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Mary Taylor
Sunshine, sand, and blue skies are a big part of Huntington Beach.
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Mary Taylor
A portion of the bike path in Long Beach.
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Mary Taylor
The activities and amenities when staying at Bolsa Chica State Beach can’t be beat.
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Birding and photography ae popular pastimes throughout The Bolsa Chica wetlands.
Story & Photos by Mary Taylor
Sunshine, Hollywood, Mickey Mouse, and chicken dinners at Knott's Berry Farm are probably the images that come to mind when you think about visiting the greater Los Angeles area. There is nothing wrong with those thoughts, but south of the "City of Angels" is a section of the Southern California coast that can keep you occupied for days. If you are an active RVer, you'll have it all including beach-side camping, coastal walks, bike trails, and bird watching.
Let's start with the section from Long Beach to Huntington Beach.
Lingering in Long Beach
Tucked away immediately south of Los Angeles is a city of nearly 500,000 that remains almost anonymous due to the overwhelming shadow of the "City of the Angels". A town with half a million people might be considered large, but Long Beach, California manages to retain a small town feeling while at the same time offering big city experiences.
Long Beach has a lot to make it unique. The city hosts The Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach race throughout its downtown streets and is home to one of the largest Ports in the US, the Aquarium of the Pacific and California State University. It is well known for its bicycle friendliness and promotes itself as the Aquatics Capital of America.
Here's what you can expect to find in Long Beach.
Shopping
If shopping is your thing, there are several unique communities to visit that will keep you occupied without having to go to a mall.
Belmont Shore, known locally as "The Shore" is about one-mile long and you will find loads of shops and restaurants that reflect the beach and university atmosphere found in East Long Beach. It's alive with strolling shoppers and many of the restaurants have street-side eating areas where you can people-watch, while munching on anything from sushi to hamburgers.
There is also Retro Row along 4th Street featuring art, antiques and collectibles, contemporary or vintage clothing and furniture, local restaurants, coffee shops and wine bars. The Art Theatre, a restored 1920's movie house, features first-run movies, art films and live concerts.
Downtown Long Beach offers several unique areas to shop or explore. The main street that leads to the Convention Center is Pine Avenue, which offers fine dining, nightclubs, and many shops. Just west of the foot of Pine is the redesigned Pike Outlets. Historically, the Pike was a fun zone dating back to 1902 featuring the wooden Cyclone roller coaster, a large indoor bathhouse, and several tattoo parlors. Today it’s a dining, retail and entertainment destination located next to the Rainbow Harbor waterfront in downtown Long Beach. The Pike features well-known restaurants, popular outlets, a theatre, and a giant Ferris wheel. Also in the area is the boardwalk- lined Shoreline Village with more restaurants and shops facing the Rainbow Marina.
Culture and History
Looking for art and culture? Visit the Museum of Latin American Art, Long Beach Museum of Art, Pacific Island Ethnic Art Museum, and the art museum and galleries at California State University, Long Beach. The Aquarium of the Pacific, with frolicking seals and sea otters, has more than 50 exhibits focusing on the Bering Sea, the tropical Pacific and the Southern California and Baja Pacific Ocean. Originally, two of the early Spanish Land Grant ranchos from 1784 occupied the land that is now Long Beach. Rancho Los Cerritos and Rancho Los Alamitos are beautifully preserved, and the public is welcome to participate in the many programs representative of those days.
Outdoor Activities
Besides focusing on water-based sports such as rowing, sailing, kayaking, and waterskiing, Long Beach has been recognized by the League of American Bicyclists as a Silver Level Bicycle Friendly City (one of 78 in the United States) for promoting cycling. There are more than 60 miles of off-road bike paths plus miles of marked bike lanes that crisscross the city east to west and north to south. Picture yourself cycling over five miles along the beautiful sands that gave the city its name way back in 1888. Your view will include gentle waves breaking along the shoreline, offshore tropical isles, which are actually camouflaged oil islands, the iconic Queen Mary alongside modern cruise ships, and the 26-mile distant Catalina Island.
You can also cycle inland along the Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Rivers, which mark the west and east sides of the city. For those without their own bikes, there are now numerous clusters of turquoise bikes available for rent all around Long Beach.
Looking for more outdoor activities? There are five golf courses, two marinas, three municipal swimming pools, two sailing centers, several kayak rental facilities, and of course, the chance to go whale watching or on a boat cruise of the Long Beach Port and Harbor.
Coastal walks are everywhere. Long Beach's five-mile bike path contains a separate pedestrian path, or you can shuck your shoes and walk barefoot at the water's edge. The quaint community of Naples on the east edge of Long Beach has an attractive canal (complete with gondolas) and a marine stadium that also serves as the walking and running routes for the area. The canal and its surrounding Alamitos Bay are popular for kayaking and standup paddle boarding. The marine stadium waters are also great for wakeboarding or waterskiing.
Special Events
September brings the Belmont Shore Car Show. Then there is the Haute Dog Howl'oween Parade in October where everyone dresses up their dogs and parades them around the park. Sometimes it's difficult to know whether the dog or its owner has the best costume. The Long Beach Marathon runs around the town in October while December brings a funky, small-town Christmas boat parade, which winds through the Naples canal. April is when you will hear the revving of engines for the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.
But the fun doesn't let up as you move south about 15 miles toward Huntington Beach.
Moving on to Seal Beach, Sunset Beach and Huntington Beach.
Cycling
The coastal bike path beginning in Long Beach continues along Pacific Coast Highway through Seal Beach to the beginning of the Huntington Beach bikeway in Sunset Beach. All this provides about 20 more miles of beachside cycling.
Birding
South of Sunset Beach and across the highway from Bolsa Chica State Beach is the 550-acre Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve, one of the best birding spots in the U.S. Numerous flocks migrating the Pacific Flyway between North and South America use these waters for rest and recuperation during their long journey. Parts of the Reserve can look more like a wasteland than a valuable wetland due to its history as an oil field, before the restoration, but its nearly 200 varieties of birds attract birdwatchers, naturalists and photographers. Even turtles and rays can be found lurking in the shallow waters. It's a great place to stretch your legs, break out your camera, or park yourself on a bench and relax. Guided tours are also available through the Amigos de Bolsa Chica.
Walking, Surfing, Kayaking, Paddle Boarding, Wake Boarding
The communities of Seal Beach and Sunset Beach are sandwiched between Long Beach and Huntington Beach along the edge of the Pacific Ocean. Try an early morning stroll somewhere along this stretch and enjoy the fragrance of salt air, spray from the moderate surf, and the cries of seagulls.
Huntington Beach, besides walking and cycling, offers good surfing with the best spots being along the bluffs northwest of the town down to its Main Street Pier. Surf fishing is available but catching can be lean. All along the coast from Long Beach through Huntington Beach is where windsurfing, paddle boarding and kayaking are mainstays.
Camping
If you are looking for waterside camping while taking in all that is available in Long Beach, try the Golden Shore RV Resort. This full service, 80-site campground is conveniently located near the end of the 710 Freeway on Golden Shore in downtown Long Beach. As a private campground, Golden Shore has all the amenities you would expect (pool/spa, picnic area, kitchen, laundry, store, and 30/50-amp service).
The Huntington Beach sites aren't grassy, tree-shaded parks. These are urban, close to the heart-of-town sites. There will be lots of blacktopped spaces, but the beach access can't be beat. Bolsa Chica State Beach (reservations available through Reserve California) and the Sunset Vista Campground (run by the City of Huntington Beach) are separated from the beach by the mere width of a bike path.
Both are parking lot campgrounds, but at least ten miles of beach connect the two. Bolsa Chica and Sunset Vista require that RV's be self-contained, although there are water and electrical hook-ups as well as restrooms, showers, and picnic tables. No tents allowed.
So, instead of Hollywood, Mickey Mouse and chicken dinners, spend your days like the locals with a gondola ride in Naples, watching herons and white pelicans at Bolsa Chica, and finishing the day with a seafood dinner in Huntington Beach.
Campgrounds:
Golden Shore RV Resort
101 Golden Shore
Long Beach, Ca. 90802
562-435-4646
Bolsa Chica State Beach
17851 Pacific Coast Highway
Huntington Beach, Ca. 92648
Reservations through Reserve California
(To book for Federal Parks in California visit www.recreation.gov or call 877-444-6777)
Sunset Vista Campground
October 1 to May 1
103 Pacific Coast Highway
Huntington Beach, Ca. 92648
714-536-5286