I’m a native East Coaster (DC metro area) but for the last 17 years I’ve lived in Encinitas, California, a great beach town about a half hour north of San Diego. My wife Heather & two kids Ben & Jill and I love the year-round opportunities to spend time outdoors. Listed below this photo from the bluff above Swami’s, I’ve shared a few examples of activities I enjoy in my downtime.
Going to Padres games at Petco Park
My wife Heather and I love heading to America’s Finest City to watch the San Diego Padres. I grew up watching the Baltimore Orioles at Memorial Stadium, then at Camden Yards, and while I loved those venues nothing can top the atmosphere and overall vibe at Petco Park. If you’ve experienced it you know what I mean and if you haven’t, let me know if you’d like to join me for a game in our seats near 3rd base. The offer even applies to Dodgers fans.
Enjoying SoCal’s great outdoors
All my life I’ve enjoyed the outdoors from backpacking along the Appalachian Trail, backcountry canoe trips in the Boundary Waters of Minnesota, and countless frigid overnight campouts as a Boy Scout in Maryland. Fond memories across the board, but now having the beautiful Southern California coastline, plus the desert, and Catalina Island all close by, my daughter Jill has been my partner in crime whether hiking the Trans Catalina Trail or scuba diving in great spots from the Channel Islands to the kelp forests off Point Loma in San Diego. Ask me about hiking Cactus to Clouds (aka Mt. San Jacinto in Palm Springs).
Seeing Live Music
One of the worst aspects of the pandemic was the closure of concert venues and festivals. But Southern California and recently San Diego in particular have come roaring back with some great bands passing through venues like The Observatory in North Park, Humphrey’s by the Bay in Point Loma, Belly Up in Solana Beach, and The Casbah in Little Italy to name just a few. Not to mention the return of Coachella….
MLR in San Diego and HSBC Sevens in LA
From an early age I’ve loved watching any & all international sports competitions including the Olympics, Tour de France, and World Cup— first soccer, and later, rugby — to name a few. While playing college and club rugby I grew to love the sport, especially Sevens. So I’m lucky to be on the west coast considering LA is one of only 11 global fixtures each year for the HSBC Sevens Series (used to be held in in San Diego in 2008, then moved to Las Vegas for few years, and now at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson). This weekend-long tournament features the top players from 18 countries and attracts a pretty festive crowd. Think ‘highest-level athletic performances + party’ and you’ll get the picture. And on top of that we now have the San Diego Legion of Major League Rugby playing at the phenomenal Snapdragon stadium.