Leucadia is an eclectic little community on the Pacific Ocean. It once was a mecca for hippies and surfers - remnants of those 1960s days can be seen throughout this north San Diego community. Here you will find palm trees, wooden cigar store Indians, tie-dyed T-shirts and blue jeans, barefoot kids playing in the streets, funky lawn art and glowing beads.
Settled by English spiritualists in 1870, Leucadia was named after a Greek island. Its streets are named after mythological figures. Not too many years ago Leucadia was primarily agricultural; today, many of the wholesale flower-growing businesses are gone, replaced by homes.
Leucadia is home to phenomenal restaurants, goofy shops, palm readers, coffee shops and hip galleries. Popular hangouts include Pannikin Coffee, housed in a former train station (very artsy); the iconic Lou's Records (national recording artists have played in Lou's parking lot) with an enormous collection of CDs and records; and Juanita's Taco Shop, home of the best Breakfast Burritos on earth.
Leucadia's residents say that the best thing that ever happened to Leucadia was that nothing ever happened to it. Leucadia's beaches are lost in the 1960s and are old neighborhood surf breaks where hundreds of Leucadian's have been surfing for thirty or more years. There are four especially popular surf beaches - Moonlight, Grandview, Beacon's and Stone Steps - all are hidden treasures.
If you want a great work out, try "running the stairs" with the locals at Stone Steps Beach. 99 stairs take you from the bluffs to the beach. All along your workout you have incredible views of the Pacific Ocean while you exercise.
If you want to learn to surf, you can take a lesson or two from the one and only Kahuna Bob, an icon in Leucadia - just Google Kahuna Bob. Dolphins and whales are regularly seen. And it you look closely on a clear sunset, you will see the "green flash" as the sun sets behind the Pacific Ocean.
Leucadia's largest beach, Moonlight Beach, is often called "the beach with everything" because it has lifeguard towers, a big playground for children, roomy parking lots, safe play areas, fire-rings for use after sunset, clean restrooms and showers and a very wide, very sandy beach.
Settled by English spiritualists in 1870, Leucadia was named after a Greek island. Its streets are named after mythological figures. Not too many years ago Leucadia was primarily agricultural; today, many of the wholesale flower-growing businesses are gone, replaced by homes.
Leucadia is home to phenomenal restaurants, goofy shops, palm readers, coffee shops and hip galleries. Popular hangouts include Pannikin Coffee, housed in a former train station (very artsy); the iconic Lou's Records (national recording artists have played in Lou's parking lot) with an enormous collection of CDs and records; and Juanita's Taco Shop, home of the best Breakfast Burritos on earth.
Leucadia's residents say that the best thing that ever happened to Leucadia was that nothing ever happened to it. Leucadia's beaches are lost in the 1960s and are old neighborhood surf breaks where hundreds of Leucadian's have been surfing for thirty or more years. There are four especially popular surf beaches - Moonlight, Grandview, Beacon's and Stone Steps - all are hidden treasures.
If you want a great work out, try "running the stairs" with the locals at Stone Steps Beach. 99 stairs take you from the bluffs to the beach. All along your workout you have incredible views of the Pacific Ocean while you exercise.
If you want to learn to surf, you can take a lesson or two from the one and only Kahuna Bob, an icon in Leucadia - just Google Kahuna Bob. Dolphins and whales are regularly seen. And it you look closely on a clear sunset, you will see the "green flash" as the sun sets behind the Pacific Ocean.
Leucadia's largest beach, Moonlight Beach, is often called "the beach with everything" because it has lifeguard towers, a big playground for children, roomy parking lots, safe play areas, fire-rings for use after sunset, clean restrooms and showers and a very wide, very sandy beach.
About the Author:
The author retired in 2008. He loves the ocean. His special interest is marine animals. He and his wife own a B&B in Encinitas. Visit: Encinitas Inns or Bed and Breakfasts in Encinitas.
No comments:
Post a Comment