive root systems and blankets of summer fog help the Torrey pine survive and thrive. The continuous winds cause the pines to grow twisted and gnarled creating a blanket of shade for the travelers on the trail.

As my Travelin’ Local sojourn takes me back to Los Angeles, I’ll leave you with this picture. The mixture of deadwood and new wildflowers fascinated me.

Buried in the sand together–the visual contrast between the dead pines and the new yellow flowers is quite striking.

For another look at Torrey Pines, be sure to check out Kevin’s recent visit over at his blog, Kevin Oke Photography. He took ordinary sights and converted them to artwork. It’s definitely worth a look.

San Diego, Torrey Pines, and the next place to Travelin’ Local, will always be etched into my memory. But as for reminiscing, I’m already plottin’ and plannin’ my next local cool spot to visit.

San Diego, Torrey Pines, and a Trail

Lisa Newton — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 09:38:12 +0000

A friend invited me to share Passover Seder at their house in beautiful San Diego.

Of course, I brought myself, my appetite, and my Nikon.

So I graciously accepted her invitation, and after the evening sunset, when the Seder began, and dinner had been served, I was already contemplating my next sojourn for Travelin’ Local.

Although I’ve been to San Diego a couple of times, I haven’t explored the city that much. However, I soon found myself high upon the mountain bluffs of the Torrey Pines State Reserve, with its splendorous views of both the ocean and the city.

And what a find it was–starting at the bottom:

I climbed up the hill to the

And around the first bend:

This picture is representative of the majestic and grandeur of the unblemished Pacific Ocean at Torrey Pines.

The Torrey Pines are trees that were planted over a hundred years ago and are prevalent and plentiful in this area—aptly named Torrey Pines.

The US Open Golf Tour also holds an annual world famous Golf Tournament.

As I stood on the trail on the right, overlooking the sights and sounds of the Pacific Ocean, I was anticipatory of what was coming next–but that still didn’t prepare me for the new sights yet to come my way.

As this path wound around the hill, nature had its way of reminding me of who’s boss:

After passing under this deadwood archway, I encountered this sight to behold:

La Jolla may be the Jewel of the World—literally—but Torrey Pines is a friend for life—every moment there was joyous and wondrous, and by the time I was finished with my visit, I snapped at least 200 pictures.

Again, my destination is foretold by the people standing on the platform above, but before we get to the peak, I thought that this was an interesting part of the area’s history and folklore:

“Dead Pines.” The tree skeletons are all that remains from a severe drought and bark beetle outbreak in the mid 1960’s.” Even in death, life begins anew.

Once I reached the vantage point, I took pictures in all different directions:

Looking to my left

Looking straight down

Off to my right.

As it’s literally impossible to capture all of Torrey Pines in one story, I’ll share the rest with you later this week.

I encountered dolphins, wildflowers, the Salt Marsh, and as mentioned above, the Torrey Pine trees–the most restricted and rarest pines in North America.

Do you have plans for Easter Sunday? No matter what your celebration may be, every day is special and a holiday, with new and exciting places to go and see while Travelin’ Local.

Wishing all of you a Happy Holiday.