Day Trip to La Jolla, CA

One more California post before I catch up to present day…

During our spring in Encinitas, we took a day trip to La Jolla. It wasn’t too exciting for Bryan, since he lived in San Diego for eight years previously. But it was quite exciting for me, as a San Diego novice.

We started the day at Fig Tree Cafe in Pacific Beach. We tried the massive breakfast sushi appetizer, followed by a customizable trio of pancakes and french toast (pictured here). Portions were very large and very delicious.

The next stop was my favorite, because seeing California sea lions never gets old to me! Even after we went swimming with sea lions earlier this year in Peru, I still love to see them anywhere and everywhere.

This time was a bonus because it was pup season, so there were lots of babies.

In the same area, we also saw tons of pelicans closer than I ever have before. These guys do some crazy things with their beaks and necks!

After that, we headed up the hill to Legends Gallery to admire some of Dr. Seuss’ original artwork. In case you didn’t know, Dr. Seuss lived in La Jolla for a few decades and there are many places to see his work and memory throughout the city of San Diego. Legends Gallery is one of them.

It’s a small place, but you could spend almost an hour there looking at all the different pieces. What a creative imagination!

We made one final stop on the way home. It happened to be National Donut Day, so we stopped at Sidecar Donuts in Del Mar (not exactly La Jolla) for a treat to end the trip.

Day Trip to Julian, CA

While we were spending the spring in Encinitas, we decided to take a quick day trip to Julian, CA. Julian is about an hour and a half from Encintas, but it feels like a completely different world! There are forests and hiking, plus the quaint small town of Julian itself.

We started the day hiking Volcan Mountain (about 5 miles). It was very hot that day, so the steep climb at the beginning was intense, but there was a winding trail that offered a decent amount of shade.

Bailey helped us navigate the route to the top:

After the hike, we found a cidery and winery close by at Storm Ranch. Julian is well known for its apple orchards and apple picking in the fall. I guess I was too tired to remember to take any photos, but the cider flight was extremely refreshing, and dogs were allowed inside.

The next stop was lunch at another dog-friendly establishment: Julian Beer Co, where we had a serious BBQ lunch to replenish after the hike. Everything tasted great.

The town of Julian was wildly crowded on a spring Saturday, but we managed to squeeze a spot at the picnic tables outside. And we couldn’t forget Julian’s staple: apple pie. The line at the cute pie shop next door was wrapped all the way around the building and into the street. Luckily, we figured out that there is a separate window where you can walk right up and order a pie to go. When we tried it at home later, I would totally understand why the line is so long. It was delicious!

The Hamptons

My sister is having her last hurrah in NYC this week before she and her boyfriend pack up and move to Pennsylvania to start his medical residency. I feel bad for them since their last months in the city were dashed by Covid quarantines. They’ve been fully cooped up, so I’m sure the trails and forests of PA will be a welcome change. I took a couple trips down to see them and make the most of our rare time together in the same state.

During one of the trips, I decided to take a drive out to the Hamptons, because I’d never been. I knew it would be a long drive, but I don’t have much else going on these days. I started out following this guide to the scenic stops along Montauk Highway, but after about 4 stops, which were certainly beautiful and worth stopping at, I decided I’d better just make my way to Montauk or I’d be on the road all day.

There are so many gorgeous views along the way; it doesn’t hurt to stop at any of them. And it was so nice being outside and on the water after so many cold and rainy days this spring.

I was surprised at how rural and scenic everything is once you get further out onto Long Island. It’s a far cry from the hustle and bustle of Queens and the rest of NYC.

Since it was midweek, the stops weren’t crowded at all. It was even strange to see the touristy beach towns almost deserted. On the other hand, I was glad to have views like these all to myself:

Montauk was the main attraction. I couldn’t believe how many trees and how few cars I saw along the highway. I wouldn’t have believed that I was less than two hours outside of New York City. Once I got into town, I could tell that I was in a beachy vacation neighborhood by the number of cars and people walking around, but it still felt calm in the offseason. Restaurants were open for takeout, so I grabbed a bagel for the road.

Of course the main lighthouse park was closed due to quarantine, but I was still able to walk around the beach and the base of the lighthouse. The restrooms were open, which I thankfully found out before I had to duck behind the nearest tree! I did see more people walking around on the trails down to the beach, so I put my mask on and kept my distance.

I felt peaceful walking along the water by the ocean. It ended up being a long-ish drive from Queens (about 2 hours each way), but I found it to be worth the trip. I’m not sure the next time I’ll be on Long Island after my sister moves, so I’m glad I took the chance to travel out there while it was accessible. However, if anyone has a Hamptons beach house, I will gladly accept any invitations (wink, wink).