Tag: cabrillo national monument

Views from Coast View Parking at Cabrillo.

Few people enjoy the scenic view in the above photograph. That’s because the remote Coast View parking lot is seldom visited at Cabrillo National Monument.

The small parking lot can be found at the end of Cabrillo Road, just before the gate to the Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant. Most park visitors who drive down Cabrillo Road stop at Tidepools Parking and go no farther.

I recently posted a blog about my amazing hike up the Coastal Trail. I began from a spot near Tidepools Parking and walked north to Sea Cove Parking, where the trail ends. I didn’t mention that from the latter parking lot, I continued north a short distance along the side of Cabrillo Road, in order to reach Coast View Parking. That’s where these photographs were taken.

An overlook at the Coast View parking lot not only offers scenic views of the Pacific Ocean and sandstone bluffs, but there are information signs well worth reading.

Here I am carefully walking north along the side of Cabrillo Road…

I’ve arrived at Coast View Parking. There are benches where people can relax and gaze out toward the ocean.

A sign contains a poem…

“…The great rhythms of nature…have here their spacious and primeval liberty…”

Above the parking lot, up atop the Point Loma peninsula, one can see Battery Ashburn…

Embedded in the ridge in front of you was one of San Diego’s most important defenses during World War II. Well-hidden from approaching ships, Battery Ashburn housed two 16-inch guns…

Workers finished building the battery in March of 1944… Vibrations from the blast were so intense that they were rumored to have cracked windows in Hotel del Coronado across the harbor…

Turning east, I lifted my camera and took this photo of historic Battery Ashburn:

I then noticed a truck leaving the Point Loma Wastewater Treatment Plant, which handles sewage and gray water created by more then 2.2 million people who live nearby!

A beautiful day at Cabrillo National Monument, and a parking lot that few people visit…

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Walking the Coastal Trail at Cabrillo National Monument.

The Coastal Trail provides an incredibly scenic walk at Cabrillo National Monument. It runs for about half a mile along rugged sandstone bluffs beside the Pacific Ocean.

The easy to moderate trail, with occasional steep steps leading up and down, begins by the park’s Tidepool Parking and winds north to Sea Cove Parking.

I asked a park ranger her favorite aspect of this trail. She loved how lines of pelicans soar along the ocean’s edge at eye level. I love that too.

I went for a walk along Coastal Trail the other day and took photos as I proceeded north. One comes to the tidepools very quickly. If you’d like a closer look at the tidepools, you can click here.

Starting north along the Coastal Trail near the Tidepool Parking at Cabrillo National Monument.
Map shows the Coast Trail and other parts of Cabrillo National Monument, which is located near the south end of San Diego’s Point Loma.
The scenic trail is very popular. Misty fog drifting in from the ocean is common.
The tidepools come into view soon.
Visitors like to pause and relax in this wide area just north of the tidepools.
Continuing north along the Coastal Trail, up then down some narrow steps.
Indescribable natural beauty.
A climb is coming up…
This stretch of steps is fairly long. I took it slow and easy. The steps are uneven in places.
Here comes something interesting…
This is an underground searchlight shelter from World War II. Visitors must safely stay off the unstable roof.
More stunning ocean vistas ahead as walkers proceed through native coastal vegetation.
The farther north you go, the fewer walkers you’ll likely encounter.
Brown pelicans soar along at eye level. Your spirit might soar, too.
Almost to Sea Cove Parking, also called Lot 2.
A welcoming bench at Sea Cove Parking overlooks vast beauty.

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

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Walking down to Cabrillo National Monument’s tidepools!

In April, 2024, a new trail opened at Cabrillo National Monument. The Oceanside Trail starts at the Kelp Forest and Whale Overlook south of the Old Point Loma Lighthouse, and descends via several switchbacks to the Coast Trail, intersecting it a few steps from the main tidepool parking lot.

The Oceanside Trail is fairly steep and rugged, but if you’re in good physical shape, wearing good shoes and carrying plenty of water, the hike is really great!

I enjoyed the hike recently and took photographs as I walked down to the tidepools through incoming wisps of ocean fog!

I’ll provide some description in photo captions…

Here’s where you start, from the looping path south of the lighthouse, just beyond the whale overlook.
Map shows the Oceanside Trail. It’s about a 2.5 miles round-trip and can be strenuous.
Approaching a World War II observation bunker, which guarded the coast from a potential Japanese invasion.
The trail leads around the old military bunker.
You can see the New Point Loma Lighthouse in the distance by the water. It’s a residential area for Coast Guard officers.
Watch your step!
There are several switchbacks. Most feature steps.
A walker heading up. You can see how wisps of fog were drifting inland from the Pacific Ocean.
There are a couple of benches for resting and viewing the scenery, too.
Native coastal plants along the Oceanside Trail provide additional beauty and interest.
We’re approaching Cabrillo Road, which descends to the tidepool area from the Cabrillo National Monument entrance gate. Before the Oceanside Trail opened, it was the only way down.
The Oceanside Trail crosses Cabrillo Road twice.
A park ranger told me the circular platform with a track was used to rotate a gun during World War II.
Those people ahead are on the Coast Trail, heading between the nearby parking lot and tidepools.
The end of the Oceanside Trail. To reach the tidepools, turn right! You can’t miss them.

I’ll be blogging about the Coast Trail shortly. It extends north from here along the rugged, sandstone bluffs, providing amazing views.

Years ago, I walked down to the water and experienced the Cabrillo National Monument tidepools. I posted photographs here!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Glider history made in San Diego’s Point Loma.

Did you know that glider history was made above the bluffs of Point Loma in San Diego?

Two landmark plaques that commemorate this history (which includes the breaking of a sailplane flight duration world record) are located just inside the entrance gate of Cabrillo National Monument. A small dirt footpath leads up to the boulder upon which they are mounted. Beyond, a slope descends steeply to the Pacific Ocean.

I recently walked from the Cabrillo National Monument’s visitor center down to the plaques to have a close look…

The plaque on the left states:

IN COMMEMORATION OF THE EARLY AVIATION PIONEERS THAT FLEW AMERICAN DESIGNED AND MANUFACTURED SAILPLANES IN SAN DIEGO. THESE AVIATORS ARE REMEMBERED BY THOSE WHO FLEW AFTER THEM AND THE CITIZENS OF SAN DIEGO

John C. Barstow – William Hawley Bowlus – Alan R. Essery – Forrest H. Hieatt – Anne Lindbergh – Earle R. Mitchell – Adolph R. “Bud” Perl – William Beuby – Lowell E. Bullen – Albert E. Hastings – I. N. Lawson – Charles A. Lindbergh – Allison J. Moore – William Van Dusen

SAN DIEGO SAILPLANE ENTHUSIASTS – THE ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

(Yes, the names include Anne and Charles A. Lindbergh!)

The plaque on the right states:

POINT LOMA

THIS LANDMARK IS DEDICATED TO THE PIONEERING SPIRITS OF THE PILOTS WILLIAM HAWLEY BOWLUS AND JOHN C. BARSTOW WHO MADE MILESTONE FLIGHTS IN GLIDER HISTORY AT THIS SITE

WILLIAM HAWLEY BOWLUS – FIRST AMERICAN SOARING FLIGHT TO EXCEED ONE HOUR DURATION – 1 HOUR 21 MINUTES OCTOBER 19, 1929

JOHN C. BARSTOW – DURATION FLIGHT OF 15 HOURS 13 MINUTES EXCEEDING THE WORLD RECORD – APRIL 29-30, 1930

DEDICATED APRIL 27, 1996

THE NATIONAL SOARING MUSEUM – HARRIS HILL, ELMIRA NY – AN AFFILIATE OF THE SOARING SOCIETY OF AMERICA

SPONSORED BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Cool photo memories from November 2018.

November has arrived. Time to post another five-years-ago blog!

November 2018 was the last time Star of India sailed. I captured photos back then of the historic tall ship heading out into the ocean. (The Star of India is sailing again this November 11th and 12th!)

There were several Veterans Day events, too, including the annual parade. (This year the parade is on the 12th.)

I also enjoyed a variety of adventures, including a visit to the Cabrillo National Monument tide pools and a peek inside a World War II bunker.

Here come links to past blog posts for you to explore!

Click the following links for lots of photos…

Polynesian canoe Hikianalia visits San Diego!

Faces tell stories at Veterans Day parade.

The triumphant return of the Spreckels Organ!

Bells of Peace ring on a special Veterans Day!

Mayflower descendants gather in Balboa Park!

Historical reenactment on Veterans Day in Balboa Park.

Photos of Star of India heading out to sea.

A visit to the Cabrillo National Monument tidepools.

Christmas trees appear in downtown San Diego!

Photos inside a World War II bunker on Point Loma.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X (formerly known as Twitter)!

Gray Whale at Cabrillo by Carl Glowienke.

A beautiful sculpture of a female gray whale and her calf stands near the whale-watching overlook at Cabrillo National Monument. The graceful work of art was created by local sculptor Carl Glowienke in 1992.

Over the years I’ve shared different photos of Gray Whale. But I never gave credit to the artist. I figured it’s time to rectify this oversight.

Here are some of those images again, but now I’ve added a photo of the plaque.

Carl Glowienke, who works in Lakeside, has created numerous amazing sculptures. Many depict whales, dolphins and other sea life. Check out his website here.

This morning, as I surfed Carl Glowienke’s website, I was excited to learn he created Grand Canyons of La Jolla–a 3,000 pound bronze topographic map of underwater La Jolla Canyon, installed in Kellogg Park at La Jolla Shores.

I happened to blog about that project’s progress during a walk in early 2022. To see what I discovered, click here. I need to go back and experience the finished work!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

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Unusual history of the original Cabrillo statue.

One of San Diego’s iconic landmarks is the statue of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo near the end of Point Loma, at Cabrillo National Monument.

Over the years there has been a controversy concerning Cabrillo’s place of birth: Portugal or Spain? I covered that in my previous blog post.

The original statue of Cabrillo in the park, by Portuguese sculptor Alvaro DeBree, was commissioned by the Portuguese government. After years of exposure to the weather, that first statue was relocated to Ensenada.

Portuguese sculptor Joas Chartes Almeida carved an exact replica of the original statue out of a more resistant stone, and it was installed in at Cabrillo National Monument in 1988.

During my last trip to Cabrillo National Monument, a ranger inside the Visitor Center showed me a National Park Service document that provides a Brief History of the Original Cabrillo Statue:

In 1949, some 36 years after its establishment as a memorial to Juan Cabrillo, a statue of Cabrillo was finally installed at the monument. The statue had been commissioned by the Portuguese government in 1935 as a gift to the state of California and was to be exhibited in the Portuguese exhibit at the San Francisco Exposition of 1940. The work of Alvaro De Bree, a young Portuguese sculptor, the 14-foot-high, seven-ton statue was not exhibited at the fair as intended, but was instead stored in a private garage in San Francisco. Following a considerable amount of effort, the city of San Diego secured the statue, and it was installed at the Naval Training Center facing Ballast Point. The official dedication of the site took place on September 28, 1942, the 400th anniversary of Cabrillo’s landing.

In 1947, the San Diego Historical Society proposed that the statue be moved to the Cabrillo National Monument. The Chief of the Museum Bureau in Washington, after examining photographs judged the work to be “a satisfactory piece of memorial sculpture” and declared that it appeared suitable “from an artistic standpoint.” The Park Service accepted the statue with the stipulation that the city fund the costs for a base for the statue and for moving it to the monument.

The dedication ceremony took place on September 28, 1949. The Mayor of San Diego, Harley E. Knox, formally presented the statue to the National Park Service and Dr. Manuel Rocheta, chancellor of the Portuguese Embassy in Washington, D.C., delivered an address.

The 1988 replica of the original statue at Cabrillo National Monument.

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

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Why Portuguese and Spanish plaques at Cabrillo?

Visitors to Cabrillo National Monument might perceive an apparent contradiction.

There are three plaques along the walkway that approaches the statue of Cabrillo. They seem to recognize the explorer as being both Portuguese and Spanish!

In 1615, historian Antonio de Herrera listed Cabrillo’s name as Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo Portuguese, giving him a third last name or apellido. This led many people to believe Cabrillo was Portuguese. In 2015 a researcher discovered evidence that Cabrillo said he was a native of Spain…

…(the) historian stumbled across Cabrillo’s name in this legal document dated February 12, 1532. In it, Cabrillo identifies himself as “a native of Palma de Micer Gilio,” now Palma del Rio in Cordoba, Spain.

A Viceroy of New Spain, Antonio de Mendoza, selected Cabrillo to lead an exploration of the Pacific coast. Cabrillo sailed into San Diego harbor under the Spanish flag aboard the San Salvador.

San Diego held the first Cabrillo Festival in 1892. Members of the Portuguese community in San Diego have been supporting Cabrillo National Monument since the 1930s…

TO THE PORTUGUESE NAVIGATOR JOAO RODRIGUES CABRILHO – A TRIBUTE FROM THE PORTUGUESE NAVY – APRIL 1957

A TRIBUTE FROM THE PORTUGUESE NAVY TO THE PORTUGUESE NAVIGATOR – JOAO RODRIGUES CABRILHO – ON THE OCCASION OF THE REDEDICATION OF THE STATUE IN HIS HONOUR – FEBRUARY 1988

In homage to the Spanish expedition composed of the ships SAN SAVADOR, VICTORIA AND SAN MIGUEL that arrived at San Diego on 28th September 1542 under the command of JUAN RODRIGUEZ CABRILLO who took possession of these lands on behalf of His Catholic Majesty CHARLES I King of SPAIN opening the maritime route that led to the subsequent development of California – The Spanish Navy – September 28, 2003

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

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!

Help build a trail to the Cabrillo tide pools!

Do you love Cabrillo National Monument? Would you like to help build a spectacular hiking trail that will connect the whale watching overlook to the tide pools 400 feet below?

You can become a trailblazer!

The trail’s construction has begun, but there’s more to do. And additional donations are necessary. As you can see from an information sign inside the Visitor Center, quite a lot of money had been raised by the Cabrillo National Monument Foundation already.

I asked a park ranger about this project. Several phases are completed, including archaeological surveys and removal of vegetation that will be replanted elsewhere in the park.

The plan is to have the new trail open this year!

Can you help?

To help make this trail a reality, click here!

The next photo shows where the new trail will begin, just beyond the whale watching overlook. It will branch off from the short existing trail that leads down to a pair of World War II bunkers.

And my final photo shows the new trail’s destination: the Cabrillo National Monument tide pools!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

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!

Cabrillo National Monument celebrates 109 years!

Today–Friday, October 14th, 2022–is the 109th “birthday” of Cabrillo National Monument!

As you can see on the board above, this amazing park situated at the end of Point Loma was established exactly 109 years ago by President Wilson.

I arrived just a few minutes before the Discover Cabrillo National Monument ranger talk, so I quickly headed to the back patio to hear about the many qualities of this special place.

We learned about how the park protects the native flora and fauna. We also learned a little history concerning the 1542 voyage of explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo, the Old Point Loma Lighthouse, and the bunkers placed on the coastal bluffs during World War II.

After the talk I walked about, simply to take in the stunning views and fresh ocean air, and to take some photos. As you can see, it was a gray, overcast day.

The 109th anniversary of Cabrillo National Monument wasn’t nearly as big a deal as its centennial nine years ago. I was there for that big occasion, and took many photographs of the historic event which I posted here!

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