Top 15 California destinations

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Joshua Tree/Photographer © Cheyenne Rouse / Lonely Planet ImagesTop 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15Top 15: Inn at Mt. Ada CatalinaTop 15

<b>CORONADO BEACH, </b>
<b>WITH GRUNION RUNNING</b>
<i>Coronado, San Diego County</i><br>
<br>
Grunion runs are a great tradition, made greater by the many nonnatives who suspect the whole thing is a con. To set them straight, head for Coronado Beach, which runs along the near-island's Ocean Avenue, within 100 yards of the stately old Hotel del Coronado.
This will be a moonlight adventure, because the grunion, a 5-inch-long, blue-green-silver fish found from Baja California north to Santa Barbara, run only at night, at high tide, two to six nights after new and full moons, between March and September. (The state Department of Fish and Game predicts run dates at <a href="http://www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/gruschd.asp">www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/gruschd.asp#runs</a>.) Once ashore, these thousands of grunion lay and bury millions of eggs in the sand. (The eggs wash back out to sea and hatch a few weeks later.) The grunion are edible, but if you want to grab any, you'll need a fishing license. It's easier to check out the free show at Coronado Beach (or Silver Strand State Park, four miles south), then repair to the Hotel Del's Babcock & Story Bar for a nightcap. It's open until 1 a.m., full moon or no.
<i>Info:</i> <a href="http://www.grunion.org">www.grunion.org</a><i>, </i><a href="http://www.hoteldel.com">www.hoteldel.com</a><i>. </i>
--Christopher Reynolds

Top 15

( Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times )

CORONADO BEACH, WITH GRUNION RUNNING Coronado, San Diego County

Grunion runs are a great tradition, made greater by the many nonnatives who suspect the whole thing is a con. To set them straight, head for Coronado Beach, which runs along the near-island's Ocean Avenue, within 100 yards of the stately old Hotel del Coronado. This will be a moonlight adventure, because the grunion, a 5-inch-long, blue-green-silver fish found from Baja California north to Santa Barbara, run only at night, at high tide, two to six nights after new and full moons, between March and September. (The state Department of Fish and Game predicts run dates at www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/gruschd.asp#runs.) Once ashore, these thousands of grunion lay and bury millions of eggs in the sand. (The eggs wash back out to sea and hatch a few weeks later.) The grunion are edible, but if you want to grab any, you'll need a fishing license. It's easier to check out the free show at Coronado Beach (or Silver Strand State Park, four miles south), then repair to the Hotel Del's Babcock & Story Bar for a nightcap. It's open until 1 a.m., full moon or no. Info: www.grunion.org, www.hoteldel.com. --Christopher Reynolds