San Elijo Lagoon Ecological Reserve, Encinitas

This place has so many species of birds that you can spend hours and hours photographing them. Right now there are American white pelicans roosting and they just seem to stand around like they're waiting for a bus. There are Canadian geese that stop off during their annual migration, and there are a few deer feeding in the evening up closer to the college. The loop trail is pretty and the nature center is informative. Don't go at low tide, though.

I learned something interesting on my last visit to the lagoon; something about how the lagoon is related to the surrounding communities. Looking at the overlay map between the bioregion and the city lines, I was able to understand some of the folly of our political system, and how we think of the land we live upon. Go, look at the model, make your own conclusions. While you're there, take the loop trail along the edge of the lagoon. Stop, look and listen for a while. Consider what that space would look like with the dams removed. Consider how well what's there has adapted. Great walk.