Mosaic of Flowers: Hibiscus by Kirstin Green. City of Coronado Public Art Collection installed 2017.
During my walk around Coronado this afternoon I made a cool discovery! I noticed two exquisite flower mosaics now adorn the public restroom building in Spreckels Park. One can be found above an outside sink on the north side, the other on the south side. Both are made of many small colorful tiles.
This public artwork is bright and cheerful, a perfect match for the beautiful, spacious park which is home to the annual Coronado Flower Show.
A close-up photo of a beautiful sunflower-like zinnia made of small yellow, orange and white tiles.Mosaic of Flowers: Zinnia by Kirstin Green. City of Coronado Public Art Collection installed 2017.
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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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Someone waits on a sidewalk among pigeons, early one morning in downtown San Diego.
In the city of San Diego, the early bird catches the worm. And an early morning walker takes many photos!
One cool aspect of living in downtown San Diego is the proximity of various rivers, estuaries, bays and, of course, the Pacific Ocean. One meets a host of different aquatic birds, including ducks, gulls, herons, cormorants, least terns, and other graceful inhabitants of air and water.
Here are a few fun photos that have gathered in my computer.
One of many pigeons in the city.Small birds on sunlit grass one morning along Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade.A black-crowned night heron perched atop the Pier Cafe.A seagull stands on Broadway Pier over San Diego Bay.Strangely, a great blue heron stands in the southwest corner of Balboa Park one morning, watching people walk up a path.Ducks hang out by the pool in the San Diego Museum of Art’s May S. Marcy Sculpture Court.A mother duck and two ducklings walk among leaves on the Our River mural in Mission Valley.Morning ducks in Children’s Park downtown.A morning walk past the Children’s Park Fountain near many birds.Gulls enjoy another beautiful morning in the city.
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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!
Crew members of USS Theodore Roosevelt help Boy Scout Maxwell Thomson move logs in the USS Bennington Memorial Oak Grove. Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.
Over the past year and a half, some amazing young men have been working to improve the USS Bennington Memorial Oak Grove in Balboa Park. These community-minded Boy Scouts, with the help of the San Diego Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, have undertaken projects in the historic grove in order to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout.
You might remember the photos that I posted of the USS Bennington Memorial Oak Grove. It’s tucked away in a corner of Florida Canyon, not far from Naval Medical Center San Diego and the Balboa Park Municipal Golf Course. The 66 live oak trees were planted in 1905 to memorialize 66 sailors killed on the USS Bennington on July 21st of that year. The gunboat’s boiler exploded while it was in San Diego Bay, and many men tragically perished.
The efforts of these hardworking Boy Scouts have added beauty, safety and memory to the old oak grove. Four have successfully become Eagle Scouts. They are Joshua Ortega, Sam Kinsey, Frederick Persons and Erik Ortlieb. The projects of two other young men are now underway.
Most of these photographs have been contributed by local historian Kathleen Winchester. She and other members of the DAR’s San Diego Chapter have been instrumental in providing coordination and encouragement as the USS Bennington Memorial Oak Grove is improved. Please read the photo captions to appreciate the unselfish work of these young men.
I have learned the grove’s kiosk will eventually contain the names of those who perished aboard the USS Bennington. And very soon a flagpole will be raised in the grove-the project of another Boy Scout.
In 2014, the San Diego Chapter of Daughters of the American Revolution partnered with the San Diego Park and Recreation Department and the Friends of Balboa Park as part of the latter’s “Adopt-A-Plot” program and adopted the Bennington Memorial Oak Grove.
The local DAR intends to purchase more oak trees to replace dead ones. If anyone wants to help with this worthy endeavor, contact the San Diego Chapter of DAR. All contributed funds will go straight to the purchase of trees.
As you can see in a few of the photos, U.S. Navy sailors from the San Diego homeported aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt have also lent a hand. Their involvement is especially meaningful as Teddy Roosevelt was the President of the United States in 1905 when the USS Bennington disaster occured. President Roosevelt was a conservationist who would have loved this shady grove of majestic oaks.
The sailors from the USS Theodore Roosevelt, by helping to beautify the USS Bennington Memorial Oak Grove, honored their fellow seamen from an earlier time.
The USS Bennington Memorial Oak Grove in Balboa Park has been improved by some amazing young men working to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout. Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.The oak grove’s entrance sign is an Eagle Project undertaken by Erik Ortlieb of Boy Scout Troop 4 in La Jolla.Erik Ortlieb poses with Kathleen Winchester of the DAR by a post of the wooden sign he built on October 16, 2016. The sign welcomes visitors into the beautiful old oak grove. Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.Boy Scout Sam Kinsey works on the trail that leads into the historic USS Bennington Memorial Oak Grove in Balboa Park. Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.Boy Scout Joshua Ortega finished a footbridge in the grove just days before his 18th birthday. He is now attending Pepperdine University. Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.Plaque on the bridge reads Eagle Scout Project – Joshua R. Ortega – Troop 299 – June 2016.Boy Scout Frederick Persons poses in front of the new kiosk he built. Around him are volunteers from Boy Scout Troop 295. Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.Crew members of San Diego aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt lend a helping hand by rolling logs that will border a path though the grove. Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.Boy Scout Maxwell Thomson and U.S. Navy sailors roll logs into place in the USS Bennington Memorial Oak Grove. Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.Maxwell Thomson poses with friends among logs which now mark the trail through the USS Bennington Memorial Oak Grove. Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.15-year-old Maxwell Thomson takes a short break as DAR San Diego Chapter members cheer him on! Photo courtesy Kathleen Winchester.
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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!
Two of three huge flags that celebrate the history of baseball at San Diego’s old Lane Field. On the left you can see Ted Williams, one of the greatest Major League Baseball hitters of all time, taking a swing.
Three huge, colorful flags will soon be flying above Lane Field Park. They were created by local artist Lisa Schirmer in a coordinated effort between the Port of San Diego and the Hensel-Phelps Construction Company. They celebrate the history of baseball at Lane Field.
The vivid banners, which Lisa calls windglyphs, are titled Spirits of the West Wind. They feature two images of baseball legend Ted Williams and one of Eddie Erautt. Both played baseball at long-vanished Lane Field, which was located in downtown San Diego right next to the water.
Ted Williams was perhaps the greatest Major League hitter of all time. The baseball legend was born in San Diego. Early in his baseball career he played for the Pacific Coast League San Diego Padres at Lane Field, helping his team win the PCL pennant in 1937.
Eddie Erautt pitched three and a half seasons for the PCL San Diego Padres. He went 16-12 in 1954 when the Padres were PCL champions and 18-10 in 1955.
Images of the players on two windglyphs were based on photographs in Bill Swank’s book Echoes from Lane Field.
I love how large, bright and colorful these flags are, and how they celebrate an important page in San Diego baseball history. Bill Swank says the way they billow reminds him how the wind would blow off San Diego Bay and carry home runs over the right field wall of Lane Field, to bounce onto Pacific Highway. Many great memories where made here.
This Wednesday, there will be an official unveiling of the colorful banners at 8:30 am. I was fortunate to get a preview today, during a flag-raising rehearsal for the coming event.
Enjoy some photos!
Three colorful windglyphs created by San Diego artist Lisa Schirmer fly above Lane Field Park.Rehearsal of a flag raising. The public art unveiling ceremony takes place later this week. That unfurled banner shows Ted Williams fielding a ball. Artist Lisa Schirmer stands on the left. Photo courtesy of Bill Swank.Local baseball expert Bill Swank shows his book Echoes from Lane Field, which recounts the early years of San Diego baseball and the Padres.The banner depicting pitcher Eddie Erautt is based on one of these old baseball photos.On the colorful center banner, Eddie Erautt winds up to pitch the ball.The wind plays with a baseball memory. Ted Williams seems to come alive as he takes his classic swing.Action photo of Ted Williams used by Lisa Schirmer in one windglyph. Photographer: Heber Epperson. Courtesy of Autumn Durst Keltner.Baseball memories take flight in the San Diego sky at Lane Field Park!
Here’s a good pic I took at a later time…
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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!
Hard-working volunteers remove invasive vegetation in a small area of the San Dieguito River Valley.
Today I happened upon a bunch of energetic volunteers working to restore habitat in the San Dieguito River Valley! They were removing non-native vegetation near the Sikes Adobe Historic Farmstead!
Lots of invasive, rapidly growing wild mustard appeared to be the main problem. I also learned from a friendly San Dieguito River Park ranger that mustard is highly flammable, much more so than California coastal sage and chaparral plants that are native to our arid region.
Today’s work, coinciding with Family Volunteer Day, was an effort of several organizations, including the San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy. Their mission is to implement the vision of the San Dieguito River Park, a greenway that stretches all the way from Volcan Mountain near Julian to Dog Beach in Del Mar! Their conservation and educational programs, along with their purchases of land in the River Park planning area, will ensure that the beautiful San Dieguito River Valley will be a rich and healthy natural treasure for many lifetimes to come!
Want to learn more? Or maybe get involved? Here’s their website!
This Saturday event was part of Family Volunteer Day, a worldwide day of service promoted by generationOn.Youth have fun while they work to make the Earth a healthier place.A San Dieguito River Park ranger had brought many pots of native lemonade berry to plant.Another perfect day to work outdoors and help the environment!
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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!
A small public park, recently created in Bankers Hill, is named for San Diego aviation pioneer Waldo Dean Waterman.
Last month a small public park opened in Bankers Hill at the edge of narrow Maple Canyon. The park is named after Waldo Dean Waterman, an inventor and early aviation pioneer who was one of the first in San Diego to fly a heavier-than-air machine. He made that flight into Maple Canyon in 1909, at the age of fifteen!
Waterman experimented with unique aeronautical designs for most of his life. He invented the first tail-less monoplane in the United States, called the Whatsit, which was the very first aircraft in history to use now standard tricycle landing gear. He then designed the Arrowbile, which was the first successful flying car!
Waldo Dean Waterman Park is a beautiful and inspiring addition to our city. For generations to come, the park will remain a living monument to a visionary man who made several important contributions to aviation history!
A resident of Bankers Hill walks his dog through the beautiful park. Local aviation history was made here in 1909.Beautiful blooms at Waldo Dean Waterman Park in Bankers Hill.Sign summarizes the life and accomplishments of Early Bird aviation pioneer Waldo Dean Waterman, a resident of San Diego. He flew a glider at the age of 15 from this site into Maple Canyon below. (Click image to enlarge.)Plaque dated July 1, 1959 commemorates Waldo D. Waterman for his many contributions to the science of flight.
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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 fun photos for you to share and enjoy!
Looking west toward San Diego Bay at sunset, from the north section of Waterfront Park.
November already. It’s getting dark earlier and earlier.
After work today, when I got off the trolley at the Little Italy station, the sun was almost ready to set. So I hurried across Pacific Highway to the quiet north half of Waterfront Park to take in the beauty.
Looking south past the lighted fountains toward the County Administration Building. It soon will be dark.Light along a splashing fountain as darkness approaches.The jetting water is lit brightly from beneath. Looks like sparklers!Gazing north through the beautiful fountains of Waterfront Park.To the east, nearby building windows and Niki de Saint Phalle’s colorful Serpent Tree gleam, reflecting late light.Lights have come on. The north end of the handsome County Administration Building is ready for night.A blazing sunset beneath palm trees on San Diego’s Embarcadero, as seen from Waterfront Park.
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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!
Flower vendor at the Saturday Little Italy Mercato Farmers’ Market.
Several walks today.
This morning it was around downtown, mostly near the water. I saw many colors, much life, and even a little bit of history.
Banner at Civic Center Plaza celebrates Office of the City Clerk’s Archives Month. Images include glimpses of San Diego history. (Click to enlarge.)
The above Archives Month banner is hanging from the City Administration Building. It shows interesting bits of San Diego History, including the 1887 Circus Parade, construction of Balboa Park for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition, and aircraft over downtown celebrating the end of World War I.
Members of Navy Band Southwest entertain visitors to the Broadway Pier during Fleet Week San Diego 2017.People fill the Embarcadero near the Broadway Pier during Fleet Week.Waiting in line for the weekend Fleet Week event, which includes a ship tour of the amphibious transport dock USS Anchorage.Banner along the Embarcadero promote the Breeders’ Cup, which is coming to Del Mar in November.A sailboat out on San Diego Bay.Relaxing at the Waterfront Park on a beautiful October Saturday in San Diego.Lots of yummy food is found at the Little Italy Mercato Farmers’ Market.
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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!
Many generous Boy and Girl Scouts volunteered to beautify Cabrillo National Monument during Operation Gum Drop Removal!
I noticed during my visit to Cabrillo National Monument today that troops of Boy and Girl Scouts were busy around the park cleaning up chewing gum and other trash!
This very cool volunteering event was part of National Public Lands Day. It was also an opportunity for Scouts to earn special badges and enjoy a free lunch with park rangers!
Wow! Great job Scouts! Your positive outlook and dedication to community service has made San Diego even more beautiful! So here’s a big Thank You!
Scouts helping to remove gum and trash were awarded a Scout Ranger Patch, and enjoyed a complimentary lunch with Park Rangers! How cool is that!View of Cabrillo National Monument’s Visitor Center from afar. I could see Scouts working hard throughout the park!
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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!
A recently improved section of Tweet Street Park on Cortez Hill. Volunteers help make this downtown neighborhood even more beautiful.
Do you love Tweet Street Park on Cortez Hill? I feel very fortunate that I get to walk through the narrow but lush park almost every single day.
Over the past weeks and months, I’ve noticed smiling volunteers busy pruning, planting, removing trash, and adding new beauty to our downtown park. They are the Friends of Tweet Street Park! They welcome new community members!
A couple days ago I talked to Joe Ciavarella as he was working on one section of the park. I learned that Cortez Hill residents and anyone interested in beautifying this special corner of downtown San Diego can make a tax deductible contribution that benefits the Friends of Tweet Street Park. Funds obtained go to the purchase of gardening tools, new plants and materials that are used for a variety of landscaping improvements.
If you’d like to make a donation, visit this page.
Positive people doing positive things make each corner of this world a whole lot better!
IMPORTANT UPDATE!
There’s a new web page where you can now make your donation. You can find it here.
In addition to the work of volunteers, improving the park requires the purchase of tools, plants and other material. Anyone can now easily make a donation!
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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!
Cool San Diego Sights! 