With winter coming, and a while since we took a trip, we decided we'd take a quick getaway to San Diego. Flights were cheap and we found what we though was a good Airbnb for a few days, so why not?
Meghan, Corey and family were able to come with us as well, and we saw lots of sunsets, relaxed on the beach, did some hikes and had a great time in the constant 75 degree San Diego weather!
We left on a 6am flight so we were up very early!!! We got to LA around 8:00 and had planned on going to Knott's Berry Farm, or some museums....but because of the fires, the museum was closed. So we decided just to start the drive down to San Diego and stop along the way for a little hike. The hike was on the way to San Diego and called Annie's Canyon. It's a non-assuming hike that starts in a neighborhood. Short and easy, 1.5 miles round trip.
Right away the trail descends slightly away from the neighborhood
With a view of the Pacific Ocean
Strange flowering cacti
And then lots of sand
Suddenly without warning, we were entering a small slot canyon surrounded by sandstone walls
Since Jacob wasn't with us, Hannah had to do all the goofing off
Yep - this is the trail and it goes uphill fast and narrow
Then we came to a permanently attached small ladder to finish the climb
Back on top, we were rewarded with wonderful views again
We then met up with Meghan and family in San Diego at Torrey Pines State Reserve and took a short 2 mile round trip hike to the edge of the land above the ocean.
All the trails here were roped off like this - there was no getting lost here!
At the end of the trail, there were these strange rock formations formed by the wind over the years and years
The water was very clear
The next day we visited Old Town San Diego which is a State Park as well. They had a Day of the Dead celebration since it was right after Halloween. We first visited the Mormon Battalion Site which was very interesting. The Mormon Battalion was the only religious military unit in America's history. It started in 1846 when the United States was in a war with Mexico. The Government went around asking for volunteers and they found a Mormon camp in Iowa. Among all the Mormon camps, they ended up with over 500 volunteers. They spent almost a year marching from Iowa to eventually San Diego covering over 2,180 miles. Once in San Diego, the war was over, but many stayed there and helped San Diego start as a city digging wells, building the first building in San Diego, teaching those there how to farm and other things that helped San Diego flourish.
The visitors center has a very interesting and interactive tour they give...and you relive the trek the battalion made
Add caption
There is gold panning........
and chores........
Then we headed to Old Town itself....it was crowded!!!
They had an area set up where you could honor your dead, we looked for a spot to write down Dad's (Grandpa's) name, but it was pretty full
After, we had lunch at On The Border because it was very appropriate for the day, and yummy and we miss that from California. We went home and rested, napped, played some games......and the time change happened the night before, and we wanted to see the sunset at the beach......with 1 hour less time, we realized we needed to hurry.....with just 20 minutes before the sunset, we realized it and hurried to Mission Beach, near Belmont Park. We got all green lights and found a FREE parking spot right next to the beach and got there with 5 minutes to spare! The pictures do not do justice to what it really looked like. It was amazing.
Hannah running down to the water
Many people just come for the sunset
Afterward, we walked around Belmont Park
And had some yummy treats
The next day was spent at Balboa Park - the nation's largest urban park at 1700 acres. There are 17 museums, the San Diego Zoo, and over 12 gardens to see. It's huge. We just walked around a very small part of it and then went back to the house for lunch, naps and relaxing.
This botanical garden and grounds is one of the most photographed spot in San Diego
We laughed at the Do Not Abandon Animals sign in the pond! And the photo of someone throwing in a turtle
There was a cactus (desert) garden and it had this weird cactus, and a rose garden right next to it
The roots of this huge tree were very interesting
In the late afternoon, we went La Jolla area to do some tide pooling. The tides were not with us though the entire trip with low tide being either late at night or early in the morning, so we didn't see too much.. We still had fun looking around though
More obligatory sunset pics
The next day was the San Diego Zoo, which is HUGE. It has over 3,500 animals and 650 species of animals and over 100 acres. Jane and Ethan were a little sick with colds, so they didn't enjoy the zoo as much as the rest of us.
A very large anteater
The zoo is very very lush...like a forest!
These birds were freaky with their bright red eyes
This was a little trail through what felt like the jungle!
Before heading back to the airport, we stopped at our favorite restaurant - Souplantation aka Sweet Tomatoes as it's called in Utah.....before they all closed several years ago.
YUM
VIDEO RECAP by Meghan:
We had a great trip and the only thing that would have made it greater was to have Jacob, Marissa and Matt with us!
Yellowstone? Southern Utah? Park City? Idaho? Bryce Canyon? Where should we go for Labor Day weekend was the talk of the house for a few weeks. We looked into all of them. Far away......still too hot.......no campsites....hotels super expensive......What will we do there??......... Nothing really stood out.....so we decided to just stay here and sleep in our own beds, which is always a good choice. We started the weekend out with a short hike to Bells Canyon Reservoir - in Sandy. Hike was not even a mile each direction, with a slow but steady uphill elevation change the way there. The hike continues past the reservoir to some beautiful waterfalls, but it was another 1 1/4 miles or so there, with the last 1/2 mile extremely steep up big granite boulders. We will save that for another time. We left early and got there about 8:30am and got one of the last parking places. We had Cherie and David come with us too!
There are two trailheads - one longer but less steep, one shorter, but steeper. We opted for the longer but less steep.
After 5 minutes, we were definitely heading up off the valley floor
On our way!
This trail is at the bottom of Little Cottonwood Canyon and there were so many large granite rocks everywhere. This part of the canyon was also where the pioneers got the granite slabs to build the Salt Lake Temple
Steadily climbing upwards
In a short time, we made it to the reservoir
It was really pretty
Some ducks came to visit us
Then more........
and more......
I guess it helped that we were feeding them some goldfish crackers
The ducks definitely were not afraid of us
This one came up behind us to get his own goldfish crackers
Time to head back!
We had a good dinner out that night too. Sunday was relaxing with church, family dinner BBQ and visiting.
We finished the weekend out on Monday starting very early with breakfast at the #1 rated cafe in the Salt Lake area, Penny Anne's cafe known for their breakfasts and pancakes. There normally is at least an hour wait here for breakfast, so we got there when they opened - at 7:00 am!!! Uh, we were the first ones there, and the only ones there until about 7:15 ha ha! By the time we finished though, it was almost full.
It was SO good! We left very full
After breakfast, we headed out to Top Golf. Mom and Hannah were surprised. They thought we were going to the movies after breakfast - they had no idea where I was taking them. TIP: If you go to Top Golf before noon, it's half price! We didn't really know what to expect at Top Golf..I just thought it was a virtual reality setup where you hit golf balls into some sort of screen, and the computer kept track of how you golfed. I was wrong about the virtual part. Yes, a computer does keep track of where your ball goes, and how far and stuff like that, but it's a real ball and you hit with real clubs! There are three levels of "bays" and up to 8 people can "golf" in each bay. You take turns hitting the ball into targets on the course. It's HUGE!! And FUN!! We will definitely go again! Meghan and Corey met us there and we had a great time! We got there before it opened....good thing too, it was packed! When we left, the wait was 1 1/2 - 2 hours!!!!!!
Corey has golfed before, and even been to Top Golf before, so we relied on him to show us how it's done.
Jane wanted to try too
This is how it looks inside.....There are 100 bays spread over 3 levels. They even have a full restaurant and they bring you the food right to your golfing bay!
Somehow, I don't know how, as I've never golfed before, I had the high score
THEN we headed to them movie - Lion King - Cherie and her family and Grandma Gwilliam came too. Enjoyed the movie! Then we went home, took a nap, and did some chores, and had dinner Monday night to finish everything off. It was a fun Labor Day!!!!
