Ocean Beach, San Diego - Summer Fun for the Whole Family

I was born and raised in Ocean Beach and like to consider myself an expert on it. I only lived a few blocks from the pier and beaches but always asked if we could "go to the beach" almost every single day. Located at the westernmost end of Freeway 8, Ocean Beach is discovered by many people on accident and it becomes one of their favorite places to visit, eat, and take the family. The locals are all very friendly and loud music can be heard pouring from houses on almost every other block. The beach is well maintained and patrolled and the water has enough diversity to appeal to toddlers through professional surfers.

The Beaches

Ocean Beach is made of 3 separate areas. There is the Pier and beach area which is dedicated to surfing and boogie boarding because the currents there are fickle and new swimmers and tourists can be pulled out occasionally. The next area to the north, which is separated by a jetty, is the swimmers area. There are more lifeguards here and no surfing so you can splash and play all you want without having to worry about someone on a piece of fiberglass rocketing toward your face. This area is full of families and there is a small grassy picnic area nearby if you don't want to stay in the sand the entire time. The next area is Dog Beach. One of the only beaches that allow unleashed dogs to roam free and do what dogs do. You will never see a happier dog than one running free in the surf and chasing other dogs around. It's great fun to sit on the jetty and watch the dogs in action. You can swim and surf in this area and it is pretty shallow as well. You can look near the bridge and get a view of the Sea World tower. If you are there around the full moon, ask a local surf shop about a tide book and you might find you are there at a perfect time for a grunion run! Local vendors frequent the parking lots with food and soda carts if you don't feel like leaving the beach at all. There are numerous fire pits if you decide to roast some marshmallows or have a bonfire at night.

The Pier

The ocean beach pier is around a 1 mile walk and always has interesting characters. There are fisherman with buckets, a small shop, and many people taking pictures and enjoying the beautiful views from each side of the pier. I used to love walking the pier and looking in everyones bucket to see what they caught. They allow fishing so if you and your family enjoy fishing, it's a nice place to spend some time. Below the pier and to the south are tide pools full of fish, anemones, crabs, and all types of sea life. It's a lot of fun to wander around looking in all the pools and cracks in the rocks to see what's in there.

The Surf

Ocean Beach is a wonderful place for surfers and boogie boarders of all skill levels. I learned both sports there and continue to go as often as I can. The water is nice and warm in the summer and the waves are very consistent. Currents fluctuate and you can stop by the lifeguard office to look at them as they are posted on a board daily. That way you can tell where you will get sucked out and avoid that place or go there intentionally. It depends on your skill and what you are doing.

The Area

Ocean Beach is close to everything. The Qualcomm stadium is 10 minutes away, Sea World you can see from the beach, the Cabrillo National Monument and most San Diego activities are very close. In Ocean Beach are a number of restaurants and novelty shops that will entertain you as well as a very popular weekly farmers market. The food is very reasonable and you get a lot for your money at most places. The appeal of Ocean Beach is it's laid back nature so you should just enjoy it and relax for the day or afternoon and get back to your busy schedule later.