The road to San Diego is paved with monotony-at least for repeat travelers.
From the white-stuccoed, orange-tile-roofed landscape of Orange County to the greenhouses of Encinitas, there is little to capture the fancy of Los Angeles motorists who have passed this way before.
But travelers who bolt along this ribbon of interstate, allowing the scene to flash by like a video played on fast forward, are missing the picture.
On a recent journey south we eased up on the gas pedal and took a meandering course. Following whim, supplemented by suggestions from guidebooks and veteran travelers, we pulled off the freeway to visit tiny beach towns, watch gliders soar off cliffs and trudge barefoot through the cool mud of a giant herb garden.
The attractions are listed from north to south along Interstate Highway 5. None is more than 10 minutes off the interstate; most are nearer than that. The suggested stops are not destinations but diversions, a soothing balm to cure a case of white-line fever.
– Seal Beach Pier, Ocean Avenue and Main Street, Seal Beach. The first beach town over the Orange County line is a quaint village of used bookstores, bicycle shops and cafes for people who are not afraid of a little cholesterol. The wide sand beach attracts a surfing crowd as well as families. If you are short on time, you can get a fast dose of atmosphere by strolling the 660-yard pier. (If you`re not up to the walk, 25 cents will buy you a ride on a tram.) Good ol` boys in caps balance fishing poles on the pier`s wooden railing. When we visited, the catch of the day was shark.
What else do they catch?
”Mostly cold,” said one regular.
– Newport Dory Fleet, near the pier in Newport Beach. Since 1891, the dory fishermen have been going out to sea before sunrise in their flat-bottomed launches and bringing back the freshest fish imaginable. By 9 a.m., 18 independent fishermen are selling heaps of mackerel, sea trout and live crabs, among other ocean fare, from old dories on the beach.
Hours: 9 a.m. to noon daily. Go early. Parking is a nightmare, especially on weekends.
– Roger`s Gardens, 2301 San Joaquin Hills Rd., Corona del Mar;
714-640-5800. More than your garden-variety nursery, this establishment sells everything from antique armoires and wrapping paper (floral patterns, of course) to plaster gnomes and English teacups. Besides that, you can get free advice on what is ailing your tuberous begonia, anemone japonica or tillandsia. A stroll through the manicured grounds (accompanied by piped-in classical music) is like a trip to a botanical garden with cash registers.
Hours: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.
– Crystal Cove State Park, along the Pacific Coast Highway south of Corona del Mar; 714-494-3539. Watch for signs to the four park entrances. You will know you are there when you hit the stretch of the highway between Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach that is undeveloped. This 2,791-acre rural retreat, once part of the sprawling Irvine Ranch, has four entrances from Pacific Coast Highway. Three of them-Pelican Point, Crystal Cove and Reef Point-are oceanside retreats. El Moro Canyon, the southernmost entrance, is on the east side of the highway and has hiking and riding trails and a small visitors center.
Parking is $4 at all of the entrances.
Hours: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.
– Heisler Park, near Aster Street and Cliff Drive, Laguna Beach. Some of the best views in town are from this strip of green atop a bougainvillea-draped bluff overlooking the ocean. It is small but boasts all the elements of a good park: picnickers, volleyball players, sunbathers and artists.
– Orange County Marine Institute, 24200 Dana Point Harbor Drive, Dana Point; 714-496-2274. Look inside a fish tank for the answer to the question,
”Who`s the bully on the block? The moray eel or the garibaldi?” (Hint:
The garibaldi`s fiery orange color matches its temperament.) The institute is not a full-scale aquarium by any means, but it has several tanks, including an open viewing tank with a variety of sea creatures. Patient docents explain it all in language young children can understand.
Best time to visit is on weekends when the lab is open to the public;
otherwise, you will not see much beyond the gift shop.
Docked in the harbor outside the institute is a 121-foot replica of the brig the Pilgrim, the ship made famous by Richard Henry Dana`s ”Two Years Before the Mast.” Tours of the ship are from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Sundays. Cost is $3 for adults and $1.50 for children.
The marine institute is open from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily. Admission is free, but donations are requested.
– U.S. Marine Corps Base at Camp Pendleton near Oceanside; 619-725-5566. It does not top most pleasure-trip itineraries, but you can take self-guided tours of the base. Take the Oceanside/Harbor Drive exit off I-5 and turn left at the stop sign. When you get to the main gate, ask the sentry for a self-guided tour map. Among the highlights: the Amphibian Village Museum, a collection of monstrous hydrofoils and other landing vehicles that are permanently beached on asphalt.
Hours: During daylight.
– Taylor`s Herb Farm, 1535 Lone Oak Rd., Vista; 619-727-3485. Kent Taylor and company tend 25 acres of parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme, to say nothing of angelica, French lavender, society garlic and Mexican tarragon, on one of the country`s largest wholesale herb farms.
Herbs sell for $1.35 a pot if you buy them on the site (compared with $18 a six-pack for mail-order customers). But it is a pleasant spot to visit, herbs or no herbs. There is a duck pond with two picnic tables nearby. And if you are lucky, Taylor will invite you to walk among the neatly planted rows.
”Usually, people take their shoes off out of respect to the garden,” he said.
You will discover herbs you never knew existed. They once grew 96 varieties of rosemary, Taylor said, ”until we decided not to go crazy.”
Customers now have a choice of nine kinds.
”Herbs smell nice,” he said. ”They make food taste better. They might even be good for you.”
That`s good enough for us.
Hours: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to noon Saturday.
– Quail Botanical Gardens, 230 Quail Gardens Drive, Encinitas;
619-436-3036. In a quiet, tidy spot just off the interstate, the gardens are a perfect place to stretch the legs and smell the eucalyptus. There are also flowers, ferns, pines and palms and a waterfall, along with wooden benches strategically placed so visitors can contemplate it all. Free guided tours are offered at 10 a.m. Saturdays.
Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. The gift shop and plant sale area are open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Parking is $1.
– Torrey Pines Flight Port, 2800 N. Torrey Pines Scenic Drive, La Jolla;
619-452-3202. The gliders fly through the air with the greatest of ease, at least when the wind is with them. You can watch as hang-gliding enthusiasts leap off a 300-foot-high bluff above the ocean, supported only by a flimsy looking glider and nerves of steel.
If watching is not enough, you can soar with a glider pilot on tandem flights offered through the port office for $75. The cost includes a 15-minute ground school and a 20-minute flight. Flights are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Best months for gliding generally are March through early June. But one way to determine whether the gliders will be out is to call the Wind Talker line at 619-457-9093 to get a recorded message on wind conditions. If the wind speed is an average of 9 m.p.h. or more out of the west, or at least 15 m.p.h. out of the south or north, the gliders probably are flying.
