La Jolla Cove and Seal Rock


Like most people I love the ocean. I love the salty mist, the rushing waves, the sunsets and the feel of sand squishing between my toes.  Unfortunately, I live in Utah. I know what you're thinking and NO, the Great Salt Lake is not the ocean. Not even close!

Naturally, when I planned our anniversary trip to sunny San Diego, I knew we would be spending a lot of time at the ocean. One evening, my husband and I decided to find a beach that neither of us had visited before. So we pulled out good ol' google maps and discovered La Jolla Cove.


La Jolla Cove, California


 With the windows down, we circled the area looking for a parking spot. I heard the waves crashing against rocks, seagulls squawking loudly, and something barking in the distance. I looked at Ben. He looked at me. We both smiled and said "Sea Lions!"

Now, that might not sound very exciting to some people but wild sea lions are exotic animals to us inland folks. We looked over the wall and there they were. Lots of them!  Some were barking on the beach, others were sunbathing on the rocks and several were dancing through the water. I was terribly excited . Surely the locals could tell I was a tourist!

Sea Lions at La Jolla Cove, California

For a while, we watched the lions from above and then decided to climb down a staircase leading to the beach where we got an up close look at the animals. They didn't seem to care about us (and the twenty other people watching them) as long as we kept back a little.  They were so cute with their teeny ears and long whiskers. I enjoyed watching them flop into the ocean, hearing them communicate with each other and seeing them raise their heads proudly toward the sun. 

La Jolla, California

After visiting the sea lions, we took a short walk around the park and ended up at a place called Seal Rock. From the smell I could tell that Seal Rock got its name from the amount of harbor seals who frequent the area.  Walking on the seawall, we had a great view of the fat little fellas. Unlike the sea lions, who have large flippers for "walking," seals must flop around on their chubby bellies when moving on land.

Seal Rock, California

Although not as active as the sea lions, we did enjoy seeing another of the ocean's "exotic" wild species. We stayed at La Jolla to watch the sunset that evening. It was lovely. Perfect end to a southern California day!

Sunset at La Jolla, California

TRAVEL, SMILE, REPEAT






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