Lucky Left

Not on any of the beach maps our hotel gave us, Tourmaline Surfing Park is the kind of spot locals love to keep a secret.

Today, impatience steered us to this sandy scallop embraced by coastal cliffs.

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Already, we'd driven nine hours to San Diego. 45 minutes after hotel check-in, friends filled the mini-van to capacity and we set out for a quick pre-dinner beach hit. But the maps proved hard to read.



"Let's just turn left," I said, seeing shoreline a block west.

Proof -- once again -- luck is sometimes the better navigator.