The hook
At the tip of Point Loma, where the first European stepped ashore on the West Coast, are the best tide pools in California and an old lighthouse on the headland.
01Why it's worth it
This is the point that guards the entrance to San Diego Bay, and it packs a lot into a small headland. There's the spot where Juan Cabrillo landed in 1542, the first European to reach what's now the California coast; the Old Point Loma Lighthouse from 1854, restored to its lonely 1880s life; sweeping views across the bay, the city, and out to sea; and, down at the water on the ocean side, a rocky intertidal zone the Park Service calls the best tide pools in the state, full of anemones, sea stars, octopus, and nudibranchs at low tide. In winter you can watch gray whales pass offshore. It's a national monument, so there's a fee and a crowd, but it earns both.
02How to experience it
It's at the very end of Point Loma, about eight hours from the Bay. There's an entrance fee. Time your visit for low tide if the tide pools are the goal, since they're the best part and only work then; the lighthouse and views are good any time. Winter mornings add the whales.