Capitola Wharf to Soquel Point, California

 Waning Gibbous Moon

Steep cliffs, a high tide, and poor planning combined to slow my roll yesterday from Capitola along the coastline toward Santa Cruz. I guess I will have to concede to the fact that the only way to finish this little hiking project around Monterey Bay is to bite the bullet and deal with aggro rush hour traffic either coming or going or both between San Juan Bautista and Santa Cruz. Add a crazy hour in each direction if I want to time the tide right. 

Friday I got an early start (5 a.m.) and beat most of the bumper to bumper crowd to Soquel and the Sunrise Café, where I met Captain Chem at 7:00 for a hardy breakfast. The good Captain and his lovely mate Sultry Sue moved to Sisters, Oregon recently, so it was fun to catch up over coffee and eggs to start the day. Then I made my way down to the beach parking lot near the wharf and spent several squinting minutes trying to understand the pay kiosk. I was assisted by a friendly surfer dude and his children who talked me out of kicking the machine, showed me which buttons to push, and explained how/where to insert my debit card. I really miss the drive-up booths staffed by smiling college kids and retired folks. Why did we ever do away with those things?

The walk began with a quick, sandy stroll to the wharf, where sixty winding stairs led to an overlook of tiny Hooper Beach and the tide-blocked cliffs beyond that. Hooper Beach is one of many pocket beaches I passed in between walking on crowded streets perched on the cliffs with occasional Coastal Access ports for surfers and Sun worshippers - lots of stairs at each port. The streets wind along the cliffs and form part of the Pacific Coast Bicycle Route in this area. I have ridden through here a few times over the years, but it's not the same as walking. At low tide, I may have been able to walk most of this section along the bottom of the cliffs. That would have probably been more funner, but this was still good.

Venetian Court, right on the beach.

The coolest part of this section was Pleasure Point, where lots of folks were coming and going, either surfing or watching the surfers. There was a strong sense of community here, lots of bikes and joggers and public art plus a place to grab some healthy takeout food. Pleasure Point reminded me a lot of the old California beach town days. Fewer phones. More conversations. Lots of smiles. Recreating via Sunshine.

Right after Pleasure Point I came to Soquel Point, another access place which allows people to walk out to see the rocks and the surf and the animals. The little boardwalk there is sandwiched in between beautiful houses built on the very edge of the continent. I briefly talked to a dude about my age there. He was sitting on a resting bench with his beach cruiser parked nearby, looking out over the water and beaming a great big eternal smile, just having a nice day. Which, of all the choices available to all the people capable of making one, is really the best thing to do.

I still have more coastline to walk, probably just as beautiful and just as jammed with houses on cliffs, but I don't care if it takes me one more day or two or even three. What's the hurry?

Peace and Love by the Sea,

Jim

#2,022 in 2022