The San Diego Society of Natural History is the oldest scientific institution in southern California and the third oldest west of the Mississippi. They have been at their current site since 1933, the funds gifted by the philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps. In this large space the society is able to grow their collection. They currently …
Beaver, Utah has a mere population of 3,500 but it has created quite a name for itself with the farm fresh Beaver dairy products sold at The Creamery. (Be prepared to stand in line.) We have been coming here since 2018 when this 11,250 square foot restaurant/ice cream shop/gift shop/play area/educational facility was built right …
The city of Yermo was established in 1902. In the 1950s, when Walter Knott opened Calico Ghost Town, Yermo’s Chamber of Commerce created a name for itself as the “Gateway to the Calicos”. It was also the gateway to Las Vegas. Until the 15 freeway was constructed in 1968, traffic went right through town. In …
King tides are a result of the moon, sun and earth aligning in combination with the proximity of the orbiting bodies (the closer they are, the more of a gravitational effect). It only happens a few times a year but is especially exciting because the extra low tides expose my favorite intertidal organisms to my …
We love this time of year, when the San Diego Zoo Safari Park stays open late, its grounds covered with holiday cheer for their annual Wild Holidays. This year is better than years past (maybe due to the 50th anniversary of the park). There are more lights than usual, more displays, and there are musicians …
Every year Oceanside Harbor Parade of Lights is marked on our calendar when it is still beach weather. There is nothing better than seeing Christmas lights wrapped around masts reflected in Oceanside Harbor waters. People are singing, cheering, and playing music while proudly displaying their floating Christmas display. It is one of my favorite events …
Southern California winters don’t look too different from any other time of year so we have to go to events like Downtown Oceanside’s Annual Holiday Tree Lighting in order to evoke Christmas cheer. The tree lighting always lands on Thursday, an extension of Sunset Market, so for us it means starting at Stone Brewery, paired …
When Disneyland first opened in 1955 it used a tiered coupon system. If the coupon system still existed today we would have have used four E tickets (the priciest of all the tiers) in the first hour we were there. (There must have been late nights before the park opened with Walt Disney and his …
Just 15 minutes from our house in Oceanside are the Cerezo Bluffs tide pools. These tide pools never disappoint (as long as you know where to look). Today the low tide was -1.7 feet, exposing all sorts of incredible intertidal zone organisms. For two hours we scoured the bright green seagrass, finding shrimp, brittle stars, …
Established in 1918, March Air Force Base is one of the oldest airfields operated by the US military. This was Bob Hope’s first stop on his SFO tour, entertaining March troops in 1941. The March Field Air Museum, located alongside the now March Air Reserve Base, is a nonprofit organization aimed to educate the public …
Scripps Institution of Oceanography was founded in 1903. It is one of the oldest and largest centers for ocean and earth science research. We signed up for a Scripps tour, which resumed just a few months ago post-pandemic precautions. The tour begins at the Nierenberg Memorial Rose Garden, where the longest standing director of Scripps, …
The historical botanical garden building is in the middle of a 21 million dollar remodel. It is supposed to be completed in summer 2023. Luckily there are plenty of other plant options within Balboa Park. There is a small pedestrian bridge that takes visitors safely across Park Blvd. to two public gardens that were waiting …
St. Michael’s By-the-Sea is the oldest church in Carlsbad, and one of the four oldest buildings in Carlsbad Village. The 1894 historic chapel now resides adjacent to a larger, newer chapel, both of which hold regular church services. Once a year St. Michael’s By-the-Sea hosts the Carlsbad Music Festival, an artist-led, grass-roots non-profit that features …
Every Thursday before Halloween Oceanside’s weekly Sunset Market is transformed into Haunted Market. People of all ages dress up and go trick-or-treating at vendor’s booths. It seems even more vendors participated this year than in years past. Haunted Market is the best way to kick off All Hallows’ Eve, our pre-tradition tradition.
This year was Oceanside’s 21st annual Día de los Muertos Festival. Although the location has changed from downtown to the mission and back to downtown again (as of last year), the culture and diversity that this festival brings has remained the same. There are meticulously decorated altars (many in vintage cars), dancing, art, food and …
Four Points Bulletin 