A California Weekend to Croc About
Sometimes it’s nice to just stay home on the weekend. That’s especially true when it’s summertime in California. When Bruce and I first moved to the Golden State from the Garden State (that would be New Jersey) we imagined there’d be no shortage of fun things to do and see. After sixteen years in California we’re still exploring. We know we’re lucky to live in a vacation destination. This past weekend we took advantage of that fact and stayed close to home. But that doesn’t mean we were homebodies. It was Bruce’s Birthday Weekend and he had a list of things he wanted to do…
The hoopla at the US Open
Our first stop was Huntington Beach, officially known as Surf City USA. We headed down there to run along the beach and to check out the US Open of Surfing that was taking place. The best surfers in the world get to show their stuff at this week long competition and we wanted to see it!
Here we are at the top!
One of the great things about California is that you can get from the beach to the mountains in less than an hour. So the next day I headed to Mt. Baldy with some friends while the Birthday Boy stayed home to relax. Most people are amazed to find out that Mt. Baldy is over 10,000 feet tall and is right in the middle of the LA Basin! This local mountain provides my friends and me great elevation training for our upcoming trip to the Peruvian Andes (more on that later…)
I had to rush home from Baldy, because that night we had tickets to the USA Swimming National Championships in Irvine. Some of the best swimmers in the country would be competing and we wanted to see them too! What a thrill to see the Olympians like Michael Phelps glide through the water. They sure go a lot faster than me!
The Beachcomber
The next day we headed to the beach again, this time to Crystal Cove State Beach along the Newport Coast. Historic cottages line the sand at this beautiful ocean cove. At the Beachcomber Restaurant you can gaze out to sea while you enjoy a delicious lunch and then head straight to the beach and relax…
Relaxing in my Crocs!
Bruce’s Birthday Weekend was capped off by a trip to the local cinema and dinner at The Cheesecake Factory. Did he like that cheesecake or what?
This WAS a cheescake!
