Cardiff-by-the-Sea, Encinitas, CA

Cardiff-by-the-Sea is the southern end of Encinitas, a coastal village wedged between San Elijo Lagoon and the ocean, with Solana Beach just over the lagoon to the south. Its streets carry British city names like Aberdeen and Liverpool, and a second batch north of Birmingham Drive is named for composers. Houses here change a lot from block to block. West of Interstate 5 you'll find older beach cottages sitting next to crisp contemporary rebuilds, and the Composer District climbs high enough for ocean views. East of the freeway, the homes get larger and newer, and the lagoon trails sit right at the edge of many streets. Outdoor life pulls in two directions. Cardiff State Beach, which surfers call Pipes, has a reef break and allows dogs, and San Elijo State Beach runs along the bluff with a campground on top. Swami's sits at the north tip of the neighborhood. Inland, the San Elijo Lagoon Ecological Reserve has about seven miles of trails, and Annie's Canyon Trail squeezes through a narrow slot canyon with a few ladders along the way. The Coastal Rail Trail follows the tracks for walkers and bikes. Food clusters on San Elijo Avenue and along the 101. Cardiff Seaside Market is famous for its marinated tri-tip, sold raw for the grill or stuffed into a sandwich. The Aberdeen Drive strip has VG Donut & Bakery, where the chocolate glaze draws a line most mornings, Besta-Wan Pizza House with its thin tavern-style pies in a converted house, and the flagship Bump Coffee with its cold brew. Pipes Cafe on Liverpool Drive is where people grab a breakfast burrito after a session. Getting around is mostly by car or bike. The Encinitas Coaster station is a quick hop north, and Vons on Santa Fe Drive covers the big grocery runs. I-5 cuts straight through Cardiff-by-the-Sea, splitting the coastal grid from the eastern streets, and its hum carries to the homes closest to the freeway. A bronze surfer statue at Chesterfield Drive, known as the Cardiff Kook, gets dressed up by locals for holidays and local events, and Cardiff-by-the-Sea keeps that habit of not taking itself too seriously.