On a trip earlier this year to Newport Coast, California, my wife and our friends went and wandered the beaches during the day and went out again each evening to catch the spectacular evening light and sunsets over Catalina Island and the Pacific Ocean. We were a short walk from Crystal Cove State Park and spent one day down on the beach where the surf has cut caves into the coastal cliffs.
The beach was a short hike down some steep but well maintained trails that took you from the rocky cliffs down to the water. You can't see the trail from the shot below, but a lot of the trails were paved, making access for strollers and wagons full of beach gear possible.
Here's a shot from the beach. You can see how far you have to come down to get to the beach.
Here's a shot of me in my normal vacation pose.
The evening walks were my favorite. There was still a haze over Catalina Island and the Pacific from the California wild fires, which looked pretty smoggy during the day. But in early evening, the clouds and the haze really provided a spectacularly colorful sunsets.
Here's one of my favorite shots with the spray from the crashing waves lit up by the setting sun.
The last night we were there, we decided to go up to Corona Del Mar's Inspiration Point. We figured with a name like Inspiration Point, it had to be pretty good, right? It was a pretty popular spot for sunset watching so we had to park in a neighborhood several blocks back from the ocean. When we first got there we could see why it was named Inspiration Point.
This is the view looking south from Inspiration Point just before sunset.
And here is my favorite shot from Inspiration Point, taken a few minutes after sunset when the sky turned a beautiful red and purple. Hope you enjoyed my photos. It was a great place to visit during the pandemic, because there were plenty of places to go to get away from the crowds and enjoy beautiful views.