3 Nov 2025
So, I had a plan.
I thoroughly enjoyed tidepooling in Oregon last year and hunting for nudibranchs, and got to wondering- do nudibranchs change seasonally? Are the nudis up north the same as the ones down south? So I did a bit of research and discovered Cabrillo National Monument in southern California, which is known for its extensive tidepools. Lucky for me, a week of low tides lined up with my off week!
Then the government shut down.
And while some (most) of the National Parks have remained open in some capacity, Cabrillo is closed and you can’t really get to its beaches without going through the park or across military property.
Lame.
Fortunately, I thought to look into it before arriving in CA, and found a few alternate tidepools up in La Jolla. And bonus- I can reach several different sites on foot- no having to worry about parking! Since La Jolla is a bit more expensive than Point Loma (where I was originally staying), I decided to skip the rental car and just walk or take the bus to save a bit of money.
Unfortunately, like many trips starting from my local airport, this one begins with a 330a alarm and a sleepy plane in the dark:
This was not a full flight, and we were encouraged to spread out, so my seatmate moved to a different row and I tipped over and fell asleep, waking up with the sun as we landed in Chicago:
According to the flight tracker, my next plane arrived last night, so as our departure time approached, they brought him over from wherever he spent the night:
I’m not sure what’s causing that shadowed line:
Welcome to San Diego!
Since I decided to skip the rental car, I’m starting this part of my trip on foot. It took me longer than it probably should have to get out of the airport (my sidewalk kinda just ended), but eventually, I found the path I was looking for, which runs right along the harbor:
A little over a mile and a half later, I arrived at my first stop- donuts!
I selected this apple fritter as well as a glazed loaf that looked interesting (that’ll be tomorrow’s breakfast… or maybe tonight’s bedtime snack, we’ll see).
I continued my trek along the harbor and found this cute sign:
So. Many. Boats!
There were quite a few pelicans and egrets here, but my big camera was still packed away at the bottom of my bag, so no pictures 🙁
Stop #2- gelato and coffee!!!
I ordered a small mudslide gelato and a small nitro cold brew, but that donut was quite filling and it was only an additional half mile to get here. I finished the gelato (but had regrets- SO FULL!!!) but the coffee had to come with me (oh bummer, coffee for later).
My home for this week is about 10 miles north and that seemed like a bit far to walk, so it’s time to figure out San Diego’s transit system!
They’ve got an app that’s quite easy to use, and lets me reload my (digital) card on the fly- each ride costs $2.50 and I’ll have to change busses once. Is it the fastest way to get around? Nope, but it’s cheap and efficient enough, and I don’t have to worry about navigating or parking a car.
This is a terrible picture, but this is where I’ll be staying, Redwood Hollow Cottages:
Yes, there are only 4 parking spots, which is part of the reason I ditched my rental car. Sure there’s also street parking, but it just seemed like a hassle.
Technically, check-in is from 4-5pm, which is a very tiny window. I tried to kill as much time as possible, but still arrived almost 2 hours early. But, it never hurts to ask, and I was able to check-in early!
This is my home for the next week:
It’s a tiny studio, which I knew when I booked it, but it’s just me and I don’t really need that much space:
Though I do wish there was a table or more surface area to set stuff. I tried eating off the TV table, but ended up just eating in bed.
It does have a skylight though (first time I’ve ever had that in a room):
The gardens between the cottages are cute:
But this is the main reason I picked this place:
The beach is just down the block!
and it looks like the tide is still coming back in, so I ran back to my room and set up my underwater camera to do a bit of bonus hunting.
No nudibranchs, but I did find several of these chitons:
and TONS of tiny crabs:
Unfortunately, the light I grabbed wasn’t fully charged and died after a few minutes, so I wasn’t able to get very many pictures (and the tide was coming in, so there weren’t a ton of pools to search anyway, so here’s one final shot of an anemone with the sunlight filtering through:
Every time I stood up, I got lightheaded- besides a can of Coke on the plane and a bit of coffee with my treats, I haven’t really had much to drink today- it’s only like 70°F/21°C here, but I’ve been walking around in the sun all day. I need to find some hydration.
So I walked just a bit further (and found this cute fish on the sidewalk)
Up to the grocery store and stocked up on Gatorade and fresh fruit. Also, I’ve never seen something like this before:
Feels like something you’d find at the farmer’s market.
But it’s been a long day, and while I had every intention of watching the sun set over the ocean, I think I’ll save that for another day- I’m ready to call it a night.