Now that I have my new California State Parks annual pass, I’ve been putting it to good use by visiting a number of the Southern California beach state parks. Yesterday, it was back to Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve north of La Jolla.
With its expansive beach at the base of towering cliffs that are capped by North America’s rarest pine tree, the Torrey pine, and its extensive trails, Torrey Pines SNR is perhaps one of the most visited parks in the San Diego area. This was meant to be a little bit of a reconnaissance trip. I had been there a couple of times previously, but there’s much more that I needed to explore.
Unfortunately, San Diego’s renowned “May Gray” arrived a little early, with the overcast sky muting the otherwise brightly colored sandstone cliffs. It wasn’t the best day for photography, but I did learn a little more about the park.
These photos were taken from the north viewpoint on the Guy Fleming trail, several hundred feet above the surf. (Check out the people on the beach for scale.) For grins and giggles, I took a cell phone video of the view (apparently I have difficulty walking and panning at the same time around the 25 second mark—sorry).
Lastly, as I was driving out of the park, I heard the rather loud sound of a piston engine aircraft overhead. I looked up and saw a World War II B-17 Flying Fortress overhead lumbering up the coast. By the time I was able to pull the car over and snap a photo with my cell phone, it was just a speck in the sky. Still, it was amazing to see and hear that piece of history in flight.
Here’s the cell phone video:
Daniel Zeller Photography 
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