Sunny Santa Monica
After tiring of the endless canadian winter this year Sarah and I decided to head down south again to take in some of that glorious californian sunshine. The roads were still in terrible shape right down to Utah so I decided to leave the truck at home and fly down to LAX and stay in Santa Monica.
I confess I would have preferred to drive down there and explore along the way because flying is such a crappy way to travel. Even when you use business class with a world leading airline flying is still, by far, the shittiest way to get from A to B. Having got my rant about flight out of the way, let me show you Santa Monica, a beautiful city within a city on the wonderful california coast.
We arrived in the morning of Saturday 17th March and it was a short taxi ride from LAX to our hotel (this being LA it still took over 30 minutes of staggering along the notorious I 405 before we covered that short distance). On arrival at our hotel just a short walk from Santa Monica beach we were given access to our suite immediately which was a real bonus, we dropped off the bags and set off to explore.
Our first stop was the pier and beach less than half a mile away. It's a great pier at Santa Monica with a good selection of shops, restaurants, entertainers and a fairground. There's the route 66 'last stop' shop and fishermen a plenty at the western end of the pier. After a couple of hours in the afternoon we returned to the hotel for a short rest as the 4am start from our home in Cochrane was catching up with us.
After a nice break we returned to the pier with tripod, ND filters and all the necessary gear for a sunset shoot, though ultimately the main image below was my favourite from the evening. The gallery below shows other shots from day 1.
I confess I would have preferred to drive down there and explore along the way because flying is such a crappy way to travel. Even when you use business class with a world leading airline flying is still, by far, the shittiest way to get from A to B. Having got my rant about flight out of the way, let me show you Santa Monica, a beautiful city within a city on the wonderful california coast.
We arrived in the morning of Saturday 17th March and it was a short taxi ride from LAX to our hotel (this being LA it still took over 30 minutes of staggering along the notorious I 405 before we covered that short distance). On arrival at our hotel just a short walk from Santa Monica beach we were given access to our suite immediately which was a real bonus, we dropped off the bags and set off to explore.
Our first stop was the pier and beach less than half a mile away. It's a great pier at Santa Monica with a good selection of shops, restaurants, entertainers and a fairground. There's the route 66 'last stop' shop and fishermen a plenty at the western end of the pier. After a couple of hours in the afternoon we returned to the hotel for a short rest as the 4am start from our home in Cochrane was catching up with us.
After a nice break we returned to the pier with tripod, ND filters and all the necessary gear for a sunset shoot, though ultimately the main image below was my favourite from the evening. The gallery below shows other shots from day 1.
Day 2 was LA Marathon day so we got out early to enjoy the beaches with fewer people around. We made our way to the pier then turned south and walked the 3 miles to Venice Beach and pier. We stopped off at the local skate park on Venice Beach and made a skype call to Mark, Hayley and Ethan from the sidelines, sharing the skills of the locals with a more global audience.
It has to be said that Venice will not be for everyone, the whole area is inundated with homeless people who can be very aggressive with their begging and abusive in general. We saw people openly smoking crack and injecting drugs as well as human waste and the detritus of homeless living stretched for a mile along the sidewalk. Cafes and local stores try to scratch a living amongst the mess but they line one side of the sidewalk and the homeless, drug addicted, mentally unstable population line the other.
I'm a big fella and can look after myself so we went there several times as we liked the walk back in the waves on the beachfront. But every single time, there was abuse and attempts were made to intimidate us, it's easy enough to back them off when you have the size to look after yourself but if you are easily offended or of nervous disposition you might want to steer clear of the area altogether.
We rented bikes at Venice and rode the path back to Santa Monica stopping for coffee and cake at a lovely little cafe on the pathway between the two. Then we rode back down toward Venice before leaving the bikes in a drop off rack nearby and taking a peddle taxi back to Santa Monica. In town we watched a few marathoners finishing before walking back to the hotel. In the afternoon it was shopping in downtown Santa Monica followed by a room service dinner in the evening.
It has to be said that Venice will not be for everyone, the whole area is inundated with homeless people who can be very aggressive with their begging and abusive in general. We saw people openly smoking crack and injecting drugs as well as human waste and the detritus of homeless living stretched for a mile along the sidewalk. Cafes and local stores try to scratch a living amongst the mess but they line one side of the sidewalk and the homeless, drug addicted, mentally unstable population line the other.
I'm a big fella and can look after myself so we went there several times as we liked the walk back in the waves on the beachfront. But every single time, there was abuse and attempts were made to intimidate us, it's easy enough to back them off when you have the size to look after yourself but if you are easily offended or of nervous disposition you might want to steer clear of the area altogether.
We rented bikes at Venice and rode the path back to Santa Monica stopping for coffee and cake at a lovely little cafe on the pathway between the two. Then we rode back down toward Venice before leaving the bikes in a drop off rack nearby and taking a peddle taxi back to Santa Monica. In town we watched a few marathoners finishing before walking back to the hotel. In the afternoon it was shopping in downtown Santa Monica followed by a room service dinner in the evening.
On our 3rd day we took the metro bus up to Beverly Hills and did the Rodeo Drive/Golden triangle shopping thing and followed this with a second stop off in the downtown shopping at Santa Monica, so the camera stayed in the room safe in the hotel for the day.
Day 4 saw us pick up rental bikes again, this time from close to the hotel. We rode down to the pier and then on the beach pathway north toward Malibu, stopping at Will Rogers State Beach. We rode past 3 miles of freshly sieved sand on stunning empty beaches guarded by wildflower slopes. Sitting at the state beach we saw a whale quite close to shore and we were still talking about it as we set off back toward Santa Monica. As we rode the beach pathway we spotted another whale, this time a huge humpback who was surfacing close to shore but with half a kilometre of beach between us and him. We quickly got off the bikes and hauled them across the soft sand to the shoreline, luckily he stayed long enough for us to see him. He was too far away for a photo with the wide angle lens so I made a short video on my phone for the memory.
After the whale spotting we returned to the pathway and carried on south, passing under Santa Monica Pier and continuing on to Venice. After coffee and cake in that nice little cafe along the way, we dropped the bikes in the rack at Venice and watched the skaters in the park again. This time we paddled along the shoreline back to Santa Monica, as we did I found a nice new iphone in the shallow water and, after rinsing the sand off it, was surprised to see it was still working. I dropped it off with a lifeguard in one of the towers and continued on suitably impressed with the water resistant capabilities of the phone.
Clouds moved in later in the day and brought with them the threat of significant rainfall for the next day, but that didn't matter to us, we'd had another wonderful day in California.
Day 4 saw us pick up rental bikes again, this time from close to the hotel. We rode down to the pier and then on the beach pathway north toward Malibu, stopping at Will Rogers State Beach. We rode past 3 miles of freshly sieved sand on stunning empty beaches guarded by wildflower slopes. Sitting at the state beach we saw a whale quite close to shore and we were still talking about it as we set off back toward Santa Monica. As we rode the beach pathway we spotted another whale, this time a huge humpback who was surfacing close to shore but with half a kilometre of beach between us and him. We quickly got off the bikes and hauled them across the soft sand to the shoreline, luckily he stayed long enough for us to see him. He was too far away for a photo with the wide angle lens so I made a short video on my phone for the memory.
After the whale spotting we returned to the pathway and carried on south, passing under Santa Monica Pier and continuing on to Venice. After coffee and cake in that nice little cafe along the way, we dropped the bikes in the rack at Venice and watched the skaters in the park again. This time we paddled along the shoreline back to Santa Monica, as we did I found a nice new iphone in the shallow water and, after rinsing the sand off it, was surprised to see it was still working. I dropped it off with a lifeguard in one of the towers and continued on suitably impressed with the water resistant capabilities of the phone.
Clouds moved in later in the day and brought with them the threat of significant rainfall for the next day, but that didn't matter to us, we'd had another wonderful day in California.
Day 5 really was a washout with severe weather warnings, flood warnings and 'emergency alerts' dominating the TV, and heavy rain pounding the hotel windows, we spent the whole day in the hotel relaxing and waiting for it to clear out.
As predicted the rain had cleared away by the morning of Day 6 and with sunshine warming the sand we wasted no time in getting out and down to the beach again. We started with bike rentals once again and cycled north to Will Rogers State Beach (half hoping for another whale encounter I think) We sat around basking in the sun and taking in the stunning pacific ocean beside us. With no whales to see we cycled back to the beach in front of 'Inspiration Point' where we stopped again for a while...still no whales.
We were soon back underway and passing beneath Santa Monica Pier riding down to our regular watering hole once more. It was coffee and cake as usual then on to Venice to rack the bikes and watch the skaters once more. We saw some incredible talent on display today with high jumps, flips and tricks all over the park.
We paddled along the shoreline back to the pier where we had a last walk out along the structure before heading into downtown Santa Monica for lunch, then suddenly our holiday was over. We had to head back to the hotel and pack, grab a shower and prepare to make the 40 minute journey back to LAX. Because we didn't leave the hotel until 6pm we had booked the room for an extra night to allow us some comfort before flying home, it was an excellent decision.
As predicted the rain had cleared away by the morning of Day 6 and with sunshine warming the sand we wasted no time in getting out and down to the beach again. We started with bike rentals once again and cycled north to Will Rogers State Beach (half hoping for another whale encounter I think) We sat around basking in the sun and taking in the stunning pacific ocean beside us. With no whales to see we cycled back to the beach in front of 'Inspiration Point' where we stopped again for a while...still no whales.
We were soon back underway and passing beneath Santa Monica Pier riding down to our regular watering hole once more. It was coffee and cake as usual then on to Venice to rack the bikes and watch the skaters once more. We saw some incredible talent on display today with high jumps, flips and tricks all over the park.
We paddled along the shoreline back to the pier where we had a last walk out along the structure before heading into downtown Santa Monica for lunch, then suddenly our holiday was over. We had to head back to the hotel and pack, grab a shower and prepare to make the 40 minute journey back to LAX. Because we didn't leave the hotel until 6pm we had booked the room for an extra night to allow us some comfort before flying home, it was an excellent decision.
All in all Santa Monica is a lovely one week holiday spot, guaranteed sunshine, beautiful beaches, lots of things to see and do in the immediate area and even more in the surrounding city should you want to explore. It was great to get away and thoroughly depressing to return home finding winter is still far from over.