Coronado Beach is a wide, sandy beach which stretches for about 1 1/2 miles from the Hotel del Coronado to North Island Naval Air Station. Considered one of the world’s best beaches, Coronado Beach has a pleasant atmosphere, with a panoramic view of the Los Coronado Islands and Point Loma.
Coronado City Beach
Choose from an array of activities like swimming, volleyball, boogie boarding, surfing, kite flying, fishing, and sunbathing. The beach is next to a residential neighborhood of expensive historical homes, and with downtown Coronado’s Orange Ave is just a few blocks away. Parking is available along Ocean Blvd and side streets.
Beach access can be reached from a dirt path near the hotel and farther north on a concrete path that leads down to the beach and restrooms.
Tags: "California beaches", Coronado, Coronado Beach, San Diego, San Diego beaches
By Mark Goodkin
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Chula Vista Nature Center
The Chula Vista Nature Center is a hidden gem, isolated from the main part of Chula Vista, on the Sweetwater Estuary, along the west banks of the San Diego Bay. The nature center showcases many of the plants and animals of the estuary and bay. I visited the nature center in April on a nice, sunny day.
To get to the Chula Vista Nature Center, you leave your car in a parking lot a few hundred yards from the nature center and take a shuttle. The nature center is fenced in, with a gate opening only for the shuttle and designated cars. The nature center can’t be seen from the parking lot, so the ride was filled with anticipation. We traveled through a section of the estuary, and finally, we could see the spacious buildings and outdoor exhibit areas.
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Tags: "Chula Vista Nature Center", "Nature Center", "Nature Exhibits", "Sweetwater Estuary", Chula Vista, Lagoon, San Diego, San Diego Bay
By Mark Goodkin
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US Imperial Beach Sandcastle Competition
I drove down I-5 from North County to the US Imperial Beach Sandcastle Competition yesterday. I made a detour through Coronado and the Silver Strand Hwy, which made for a pleasant journey on such a nice day. I got to Imperial Beach around noon and parked about half a mile away in a small neighborhood. As I walked along Imperial Beach Blvd to the beach, there were a few empty spots here and there, as well as paid parking at Imperial Beach High School, were bike cabs pedaled people to the beach.
As I got closer to the beach, I couldn’t help but admire the small beach town atmosphere, with mom and pop shops and restaurants. This part of town is definitely not glitzy, but nor was it seedy, as it once had been. The neighborhood I parked in and others I walked through are humble, yet well maintained. Close to the beach now, I saw the Tijuana Estuary, an open expanse, stretched all the way to the border. The town is definitely isolated from the rest of San Diego County, separated by a bay, a naval area, and estuaries.
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Tags: "California beaches", Beaches, Events, Imperial Beach, Piers, San Diego