Celebrated my birthday by visiting Cabrillo National Monument and watch the epic sun setting from The Sunset Cliffs in San Diego.
Yep! 48 years on earth, my friends.
Cabrillo National Monument is a park @ the Southermost tip of Point Loma, in San Diego. It commemorates the landing of Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo at San Diego Bay on September 28, 1542. The first European to land on what will be the Western US.
https://youtu.be/BawKM3YbrCo -short clip I uploaded in my You tube channel, Claren Wanders, which, by the way, is still under process. Pardon, the mediocrity.
How to get to Cabrillo National Monument
Cabrillo National Monument Address- 1800 Cabrillo Memorial Dr, San Diego, CA 92106. It took us about 1 hour and 45 minutes to reach Point Loma. There was a 20-min wait according to the sign, before reaching the pay station, but thank you to our America the Beautiful, national pass- we skipped the line and went our way straight on.
You can get a national pass from https://store.usgs.gov/pass. Link to the online store. Expect to get it by mail in 5-10 days. Otherwise, wait in line and pay $35/car. We got ours in 7 days. Just in time before visiting Lake Tahoe. We’ll talk about that in my succeeding blog.
https://www.nps.gov/cabr/index.htm. Link to NPS- Cabrillo. Read about all the precautions implemented during Covid Pandemic here.
Things to see inside the park
Once inside the park, first off, as i always do, go to the visitor center and learn everything you can about the park. Sites to see, how to’s, safety measures, avoid which, and more. Outside the center, is a panoramic view of San Diego Bay, Naval Base, Downtown San Diego Skyline, Coronado Island, and mountain ranges at a distance. Soak in the beautiful scene and fresh air.
Walk about 5 minutes to Cabrillo Monument Itself overlooking Mexico. Take pictures, sit by the bay and watch different kinds of water vehicle passing.
Hike to the Old Lighthouse, less than a mile from the monument. The lighthouse itself and the adjacent museum is closed because of the pandemic, but you can go around it to be greeted by the Pacific Ocean!
After the stroll, we drove down to the tide pools, which is to the left if your coming from the parking area. About 5 minutes of Oceanside view, the road will veer to the right and towards the parking areas. Tide Pool Parking #3 was closed, but the other parking areas were open. However, there was a long line at that time, so we bailed. Maybe next time.
Sunset Cliffs San Diego
From there, we drove 15 minutes to the famous Sunset Cliffs – you guessed it right!, to watch the sunset. We got there about 45 minutes before sunset. Had to wait a bit to get a parking space. It’s packed even on weekdays as it is a very popular spot for sunset gazing. Just put Sunset Cliffs Natural Park in your GPS and it will get you there. It was a beautiful sunset. No wonder, people flock just to witness it.
To Liberty Public Market- Point Loma
Spent an hour and a half watching the sun set, before driving to Liberty Public Market. Address: 2820 Historic Decatur Rd, San Diego, CA 92106 https://bluebridgehospitality.com/libertypublicmarket/. Liberty Public Market is located @ Liberty Station. A hip market in an old Navy Station, famous for shopping, dining, arts and crafts, and brewery.
I was craving for lobster roll and Wicked Maine Lobster, always tops my list. It’s about 15-20 minute drive depending on traffic. https://youtu.be/BawKM3YbrCo– link to a short clip
Got us some wonton noodle soup from Slurp, which is a stall next to the Wicked Maine. Tried locally flavored beer from BottleCraft.
Birthday Dinner was perfect! Happy Birthday to me!
Fun fact:
Liberty Public Market in Liberty Station, an old Navy Station – where Tom Cruise’ Top Gun was filmed, specifically the Naval Center where Maverick visited his friend Viper.
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