More San Diego - Sunset Cliffs, Cabrillo National Monument, Presidio, Heritage Park and Old Town San Diego, March 8th & 9th

Today's adventure is to see the Sunset Cliffs and the Cabrillo National Monument. It's so nice being camped so close to downtown, as everywhere we go is less than 30 minutes away. We didn 't get going as early as we wanted .... damn power went off completely in the MH again!!!!!

The breakers in the MH tripped and the 50amp breaker at the post. No shore power or inverter after resestting everything. After Ray tested everything, he called Xantrex. He determind there's no power getting to the Xantrex. The guy next door came to help and between them determined the 300 amp fuse blew again. Although power seemed to go through the fuse it didn't go from the fuse to the negative terminal. He changed out the fuse and we were back online again. We have no idea why that fuse box keeps loosening and shorts out. Time for some lock tight.

We then headed out at 10:30 am for our tour.

First up, the Sunset Cliffs. 

Sunset Cliffs is an affluent coastal community in the Point Loma community of San Diego, California. It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean on the west, Ocean Beach on the north, Catalina Blvd. and Santa Barbara St. on the east, and Sunset Cliffs Natural Park on the south. 

You sure can see where the ocean is wearing away the sandstone cliffs. We stopped at 2 different parking lots to get all the shots Ray'd planned. Surfs up today.

First Arch

Ray walked down so I could take his picture.

Ready set jump!

Fisherman moving back to miss getting wet.

Sea cave with collapsed roof. Only able to get to it on a negative tide. The top is fenced in. Ray took this picture above the chain link fence.

Ballast they have barged in to help protect the cliffs. Note the small arch in the corner.

Next up, the Cabrillo National Monument and Point Loma Lighthouse. You drive down a road that goes through the Naval Base Point Loma (a submarine base) and past a huge cemetary (way to many lives lost to wars) before getting to the point.We have our America the Beautiful pass so it's free to us instead of $20.

A Voyage of Exploration at Cabrillo National Monument

Climbing out of his boat and onto shore in 1542, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo stepped into history as the first European to set foot on what is now the West Coast of the United States. In addition to telling the story of 16th century exploration, the park is home to a wealth of cultural and natural resources. 

Visitors Centre

Views across the harbor.

Frigate leaving harbour.

Coronado Bridge

Coast Guard Helicpoter

San Diego Skyline

Passenger plane taking off from Coronado Airport

F-16 coming in for a landing

Hotel Del Coronado

Point Loma Navy Submarine Base

Looking at the military airstrip.

Shelter Island

We walked further up a trail to the Point Loma Lighthouse.

San Diego, at the southwest boundary of the U.S., was an obvious choice for a lighthouse. The tip of Point Loma, at 422 feet above sea level, offered what seemed to be the perfect spot for a lighthouse because the light could be seen from both the ocean side of Point Loma and the bay side.

Construction of the lighthouse began in 1854. Francis A. Gibbons and Francis X. Kelly were partners in the Baltimore firm ultimately hired for the job. They disliked the Point Loma location because it required them to build a road and bridges in order to haul materials to the site. Water for the mortar and plaster was brought in from a well in La Playa, about seven miles away.

We didn't go up these skinny stairs to the light, but Ray took a picture up the stairwell. I didn't see anyone come out on the balcony at the top, so I suspect you can only go where the last windows are, visible from the backside anyways.

 

A light in the other building to view.

Kitchen Garden

As you can see it's a long way down to the water where the tide pools are. We opted not to go down there. :)

By now it's 1 pm, time to leave and find a place to have lunch. Great beer selection and barbecue at the Barbecue House 1/2 a block from the beach.

This whole area is about drinking booze lol. Lots of bars and restaurants right at Pacific Beach area. This place turned out to be across from Hodads, which we ate at earlier this week. Lots of "funky people" up and down the street who I imagine are "surfer dudes". Knitted colourful touques, shorts and sandals. 

Back home for 2:30 or so to sit outside in the sunshine. Fabulous day.

Today's a beautiful day. There's a 5K run on the road outside the park at 9am. This will close our access for going out for 2 hour,s so we decided to "get out of dodge" shortly before 9am.

Today's adventure is the Presidio Park, Heritage Park and Old Town San Diego State Park. It's nice getting going early, as we missed the Saturday morning traffic and parking spots are easily found.

First up, the Presidio.

The Spanish presidio of San Diego was established on Presidio Hill July 1, 1769, the day Governor Don Gaspar de Portola claimed "Alta California" as a territory of Spain. The presidio was the first permanent European settlement on the Pacific Coast. It was also the base of operations for the Spanish colonization of California, achieved through the development of missions and presidios. The presidio served as the base for exploration throughout California's interior and it remained the seat of military power in California through the Mexican period. Originally constructed of wood, the presidio was reconstructed of adobe in 1778. When news of Mexico's independence from Spain reached California in 1822, the Mexican army took possession of the San Diego Presidio. From 1825-1829 it served as the Mexican Governor's residence. After the Pueblo de San Diego was founded in 1835, the presidio buildings fell into ruin. In 1929 a park was established at the site. The Serra Museum, adjacent the park, houses a collection of archeological artifacts related to the history of Spanish California.

There were a couples getting their pictures taken for either their wedding or engagement. Beautiful backdrop.

Back in the car to the top of the hill to see the Mormon Battlion Monument. First we walked through the beautiful arbor.

Back in the car we drove on the Scenic Drive nearby. What fabulous houses up here.

Time to head to the Heritage Park. What gorgeous Victorian houses. We couldn't go in, but the exteriors are all refurbished.

This charming County park is adjacent to Old Town in San Diego, and features several restored Victorian homes and the city’s first synagogue, The Temple Beth Israel. It is a fine example of the Victorian architecture of wealthy San Diego residents in the late 1880s-1890s. The Temple Beth Israel now hosts weddings, receptions and bar mitzvahs. The large lawn remains open to the public and is available for event reservations. NOTE: With the exception of the Senlis Cottage and Temple Beth Israel, the homes have been restored on the exterior, only, and are not open to the public. 

On June 29, 2021, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors directed the Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) to add overnight accommodations to the park, enhancing and activating this public space. The project is currently under design, and will protect the historic exterior of the Victorian-era homes while retrofitting the interiors. The project will include an outdoor meeting space and other amenities – as determined through the public meeting process. 

Across the street from the Heritage Park is the Mormon Battalion Historic Site. It wasn't open yet so Ray just took pictures of the outside.

Back in the car and downhill to Old Town San Diego Park. We were lucky to find a parking spot as the area is already quite busy. We walked the streets first, before going into the park.

A popular restaurant, the Cafe Coyote.

Fresh tortillas being made.

Per signage, this is the most haunted house in the US

After moving the car to another parking spot with more time on it, we headed into the Old Town Historic Park.

Old Town is a neighborhood of San Diego, California. It contains 230 acres and is bounded by Interstate 8 on the north, Interstate 5 on the west, Mission Hills on the east and south. It is the oldest settled area in San Diego and is the site of the first European settlement in present-day California.

 Lots of colour, restaurants and old shops portraying what it was like in the 1800's. First up we walked down Calhoun Street, past the Seely Stable Museum.

Look how small the covered wagons actually were.

Blacksmith demonstration. This pic seems appropriate as it's International Women Day.

Inner courtyard at the hotel with a bar and restaurant.

Time for lunch.

A 21 ounce margarita with a souvenir glass.

After lunch we continued strolling around. This is a humongous tree.

We popped into the Casa de Estadillo. We had no idea walking through the small gate that so much was behind it.

The Casa de Estudillo, also known as the Estudillo House, is a historic adobe house in San Diego, California, United States. It was constructed in 1827 by José María Estudillo and his son José Antonio Estudillo, early settlers of San Diego and members of the prominent Estudillo family of California, and was considered one of the finest houses in Mexican California.

The large building is a U-shaped structure, measuring 113 feet (34.4 m) on the front side, and 98 feet (29.9 m) on each of the wings.[7] It is constructed in the Spanish Colonial style, meaning that the house's 13 rooms are set consecutively in the building and connected only by an external covered corredor (as opposed to an interior hallway). (Wikipedia)

Back  home for 1:30 to sit outside. Another wonderful day. About 7500 steps for us today.