Last day in San Diego

Friday we head for a short drive up the road to Anaheim for our next stay so today we decided to take Charli for one last day at the beach.  The surf was considerably higher than our last visit which made for a little more excitement.  We both got caught walking a little to close to the water and when a larger wave would hit we would find ourselves running to try to keep ahead of the surf.  We both ended up with booters although Lori made the better choice of footwear than me.  Flip Flops dry much faster than hiking boots.

Flowers are starting to appear everywhere.  
Apple trees are in full bloom and most of the boulevards  and 
embankments have wildflowers and other perennials rather than grass.  

Strong west winds brought much large waves than our previous visit

Charli got her exercise chasing the waves.  She drank a bit too much of the
salt water though as later in the day she wasn't feeling too good. 

Lots of tennis balls being thrown around on the beach.
This one was ours but Charli had lost interest.

Pull out a bag of treats and a crowd forms. 

Lori didn't see this wave coming.  It came almost to her knees before retreating.  

The retreating water leaves a nice collection of rocks and sea shells.

These rocks had a rusty colour which made for a pretty shot. 

The retreating waves also left some vibrant colours in the tide pools. 

As the water drains off the rocks it creates a little waterfall. 

The wave action leaves some interesting ripples in the sand.  

It was a great way to finish our visit to San Diego.  Friday we leave for Anaheim where we will be spending most of our time trying to keep up to our 3 grandsons as we tour Disneyland.

Till then.

Oceanside Pier

Wednesday we took a drive to the Carlsbad Premium Outlet mall for a little shopping.  My penance for the Maritime Museum visit.  Thankfully the sales weren't too appealing and it didn't take Lori long to find a few items that previously she didn't know she needed.  It was still early so we decided to take a drive along the Coast Highway towards Oceanside, Ca.  The Coast Highway is a nice little road which before the Interstate was the main means of north south transportation.  It runs through a number of what used to be small towns and their old downtowns.  Has kind of a quaint feel and much more relaxing than the Interstate.

By chance we came upon the Oceanside Pier which extends a fairways out into the ocean and provides some great views and turns out a very good lunch.

You know your in California when you find charging stations at Malls.
Not sure fee is but this Nissan Leaf was plugged in getting recharged. 

Oceanside Pier built in 1927 at a cost of $100,000. 

This guy was determined to make it out past the breakers.  He didn't make it.
The waves were in excess of 6' as he got out a little further and one of them
swamped his little boat.  Next thing we saw was the boat floating upside down
 through the pier and him swimming after it.  He eventually recovered
 the boat and the paddle quite a ways down the beach.  

She was having a great time racing the waves. 

The mist from the waves was quite heavy.  If you licked you lips you could taste the salt.
I'm going to have to give my camera a thorough cleaning. 

Some great views and some very nice shacks along the beach.

The Brown Pelican.  

The Pelican kept trying to steal the guys catch.  

Much easier to get an even exposure in the shade. 

At the end of the Pier is Ruby's.  Our choice for lunch, which was great and at a good price.
The only problem was being on a long pier, well up in the air, every time a big wave would
hit we would feel a slight rolling sensation.  Made us both a bit queasy.  

All that was missing were those little personal juke boxes that used to
sit against the wall in the middle of the table.  Feed them a dime
for a single play or a quarter for 3 songs. 

Even the staff uniforms were in keeping with the times.  

We had a great day and with only one more day remaining in this stop we are planning to take Charli back to the Del Mar Dog Beach.

Till then.

Marine Museum

On Friday we had a big rain storm and Saturday and Sunday we still were experiencing the after affects with cool temps and a few showers.  Our only outings were a trip to Costco for some groceries and to Barnes & Noble so Lori could exorcise her book store demons.  By Monday all 3 of us were getting pretty shack-wacky and while the weather still wasn't great we all hopped in the truck and drove to "Carlsbad Village" which is a little shopping area in the city of Carlsbad just off the beach.  We took a walk down the boardwalk and did some window shopping.  Not a real exciting day but it sure beat sitting in the trailer for another day.

Wherever there is a public beach there are volleyball courts.
I can just imagine how full these beaches are in the summer

Notice the crosswalks.  The traffic all get their turn to drive
and then they all get red lights and pedestrians at each of
the 4 corners get to walk at the same time.
Including walking diagonally across the middle of the intersection. 

Tuesday we took one more drive on I-5 to the harbour downtown and took in the Maritime Museum of San Diego.  For $16. each we got to tour 7 ships. This and the tour of the Midway which cost $18.  have been the best bargains we have found.  Except perhaps the free walks down the beaches and piers which frankly have been the most enjoyable.

The first ship we toured was the Star of India which was built in 1863.  It was a metal hulled merchant sailing ship and in its active life it hauled cargo from India, emigrants from England to help settle New Zealand and finally became an Arctic Salmon fishing vessel.  It was being refurbished so it was a little difficult to see all of the ship.  They also had a class of school children on board being taught about the seafaring life of the sailers of the late 19th century.

The school kids in their classroom.
At one point we heard them yelling heave - ho over and over.
Then we noticed them pulling a rope which was attached to a dingy.
 They were hauling it up from the water below.
It was a bit askew but they were making progress.

A shot through one of the hatches. 

Captain Lori.

The second ship was the HMS Surprise.  A replica of an 18th century Royal Navy frigate and by all accounts is a very authentic re-creation.  Her first 30 years she spent sailing the east costs as a sail training tall ship.  If the ship looks somewhat familiar then you are probably a big fan of Russel Crowe and the movie Master and Commander.  The ship was purchased by 20th Century Fox and was the ship that Crowe commanded in that movie.

Can't imagine climbing up the rigging to unfurl the sails or sit in the crows nest.
I get dizzy cleaning the eaves on the house. 

Captain, which way is Port again. 

Now thats a lot of ropes.  Each one going somewhere important. 

The next ship was a Soviet Navy B-39 Submarine.  This sub was built in 1974 and is just under 300'  long.  It had a crew of 78 and could be at sea for months at a time.  I cannot imagine 78 men in such cramped quarters gliding under the ocean at depths of 985'.

The hull has lots of rust and holes so definitely not sea worthy

This was outside the gangplank to let everyone know they had to
be willing and able to pass through 4 of these doorways.  

Torpedo tubes.  6 Forward and 4 Aft.

They had a short movie describing what was an "almost" nuclear event that was
just barely avoided during the Cuban Missile crisis.  

One of the doorways we had to crawl through.  Would have been
a piece of cake 20 years ago.  Not so much now. 

All the workings fully exposed.  

The Head. 

The sleeping accommodations  

The next ship was a replica of the San Salvador.  A Spanish galleon which was captained by Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo who was the first European explorer to arrive at what is now San Diego in 1542.  It is 98' long with a beam of 32'.

Can't imagine such a small ship on such a big ocean. 

A mass of ropes and rigging.

The second submarine we went through was the USS Dolphin.  It was built in 1968 with an overall length of 165' and a beam of only 18'.  Looked like a large torpedo with a conning tower. It was actually much easier to walk through than the Soviet sub as this one had much taller corridors and no small porthole like doorways to crawl through.  This ship was used mostly for naval research from the time it was built to its decommissioning in 2007.  It had a diving depth of 3000'.

Very narrow and most of it was below the water line. 

Much easier to navigate

The periscope.  Just like in the movies. 

The old and the new.  A cruise ship in the background

We also got onto the Steam Ferry Berkeley.  It had beautiful stained glass windows and fancy benches for its passengers.  Almost looked like the interior of an old church.  It  operated on San Francisco Bay in the early 1900's and was notable for ferrying survivors away from San Francisco during the 1906 earthquake.   I didn't get any pictures but it was quite elegant.  

There were a few more ships however they were being refurbished or had been chartered for tours.  

After all of this climbing, ducking and fresh air it was time for lunch.  We got a table on the outside patio at the Fish Market.  The view was great but just as we sat down the clouds rolled in and with the wind blowing off the bay it was a little cool.  Still not something we could experience back home.  

The USS Midway over Lori's right shoulder.

About 4 feet from us was the water and this was our view.
Not too bad even if the food was only so so. 

At one point Lori commented that she was feeling the same as I do when she hauls me through a shopping mall.  She hides it better than I do.  I thought she was really enjoying herself.  I feel a visit to the Carlsbad Premium Outlet Mall is in my future.  Payback for making her look at a bunch of old ships.  

So next up an Outlet mall and a walk on the Pier.

Till then.