Early this morning I headed to the mountains east of San Diego. I yearned to see the new snow.
I departed before a crowd of families and kids, eager to sled and throw snowballs, might jump into their cars. It doesn’t snow in a city whose climate is said to be the best in the world. For many San Diego residents a journey to the snow is a rare treat.
Cuyamaca Rancho State Park is a little less than an hour east of downtown San Diego. I drove from Interstate 8 up Highway 79 and lingered in several spots, crunching crackly ice and crisp snow under my shoes. Good thing I dressed warmly!
Here are a few photographs of winter’s beauty in the meadows and mountains of Cuyamaca.
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The 2018 Holiday Bowl Parade headed down Harbor Drive the morning of New Year’s Eve. Chilly, drizzly weather couldn’t stop America’s Largest Balloon Parade!
It might’ve been a bit more chilly and breezy than usual for San Diego this New Year’s Eve morning, but the 2018 Holiday Bowl Parade was just as fun as ever!
The Port of San Diego Holiday Bowl Parade, which proceeded down Harbor Drive along the Embarcadero, is billed as America’s Largest Balloon Parade. This year the parade featured the two college football teams that are competing in the 2018 Holiday Bowl: Northwestern University and the University of Utah. The big bowl game is kicking off right as I post these photographs!
Without further ado, here we go!
Before the Holiday Bowl Parade began, three cool old biplanes made a fly-by. Trailing smoke is a 1941 Boeing Stearman; the other two are Great Lakes.The Solar Turbines 5K run begins down Harbor Drive shortly before the parade.Northwestern University and University of Utah fans wore their colors up and down the parade route.Barricades are moved as the Holiday Bowl Parade is ready to begin!First up is WorldStrides on Stage. They will perform the halftime show at the Holiday Bowl football game in the afternoon.Another super fun Holiday Bowl Parade has begun!The San Diego Harbor Police Honor Guard helps to lead things off.Here comes Marine Band San Diego.The first balloon is cheerful Cheri the Octopus!And here comes Carter the Sea Turtle!San Diego County Supervisor Ron Roberts waves from the Wonderfront float. San Diego’s waterfront is indeed full of wonders!I wish I’d gotten a better pic of this funny group: The World-Famous Lawn Rangers! Their synchronized routine is so absurd you have to laugh out loud!Here come the Shawnee Mission North Marching Indians from Overland Park, Kansas.Pageantry and marching bands make any parade exciting!That big balloon swimming under the clouds is Louie the Blue Whale!And now I see good old Garfield! He’s giving somebody the thumbs up.These are the Norris High School Marching Titans from Firth, Nebraska!Next up is the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.Bob the Builder has either lost his balance or the breezy weather had gotten the better of the balloon’s handlers!Herencia Hispana comes down Harbor Drive wearing elaborate dresses and folk costumes!Beautifully swirling Mexican dresses delight the eye.Chinelos dancers were viewed with astonishment by many in the audience. It’s an unusual Mexican tradition popular in the state of Morelos.Danza del los Diablos. Looks like devilish fun!Another marching band! This one comes from Palo Verde Valley High School.Go Padres!That’s one gigantic, very happy Gingerbread Man! (Any relation to the friendly Stay Puft Marshmallow Man?)Many in the audience suddenly became excited. Who is that approaching?Here comes Northwestern University, one of the teams in the 2018 Holiday Bowl!Banners twirl proudly!Members of the Northwestern University Wildcat Marching Band thunder past!Willie the Northwestern mascot is up on the purple and white float with some cheerleaders!That’s one mighty big football!Members of Sports for Exceptional Athletes demonstrate their skill during the parade.Look! Here comes the University of Utah!The Utes also had a big contingent in the Holiday Bowl Parade.Swoop, the Utah mascot had a bit of trouble donning that Santa hat!The red and white Utah Utes float with smiling cheer squad passes by.The University of Utah Marching Utes all appear to be having a great time.More college football pageantry.Goodness! Here come even more balloons down Harbor Drive!It’s Hog Heaven!There’s no need to fear, Underdog is here! (My favorite.)And here is the Deer Valley High School Marching Band!Snowman is either tipping backward in the breezy weather or gradually melting.The San Diego State University Marching Aztecs precede Nicholas the Nutcracker!SDSU, a local university with a great sports history, marches with pride through downtown San Diego.The San Diego Star Wars Society is always a sure hit with young and old alike in any parade!Darth Vader says hello to someone watching the cool parade!A tiny TIE fighter and tiny Star Wars characters!Medieval fantasy follows futuristic fantasy. It’s Merlin the Wizard!Even more fun balloons! I see a San Diego Zoo Panda!It’s the beloved Very Hungry Caterpillar!It’s Mother Goose. (She must be taking a break from her big annual parade out in El Cajon.)More pageantry and excitement. It’s the Green Valley Marching Band!Yikes! Here comes the scariest Holiday Bowl Parade balloon of them all! Tessa the T-Rex!U.S. Naval Sea Cadets march past and receive many waves.The parade program calls this balloon entry Saxophone. It sure is a big one, though!The Bobcat Marching Band came to San Diego from Western Dubuque High School.During a break in the parade I turned my camera toward San Diego Bay and captured the nearby Star of India.From the world’s oldest active sailing ship to a space shuttle! This particular balloon Space Shuttle was taxiing down Harbor Drive on tiny wheels!You know these guys simply had to be in the parade. It’s the Al Bahr Shrine and their Tin Lizzies.Here come some Al Bahr Clowns.I had fun! Did you?
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
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Sunrise at South Bay Salt Works is a spectacle that’s hard to describe. The sun’s first rays tint the dunelike mounds of pure white salt with a golden glow, creating an effect that is otherworldly and strangely beautiful.
Yesterday as the sun cleared the horizon I approached South Bay Salt Works to experience the magic. I took many photographs!
Wikipedia has an extensive article about South Bay Salt Works, which is located near Chula Vista, in the tiny Fruitdale section of San Diego’s Otay Mesa-Nestor community. I was interested to learn it’s the second longest running business in San Diego after the San Diego Union Tribune newspaper. The salt factory began as La Punta Salt Company sometime before 1872.
Large evaporation ponds at the southern end of San Diego Bay are the source of the salt, but the water comes directly from the Pacific Ocean. South Bay Salt Works produces about 75,000 tons of salt every year from ponds that cover over a thousand acres. For decades is was the sole supplier of salt for Southern California.
Many migrating birds are attracted to the evaporation ponds. The salinity of the water supports an abundance of brine flies and brine shrimp. Today, even as salt harvesting operations continue, the ponds are officially part of the San Diego Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
I was once told by someone who knows a little about South Bay Salt Works that the salt is shipped from San Diego to places with freezing winters, where it’s used on roads and highways to melt the ice.
Enjoy these photographs!
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!
Paradise Trail marker PT10 rises near the National City Depot museum.
This morning I enjoyed an easy walk down a segment of the Paradise Creek Trail in National City.
I believe this urban trail is brand new. I find almost nothing about it on the internet. Several people I spoke to who work right next to the trail never heard of it. I had never seen the Paradise Trail markers during walks in past years.
The trail, from what I can gather, roughly follows Paradise Creek. My walk started just west of Interstate 5, on Bay Marina Drive, where I spotted markers for the Paradise Trail by the National City Depot museum and the National City Historic Railcar Plaza. I saw more markers as I walked south down Marina Way, just west of Paradise Marsh.
Paradise Creek eventually empties into the Sweetwater River. I believe the sidewalk trail ends at Pepper Park, but I spotted no markers after I passed the Pier 32 Marina and the nearby entrance to the Bayshore Bikeway. Perhaps I wasn’t looking carefully enough.
Want to see more? Years ago I visited an overlook of Paradise Marsh and photographed some informative signs. I also got a little closer to nature by walking down a short dirt trail. You can revisit that old blog post by clicking here.
In the past I also blogged about the National City Depot museum and its cool old streetcars here, the National City Historic Railcar Plaza here, and the Le Bateau Ivre sculpture here.
After I crossed Bay Marina Drive, I spotted an iconic El Camino Real bell near the National City Historic Railcar Plaza.I’m now walking south down Marina Way, looking back at the National City Historic Railcar Plaza.Old railroad tracks run along the west edge of Paradise Marsh.Sunlight illuminates some natural beauty beside the sidewalk trail.Looking back north along the Paradise Creek Trail, between Paradise Marsh and the National City Cement Terminal.Here’s another marker for the Paradise Trail, which I spotted as I headed down Marina Way.A banner on a street lamp says that in National City, Together We Can!As I turned onto West 32nd Street, a big group of bicyclists rode onto the Bayshore Bikeway.Le Bateau Ivre, by artist Alber De Matteis, at the Pier 32 Marina in National City.I spotted this high osprey nesting platform as I walked down Goesno Place, approaching Pepper Park.
Immediately to the west, right on San Diego Bay, the enormous imported car parking lot at the National City Marine Terminal has many of these platforms. I learned during a Port of San Diego harbor tour that ospreys provide effective pigeon control!
A sign describes ospreys, which can often be seen flying above San Diego Bay and our coastal estuaries.Looks like an osprey has collected all sort of odd materials for its huge nest!
And now I’ve turned around, and I’m heading back north along the trail on Marina Way, just west of the marsh… Guess what I saw?
An osprey flies high above Paradise Marsh on a beautiful late December day.Looking past prickly pear at Paradise Marsh from the Paradise Creek Trail in National City.
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A van wrapped with many colors stands at one corner of the National City Marine Terminal on San Diego Bay!
You don’t see this every day!
Under Wraps is unusual public artwork that now stands at one corner of the National City Marine Terminal. It’s best seen by walking out onto the small Pepper Park fishing pier.
Under Wraps is a sculptural intervention on an old work van, which has been wrapped about with colorful nautical fiber. This unique artwork was created by Randy Walker, who also used nautical fiber in his “Sweet Contents” at San Diego’s Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal. I recently blogged about that here.
The National City Marine Terminal in San Diego Bay is where up to 400,000 imported cars arrive by immense roll-on/roll-off car carrying ships every year. The 180-acre facility is operated by Pasha Automotive Services.
According to a sign on the pier, Under Wraps will be on view through February 2019. So if you plan to be in San Diego’s South Bay, go check it out while you have the chance!
Under Wraps, an artwork by Randy Walker, is best seen from the Pepper Park pier. A work van is wrapped with colorful nautical fiber at the National City Marine Terminal!Fishing from the Pepper Park pier near public artwork that was commissioned by the Port of San Diego.A kid got super excited when these guys caught a mackerel from the pier!Now that’s something you don’t see every day! Under Wraps is colorful public art that adds a splash of character to the National City Marine Terminal.
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!
Arrows, by Brenda and Flojo, public art near the 24th Street trolley station in National City.
Some very cool public art adds color to a sidewalk near the 24th Street trolley station in National City. You can find it at the east edge of the trolley station’s parking lot, next to Wilson Avenue.
Two small but colorful sculptures have been created by Youth Artists. One, titled Peace, is by Michelle. The other, titled Arrows, is by Brenda and Flojo.
I’ve done some searching on the internet and can find nothing about these public sculptures. I don’t recall seeing them during past visits to the South Bay, so I believe they are relatively new.
All I know for certain is that this artwork is really cool!
Peace, by Michelle, public art near the 24th Street trolley station in National City.Photo of two cool sculptures in National City. A lavender peace sign is framed by two red arrows!
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!
Check out this super fun art on Ingraham Street in Pacific Beach!
Two electrical boxes have been painted next to Crown Point Junior Music Academy. Looks to me like it’s the work of students…
Earth is in our hands.Crown Point Space CampA happy mermaid plays an underwater horn!…there comes a day, when you’re gonna look around, and realize happiness is where you are…We all live in a yellow submarine, yellow submarine, yellow submarine…A cool octopus kid plays drums. Crown Point Rocks!
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!
The former Caltrans building at Taylor Street and Juan Street is being torn down, to make room for the expansion of Old Town San Diego State Historic Park.
One of the most visited state parks in California will soon undergo a major expansion!
I noticed during a recent walk that the old Caltrans building, located at the corner of Taylor Street and Juan Street, is being demolished. A banner hanging at the construction site informs passersby that this land will be added to Old Town San Diego State Historic Park, and will open to the public in Fall 2019!
I spoke to a state park employee and learned that initially the expansion will feature trees and benches. There are plans to eventually have interpretive exhibits or structures in this area that help visitors understand what life was like for the Native American Kumeyaay people, who inhabited this area for thousands of years before European explorers arrived. According to this informative web page, California State Parks is now working with tribal members representing the Kumeyaay Nation to “interpret their culture and their connections to the San Diego River and Old Town San Diego”.
I can’t wait to see the completed expansion!
Banner at demolition site. The former Caltrans District Office will be replaced with a new outdoor public space for Old Town San Diego State Historic Park in Fall 2019.
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
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