Los Angeles & Southern California - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [85]
Hermosa is one of several towns claiming to be the birthplace of surfing and even has its own Surfers Walk of Fame, but in 2006 the official nod went to Huntington Beach.
Every Memorial Day and Labor Day weekend (Click here for dates), Hermosa’s three-day Fiesta Hermosa (www.fiestahermosa.com), with music, food, kiddy rides and a huge arts-and-crafts fair, attracts large throngs of revelers.
REDONDO BEACH
Depending on your point of view, Redondo Beach is either depressingly grotty or refreshingly unglitzy. The action hub is the Redondo Beach Pier (www.redondopier.com), which arches from the bottom of Torrance Blvd all the way to King Harbor. The latter is an aesthetically challenged 1960s multilevel concrete construction but has a cool beer bar (Naja’s Place, Click here) and Quality Seafood, a fish and seafood shop where you can have your purchase cooked up, then sit at a picnic table to eat it.
From the same period is the Seaside Lagoon (Map; 310-318-0681; www.redondo.org/seasidelagoon; 200 Portofino Way at Harbor Dr; adult/child $4.50/3.25; 10am-5:45pm late May-early Sep; ), a large, shallow saltwater outdoor pool with a slide and cascading fountain. It usually teems with an ethnic potpourri of families frolicking in the sand or picnicking in the grass. Alas, the lagoon’s days may be numbered as the aging facility has difficulty meeting today’s high water standards. Parking costs $4.25.
To see Redondo’s more upscale side, you have to travel a couple of miles south to Riviera Village (www.rivieravillage.org; S Catalina Ave btwn Ave I & Elena Ave), at the foot of the Palos Verdes Peninsula. It’s a lovely strip with indie boutiques, great restaurants like Zazou and Green Temple and the book-filled Coffee Cartel (1820 S Catalina Ave) for relaxed java-refueling sessions.
Palos Verdes Peninsula
The most absurdly beautiful coastal stretch in all of LA is not in Malibu or Santa Monica but on the little-known Palos Verdes Peninsula (PV in local jargon), a terraced promontory that captivates with equal drama and grace. Cruise along Palos Verdes Dr (Map), especially at sunset, for awesome eyefuls of the shoreline. Steep cliffs tumble down to rocky shores and secluded coves as the roadway ribbons past rambling multi-million-dollar mansions where horses graze lazily. Catalina Island looms hazily across the sparkling Pacific.
This is great kayaking, snorkeling, diving and surfing territory, but coastal access is a bit cumbersome and locals can be territorial. In fact, the only easily accessible beach is Malaga Cove, aka RAT (as in ‘Right After Torrance’) Beach. This is also the famous Haggerty’s surf spot mentioned in the Beach Boys’ hit Surfin’ USA. Turn right on Via Almar, drive to the free parking lot, then look for the trail down to the beach near the gazebo.
Further on, Palos Verdes Dr skirts the gleaming white 1926 Point Vicente Lighthouse (Map; 310-541-0334; www.palosverdes.com/pvlight; ), which was staffed until 1971. These days electronic sensors activate the fog horn; the ghostly hooting must drive nearby residents batty. You can peek inside from 11am to 3pm on the second Saturday of the month (free).
Captain Ahab is no match for the binocular-toting whale-watchers gathering at the adjacent Point Vicente Interpretive Center (Map; 310-377-5370; 31501 Palos Verdes Dr W; admission free, donations appreciated; 10am-5pm; ) between December and April. The revamped center has fun exhibits for boning up on the