Alta Vista, Redondo Beach, CA

Alta Vista climbs the high ground east of the pier in Redondo Beach, and its best-known corner is a former Cold War missile site that the city turned into woods and ponds. Hopkins Wilderness Park is the thing people from other neighborhoods know about Alta Vista. Hopkins covers 11 acres off Camino Real, with two ponds, two small streams, meadows and flat dirt paths that loop through stands of trees. Downhill, Veterans Park at 309 Esplanade gives the neighborhood a big lawn right south of the pier, with picnic tables, a play area, stairs to the sand and a Thursday farmers market. Homes in Alta Vista run from older beach houses to large new builds, on wider streets and roomier lots than most of the South Bay. Rebuilds are common, and many put decks and big windows on the upper floor to use the elevation. The PCH stretch here feeds the neighborhood well. Klatch Coffee, at 306 S Pacific Coast Hwy, is the local outpost of an award-winning roaster that roasts to order. Daily errands happen on Torrance Boulevard and PCH, with Whole Foods and Vons each a short drive away. The pier, the harbor and the Strand bike path are all walkable from the western blocks. Farther up the hill, the walk back home is a real climb. The tradeoff is traffic. Torrance Boulevard and PCH carry pier and beach visitors, and summer weekends back them up. Up by Hopkins, though, the ponds and meadows feel far from the pier crowds even though the ocean is a downhill walk away.