Leucadia is a funky beachside community within the little South California beach town of Encinitas. Once a hippie heaven, remnants of the 1960's are still in evidence throughout this north San Diego community. Here you will find wooden cigar store Indians, tie-dye T-shirts, weird lawn art, cool love beads and surfboard mailboxes.
Settled by English spiritualists in 1870, Leucadia was named after a Greek island. Its streets are named after mythological figures. Not too many years ago Leucadia was primarily agricultural; today, many of the wholesale flower-growing businesses are gone, replaced by homes.
Leucadia is home to Italian restaurants, funky shops, yoga studios, palm readers and cool art galleries. Local hangouts include Pannikin Coffee & Tea, a former 1880s train station much favored by the arts crowd; world-famous Lou's Records housing an enormous collection of new and used CDs and records; and Karina's Taco Shop, home of the best Shrimp Burritos on earth.
Most of Leucadia's residents will tell you that the best thing that ever happened to Leucadia is that nothing ever happened to it; it's beaches are locked in time with the 1960s - true neighborhood surf breaks where many locals have been surfing for decades. Very much off the beaten path, there are three popular spots - Grandview, Beacon's and Stone Steps - that are hidden gems, tucked away at the bottom of steep staircases.
If you want a great work out, try "running the stairs" with the locals at Stone Steps Beach. 99 stairs take you from the bluffs to the beach. All along your workout you have incredible views of the Pacific Ocean while you exercise.
You can learn to surf by taking a class at Beacon's Beach from world-famous Kahuna Bob, a Leucadian celebrity. Dolphins and whales are regularly seen, especially from the "high-bluff" beach entrances at Stone Steps and Beacon's. If you're lucky, you'll see the famous "green flash" as the sun takes its final dip into the vast Pacific Ocean.
Moonlight Beach is a Leucadian treasure - often called "the beach with everything" because it has lifeguard stations all year long, a big new playground for children, multiple spacious parking lots, fire-rings, restrooms with clean showers, beach rentals and a wide sandy beach. - 30559
Settled by English spiritualists in 1870, Leucadia was named after a Greek island. Its streets are named after mythological figures. Not too many years ago Leucadia was primarily agricultural; today, many of the wholesale flower-growing businesses are gone, replaced by homes.
Leucadia is home to Italian restaurants, funky shops, yoga studios, palm readers and cool art galleries. Local hangouts include Pannikin Coffee & Tea, a former 1880s train station much favored by the arts crowd; world-famous Lou's Records housing an enormous collection of new and used CDs and records; and Karina's Taco Shop, home of the best Shrimp Burritos on earth.
Most of Leucadia's residents will tell you that the best thing that ever happened to Leucadia is that nothing ever happened to it; it's beaches are locked in time with the 1960s - true neighborhood surf breaks where many locals have been surfing for decades. Very much off the beaten path, there are three popular spots - Grandview, Beacon's and Stone Steps - that are hidden gems, tucked away at the bottom of steep staircases.
If you want a great work out, try "running the stairs" with the locals at Stone Steps Beach. 99 stairs take you from the bluffs to the beach. All along your workout you have incredible views of the Pacific Ocean while you exercise.
You can learn to surf by taking a class at Beacon's Beach from world-famous Kahuna Bob, a Leucadian celebrity. Dolphins and whales are regularly seen, especially from the "high-bluff" beach entrances at Stone Steps and Beacon's. If you're lucky, you'll see the famous "green flash" as the sun takes its final dip into the vast Pacific Ocean.
Moonlight Beach is a Leucadian treasure - often called "the beach with everything" because it has lifeguard stations all year long, a big new playground for children, multiple spacious parking lots, fire-rings, restrooms with clean showers, beach rentals and a wide sandy beach. - 30559
About the Author:
Carlos Hunefeld has traveled throughout California on vacation and has discovered the finest Bed and Breakfast in Encinitas, the Inn at Moonlight Beach, a small, 4-room boutique Inn just across the street from popular Moonlight Beach. Carlos prefers the inn over Encinitas hotels because it is more intimate and comfortable.
