La Jolla are just full of all kinds of things to do with your tween.
This time on our adventure list we explored a little Southern California beach town named La Jolla. My daughter and I both love photography and are always trying to find the perfect spots to shoot some photos. This cute little town didn't disappoint. There are many photo opportunities in this little town.
We started our morning with a hike through Annie's Canyon Trail. This little canyon is beautiful and a must-hike on any little adventure seekers list. It's perfect for all ages. I even saw a 3 year old making the climb with a little help from dad. The trail and parking are totally free.
I was a little concerned about the canyon being so narrow and read that it was a tight fit. The last thing I wanted was to be the lady on the 8 o'clock news getting air-lifted out of because she got stuck. I went through the canyon with no problem. It looks a lot narrower than it really is. The hike in the canyon was just beautiful and perfect for some really nice photos.
To get to the canyon, we drove down N. Rios Ave until the dead-end. For parking, we just found a spot on the street. There's a sign pointing the direction towards the canyon. We had to take a short hike (0.6 mile) to the entrance. The canyon trail is one-way due to it's tight fit and is labeled "difficult". There's also a "moderate" switchback trail that leads to the same viewpoint were the canyon lets out. That means if you're not sure about the canyon yourself, you can just send the kids through and take the switchback. Then meet them where the canyon exits and walk down together.
Next we made a quick stop at Sunset Seat at Anderson Canyon just North of Torrey Pines State Beach. We wanted to take in the picturesque view overlooking the ocean and also get a photo with the wooden eagle. This artistic carved bench is perfect for checking out the ocean view.
After our quick stop we were off to the Salk Institute. I saw some amazing photos of this place on Instagram so we just had to add it to our list. We bought tickets online because you can't buy tickets at the gate to get on campus. It's $7.50 for adults. Kids under 12 are free. There is no public parking so you have to park along Torrey Pines Scenic Drive or in the Gliderport parking lot. Once we finally made it inside we had a lot of fun taking photos.
Next we were on a mission trying to find parking in downtown La Jolla. After no luck finding any street parking we found a parking garage on Jenner Street for $15 for the day. We started our walk at the Children's Pool, were we saw seals coming all the way up to the beach. The seals were not shy and didn't seem to mind having people around them. I was shocked to see how close they would let the people get to them. Besides it being really smelly it was really cool to see these beautiful animals up close and in person in the wild.
We walked down Coast Blvd taking in the view towards Cave Street where we found The Cave Store. In The Cave Store there's a tunnel that will take you to Sunny Jim Sea Cave. It's $5 for adults and $3 for children under 17. The 145 steps down the tunnel was and easy walk, there's just some spots to watch so you don't hit your head on the ceiling. The 145 steps back up was another story. It was a really fun adventure and didn't take more than 15 minutes to do.
After catching our breath we headed over to Prospect Street to go check out the Dr. Seuss art collection at the Legends Gallery. What better way to end off our day than with a viewing of the painting "Oh The Places You'll Go". The little gallery was full of all his wonderful storybook art. There's even some pieces that never made it into his books.
After all the adventure and fun we had in La Jolla, it was time to beat the traffic back home again. We had the best day. I got a two thumbs up from my teen for a well spent day. Big win for mom, because it's no easy task impressing kids today.
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