boarding. bonfire. bull taco

it was the ideal weekend to be able to spend entirely on the beach.  with the start of lobster season, the red tide and warm weather - i felt quite lucky that friends had taken over 3 separate camp sites in the san elijo campgrounds in cardiff.  we all took advantage of the easy access to paddle board, surf, and kayak at cardiff reef.  with the waves relatively flat, it was great to cruise around and relax in the kelp beds.  i kept pausing long enough in the calm silence to catch seals playing with each other, and actually got spooked by one particular one when his head popped up right next to my kayak (almost teetered into the water)!  with some friendly competition with bocce ball (our rules keep evolving), carving pumpkins with the kids, and a little lobster hunting - i kind of felt like i was at summer camp.  living within a mile of the campsite i decided not to haul down anything for a cookout, and instead we all took advantage of the deck at bull taco to catch the sunset and eat some delicious grub (they took the abalone taco off the menu!).  the red tide added an extra element of excitement for some.  the phytoplankton made the water a milky reddish brown by day, but by night, the burst of electric blue bioluminescence was incredible.  while everyone was out in the water with their lights diving down for lobsters, i enjoyed the cloudless sky and twinkling stars from the shore.  the nights wound down gathered around the bonfire with some cold beers, tequila and cigars.  it's awesome that you can feel so far away from home in your own backyard.