California, Here I Come: Part 4

Boy, the airport sure takes up a lot of prime real estate.

Before I could see the "old" lighthouse, I had to move my car from the tide pool parking lot. Parking was a little scarce there, but that's not the case in the upper area of the park. And I hear that tide pool parking lot #1 and the trail is closed for a couple of months for improvements, so I really did have great timing with this visit.

According to their website, both lighthouses are old, but the one that I couldn’t get to is the one that’s currently used. They stopped using the original lighthouse because the fog and low clouds would obscure the light. I told you about the fog in a previous post. The "new" lighthouse is at ground level, closer to the water, and where sailors will be sure to see the light.

I was also told that the house next to the "new" lighthouse was in the movie Top Gun. I'm not really sure which one of the buildings is "the house," but as you can see, photographing the lighthouse looks much prettier from this vantage point—you can't see any of the fence or guy wires. Although, my zoom doesn't reach quite as far as is needed, but you get the idea.

The "new" lighthouse looks very pretty from this angle.

I enjoyed photographing the "old" lighthouse, and you are actually allowed inside, although climbing to the top is only allowed on two days this year. Still, you can climb almost to the top so that you can see up into the light. Pretty cool! The view is so good from the surrounding area, much like it was in Mt. Soledad, that honestly, I didn’t feel like I had missed anything.

The sky was so perfect for getting this shot.

The "old" lighthouse was interesting being at the top of a hill and surrounded by cactus or aloe, maybe? Is aloe in the cactus family? This setting was not quite like anything I’ve seen previously.

Old lighthouse, flag flapping, and a plane—wow!

My San Diego trip was almost over, but I did get to spend a few minutes at the harbor. Parking is really expensive there. I can't remember the exact price, but you have to have change, and who actually has change anymore? I found an unexpired meter—thank you to whoever was there just before me—and that gave me about 45 minutes to walk around.

The USS Midway museum was fascinating to see. Hard to describe just how large it was, but any ship that can hold more than one plane on its deck, well, it's really big! By itself, it wasn't necessarily pretty, but with bubbles ... possibly everything looks better with bubbles.

Bubble blower was making the USS Midway look pretty!

Well, San Diego was a lot of fun. There was so much more I would have liked to have seen—Balboa Park, for example, but I only had two days.

Next stop: Scottsdale, Arizona. I can't wait!

What is your favorite place to visit in San Diego?