Tag: mission valley

San Diego METRO Modern Quilt exhibit in Mission Valley.

The San Diego METRO Modern Quilt Guild has a great exhibit inside the Mission Valley Library. A colorful array of modern quilts represents the creative work of guild members.

The mission of the San Diego METRO Modern Quilt Guild is to help build and foster community based on the common interest of modern quilting.

What is modern quilting? It is a contemporary approach to quilt-making that favors minimalism, bold colors, and improvisational design over strict symmetry. Heavily inspired by modern art and architecture, it often features expansive negative space, high-contrast palettes, and “modern traditionalism”—the reinterpretation of classic quilt blocks.

The exhibit in Mission Valley features hangable works of art, blankets, handbags and wearable clothing. Check out some photos…

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San Diego Scottish Highland Games in Mission Valley!

The 50th San Diego Scottish Highland Games are being held this year in Mission Valley. After making Vista their home for many years, the annual festival has moved to the expansive SDSU Mission Valley river park, conveniently located next to the Stadium trolley station. The games will continue through Sunday. (Check out the above website for all the info.)

A huge crowd came out Saturday to enjoy the traditional games, not to mention the rousing pipe and drum competition, Highland dancing, sheepdog trials and the friendly gathering of several dozen Scottish clans.

During my visit I enjoyed watching amazing men and women compete out on a wide field. They were tossing heavy cabers, throwing hammers, putting braemar stones, and engaged in all sorts of astounding heavy athletics.

I love bagpipe music. So watching and listening to pipe and drum groups from around Southern California as they practiced and competed was quite enjoyable. The sound of bagpipes throughout the grassy park made me wonder if I’d been transported to Scotland!

Adults enjoyed a beer garden, families checked out vendors and watched the colorful Highland dancing, kids loved petting the fluffy heritage cattle. There was tons of fun for everyone!

I took the next photo from atop the elevated Stadium trolley station. You can see how big this event is!

We gather to remember where we came from, celebrate what has been passed down, and welcome those discovering Scottish culture for the first time.

At the Highland Games, heritage is not just something we study. It is something we hear, taste, wear, dance, throw, share, and carry forward.

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A ship, an airplane, or a unique trolley station?

Motorists heading down Interstate 8 at the east end of Mission Valley can’t help but notice this elevated trolley station. It’s the Grantville Station, of the San Diego Trolley’s Green Line.

The architecture of the Grantville Station is truly eye-catching and unique. Small signs posted in various places explain:

The central courtyard is a river-like gathering spot surrounded by pillars and beneath the station. Free form cast stone veneer walls, water washed flagstone caps, native riparian trees, shrubbery, and river rock mulch become a visual link to the nearby San Diego River.

Leather ferns and bamboo reeds planted near the stairwells grow from the plaza towards the elevated station 40 feet above.

The soaring station is a tribute to the aviation and nautical industries. The Trolley platform bows out in the middle, inspired by ship and plane architecture. The design repeats in the granite benches and bus shelters.

At night, spectacular streams of light beam upwards illuminating the pillars, stairways and octagonal tops of the twin elevator shafts.

On the platform, enjoy the unparalleled views to the north and south before boarding a Trolley to your next destination.

San Diego’s rich history includes important ships, shipyards, major aviation milestones and airplane construction.

The station’s architect was Parsons Brinckerhoff, Inc. and the station first opened in July, 2005.

Last month I disembarked at the Grantville Station and walked around with my camera…

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San Diego River wildlife in the city!

Have you spotted native wildlife in the city near the San Diego River? It’s possible to sight unexpected wild animals in our urban environment!

At the east end of the SDSU Mission Valley river park, near Murphy Canyon Creek, beside Interstate 15, a sign shows some of the Animals of the San Diego River.

Featured on the sign are: Coyote, Southern Mule Deer, Bobcat, Desert Cottontail, American Badger and Southern Pacific Rattlesnake.

There’s a good chance you’ve observed coyotes, cottontails and even rattlesnakes, but how about those other critters?

Walk near this sign along the Ben & Nikki Clay San Diego River Trail, and you might experience an unexpected wildlife sighting!

Reflection pergola at Stadium trolley plaza.

Walking from the Stadium trolley station to Snapdragon Stadium, you might have noticed this distinctive structure. It has a name. The Mike and Christine Pack Reflection Pergola offers several tables and a shady resting place in the wide plaza north of the trolley station.

This article, which concerns the SDSU Mission Valley river park, contains a description of the pergola:

The central focal point of the trolley plaza is the Mike and Christine Pack Reflection Pergola, which draws inspiration from the river and ewaa (dome-shaped shelters) used by the early Kumeyaay. These shelters were built from branches and covered with leaves from willow, tule or other plants.

I was surprised to discover a small but beautiful mosaic near one table!

I love how the lighting structures in my next photograph appear organic–like tall grass bending in the wind, or trees with slender stems.

The SDSU Mission Valley river park has become a favorite place to walk on a sunny San Diego day.

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Beautiful views at Mission Valley Library!

Have you been inside the San Diego Library’s branch in Mission Valley? The library offers beautiful views, particularly from the second floor mezzanine and the adjacent outdoor patio.

These first few photos are from the Mission Valley Library mezzanine, where there are desks perfect for quiet reading or study. Artistic ceiling supports appear like trees with spreading leafy branches.

One can gaze down at the interior of the library. Aesthetically, it’s quite pleasing. The silvery gray metal and light brown wood makes the space feel very clean, orderly and open.

Now we’re looking from the interior mezzanine toward the outdoor patio. Much natural light comes through those windows.

Outside, the partially enclosed patio is a wind-sheltered place where anyone can lounge in the sun, breathe fresh air, and gaze out over the trolley tracks and the Fenton Parkway Station toward trees along the San Diego River. The grassy SDSU Mission Valley river park stretches to the east, where people walk and play sports.

Wouldn’t you like to hang out here?

Finally, here’s what the south side of the Mission Valley Library looks like from outside. That’s the semi-circular patio up above.

The library building opened in 2002. It has received the award for Best Institutional Design from the American Institute of Architects.

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Many birds of the San Diego River.

Walking down one of the dirt paths off the main trail at the SDSU Mission Valley River Park, you might encounter this sign. It features birds you could see along the San Diego River.

Birds described in words and photos include California Scrub-jay, California Quail, Anna’s Hummingbird, Great Blue Heron, Red-tailed Hawk, Great Horned Owl and American Coot.

Of course, it’s possible to sight egrets, cormorants, different types of ducks, gulls, blackbirds, swallows and many, many different species. The San Diego River, stretching from the mountains of East County to the Pacific Ocean, supports enormous biodiversity. The river is also part of the Pacific Flyway, a major route of migratory birds.

The sign includes a paragraph about the Bird Songs of the indigenous Kumeyaay people. It concerns the bird-inspired singing and dancing in traditional Kumeyaay ceremonies and celebration.

How about my recent walk through the river park? I spotted small sparrows flitting about near the path, saw soaring crows and seagulls, and heard the calls of various birds in the trees beyond the fence that protects the river habitat from human intrusion.

If you love to walk, head down to the river park. There is sunshine, fresh air, people playing sports on the wide grass areas, easy access by trolley, and, best of all, it’s beautiful. (Bonus: look for the mile markers on the main walkway that were designed by James Hubbell!)

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Riverwalk San Diego development seen from trolley.

If you’ve recently traveled on the Green Line of the San Diego Trolley between the Morena/Linda Vista and Fashion Valley stations, you’ve seen renewed construction activity to the north of the tracks. That half of the old Riverwalk golf course is being replaced by Riverwalk San Diego, a massive project now under development!

I saw all this activity through the trolley window a couple days ago and took several photos.

If, like me, you’re curious about this project in the heart of Mission Valley, check out their website here and see a map of what is coming. Riverwalk San Diego will include 4,300 homes (including 430 affordable homes), 152,000 square feet of retail, one million square feet of office, and 97 acres of parks and open space, including a restored San Diego River and a 55-acre regional park.

You might notice there will be a new trolley station, too!

This webpage includes a project update.

I look forward to watching everything come together as I ride the Green Line and walk around in the many days to come. I’ll likely post more photos.

UPDATE!

Three months later, I saw this…

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SDSU Aztecs Rugby Club plays UC Davis.

During my walk yesterday through SDSU Mission Valley River Park, I was surprised to see members of San Diego State Aztecs Rugby Club getting ready for a game. They would be playing UC Davis out on a wide swath of the park’s grass. It was the second game of their 2026 season.

I remained at the sidelines for a while to watch the beginning of play. Other fans would gradually gather with their lawn chairs and umbrellas.

SDSU Aztecs Rugby Club competes in Division 1-A in the California Conference. Founded in 1958, the team has a long and proud history. They won the 1987 National Collegiate Rugby Championship.

The action I observed was fast and exciting! I don’t know too much about rugby, but perhaps I’ll have to become a fan! The Aztecs would go on to win 31-38.

If you’d like to watch this victory on YouTube, click here.

To go to a future game, you can follow SDSU Aztec Rugby at this website.

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Embroidery exhibit at Mission Valley Library.

Muchas Manos de San Diego, a group of hand embroidery enthusiasts, is celebrating their 50th Anniversary with an exhibit inside the Mission Valley Library. The library’s large display case is filled with carefully stitched examples of very beautiful embroidery!

If you’d like to join the supportive group and have fun creating amazing, exquisite objects like these, here’s their website! They meet once a month.

Muchas Manos de San Diego is part of the Embroiderers’ Guild of America.

Here’s what I saw yesterday during a visit to the Mission Valley branch of the San Diego Library…

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