The hook
A colony of wild sea lions and harbor seals hauls out on the rocks and little beaches of La Jolla, close enough to watch the pups nurse, right in the middle of a fancy seaside town.
01Why it's worth it
La Jolla's coast bends into a series of coves and rocky ledges, and the marine mammals have claimed them. Sea lions bark and jostle on the rocks around the Cove and Boomer Beach; harbor seals gather at the Children's Pool, a beach a breakwater was meant to calm for swimmers that the seals took over instead, hauling out by the dozen to give birth and nurse from about mid-December into May. You can stand on the walkways above and watch a genuine wild colony carry on, feet away, which is rare and a little surreal in a town of jewelers and cafes. Sea-cave kayak tours run just offshore. Fair warning: it smells, strongly, and the animals are wild and federally protected.
02How to experience it
It's along the La Jolla bluffs, about eight hours from the Bay. Free to watch from the public walkways above the Cove and the Children's Pool; go early to beat the crowds. Keep well back and never approach or crowd the animals, it's the law and parts of the coast get closed when people don't. Pupping season, winter into spring, is the most active. It pairs with Sunny Jim's sea cave nearby.