Cliff Dr., Santa Cruz 2015-05-06

Natural Bridges State Beach

West Cliff Dr. in Santa Cruz is an awesome urban walk by the Pacific Ocean. Apollo and I decided to check it out on a perfect cool, sunny spring day. To do the entire stretch, it would be best to park near Natural Bridges Beach. Plenty of road side parking is available on Swanton Rd as well as on W. Cliff Dr. 

W Cliff Dr

We started our walk right at the top from the Natural Bridges Beach area. The majestic Pacific Ocean was simply breathtaking today. The winding road and sidewalk hugged the pacific ocean as we walked east. There is just one house located right by the cliff - otherwise, there is little that comes in between you and the views of the ocean. 

There were plenty of walkers, joggers, and bicyclists here, even on a weekday. On weekends, especially on a nice day, this place would probably be swarming with people. We started our walk in the late morning, but the sea breeze pretty much offset any discomfort from the sun. 

Today was my lucky day - I spotted a huge humpback whale and was able to follow it for several minutes as it moved north. For Apollo, the exciting thing was a trip to the beach and the water.

Lighthouse Field State Beach

There are two beaches that you will come across during the walk. Walking eastward, the first is Mitchell Cove Beach. That happened to be empty today. Little ahead is the Lighthouse Field State Beach. There were several people and their dogs down there. Apollo didn't need a second invitation to head to the beach and run around off leash for some time. Anyone seeing Apollo frolicking in the water today would hardly guess that he runs the other way if he suspects a bath is on the cards for him!

The stretch after Lighthouse State Beach is a popular surfing spot. There are several places with steps to the ocean and there were more than a handful of surfers enjoying the wind and surf today.

We continued ahead until Bay St. and turned around. If you like, you could continue walking another half mile or so to reach Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. The out and back trip of 5.5 miles took us about an hour and thirty five minutes. While we didn't do it today, Natural Bridges State Beach would be an excellent place to spend couple of hours. 

Pictures from the hike. 
#Hiking #HikingWithDogs #CliffDr #SantaCruz #CoastalTrail