Miles: Varies (I walked the North Fork Trail to the Broken Hill Trail to the beach and back in a loop)
Elevation Gain/Highest: 360ft/370ft (beach to top trail)
Map: Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve
Favorite Eats After Hike: I stopped at the Panniken Coffee & Tea in Encinitas where they had some gluten free baked goods and then treated myself to dinner at Pacifica Del Mar. Otherwise, I would Pack A Cooler.
Find out current conditions and as always, practice Leave No Trace. Pretty please.
Hike details:
Torrey Pines State Natural Preserve boasts a rugged coastline and eroding cliff walls anchored by the hardiest of pine tree, the Torrey Pine. It makes a wonderful attraction if road tripping the Pacific Coast Highway in Southern California and offers a long beach walk and six hiking trails for varying abilities through pine, coastal sage scrub and chaparral. A stop by the visitor’s center is a must where you can learn more about the history and geology of the area.
“What is special about a Torrey pine? It’s not the rarest pine in the world. The Dalat pine is. It isn’t even the rarest tree in California. That’s the Monterey cypress. The Torrey pine doesn’t grow to a great size like a redwood. It doesn’t grow to a great age like a bristlecone pine. It isn’t known for excellent lumber like a sugar pine. Torrey pine wood is brittle, rots easily, and doesn’t even make a good fire. The Torrey pine doesn’t even have the dubious distinction of being endangered. So, “what’s special about a Torrey pine?” The Torrey pines along the sea cliffs suffer from persistent drought. Their roots are growing in poor sand which can hardly be called “soil.” The trees are blasted by storms and cooked in the sun. Some trees die, but the species lives stubbornly on. Some trees, like some people, develop character during hard times. That’s what I think is special about the Torrey pine…, character!” -Hank Nichol
My trip report:
12/13/2019
As part of a long weekend spent basking in the sunshine of San Diego, I spent the day driving north in search of beach and trails before finding the perfect spot at Torrey Pines State Natural Preserve. Parking up from the North Beach access point on Carmel Valley Road, I walked into the parking lot and under the overpass of North Torrey Pines Road (Old HWY 101). A cement walkway curved back around and up along the road over where Los Penasquitos Creek drains into the Pacific Ocean before dropping back down to the beach headed south toward the park entrance.
At the South Beach entrance, I walked up from the cobblestone beach and through the parking area to continue up the closed road to start at the ranger station and visitor’s center. Here I learned more about Torrey Pines State Natural Preserve by watching an informational video and talking with the ranger on duty.
From here, I continued up the road until I reached the North Fork Trail. The trail was level at first and wandered through the bristly pine and cacti. There were not many people, most seem to find trails closer to the visitor’s center.
I visited the Broken Hill and South Fork viewpoints that overlooked the eroding cliff walls of the preserve and the Pacific Ocean before taking the Broken Hill Trail down to the beach. Here I was joined by more hikers who had walked down the beach to visit the interesting Flat Rock formation a little bit further south.
I had thought about walking back up one of other trails on the bluff but decided to take the beach back to the entrance and my car. My loop was roughly 4 miles and took me about 3 hours.
Directions: Torrey Pines State Natural Preserve is located between La Jolla and Del Mar, California, north of San Diego. From Hwy 5, exit on Carmel Valley Road and drive west for about 1.5 miles till you reach the Coast Highway 101. Turn left and proceed along the beach for about a mile. The park entrance is on your right just before the highway begins to climb the Torrey Pines grade, where you can pay to park. You can also enter the park from the North Beach parking lot. From Hwy 5 going southbound, exit on Carmel Valley Road and drive west for about 1.5 miles until you reach McGonigle Road. Turn left on McGonigle Road to enter the parking lot where you can self-pay to park and walk to the reserve by walking towards the beach and going underneath the bridge to access a ramp that will lead you to a sidewalk to get to the trails at the Reserve.
From Hwy 5 northbound, exit Genesee Ave and turn left. Continue on Genesee Ave, veering to the right onto N. Torrey Pines Road for approximately 4.5 miles. Turn left when you reach the bottom of the grade to enter the park. To access the north end of Torrey Pines State Beach, continue northbound on N. Torrey Pines Road until you reach Carmel Valley Road. Turn right until you reach McGonigle Road then turn right into the parking lot.
Torrey Pines State Natural Preserve and Beach
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