The Santa Monica Pier is iconic to the City of Santa Monica and is where, I like to say, “It’s where all the tourists end up”. It’s where Colorado Ave dead ends into Ocean Ave.
It’s the oldest pier on the West Coast of the US and was featured in Forrest Gump and countless movies. Year round you can head down, grab a fishing pole and try your hand at what’s in the water – and you don’t need a fishing license when you fish off of a California pier. You can rent poles and bait for pretty cheap at the end of the pier as well. If you want to actually see what’s in the water below you, head down to the Aquarium under the Pier run by Heal the Bay. It’s open to the public and an exceptional place to learn about our oceans and where we live – next to the Big Blue. Taking a stroll down the pier usually means braving the crowds, passing by Bubba Gump’s fish house, the name on rice vendor, maybe the guy with his bubble blowing machine, and countless tourists and vendors. You can spend some time (and quarters) at the arcade, or stop by the fish house and see the live crab and fish in the tanks. Then you pick out one to eat!
Kids will enjoy the famous ferris wheel and the mini-theme park with roller coaster and bumper cars. Yup, usually you can find Kettle Corn, sugary snacks, cotton candy – you know the drill. Of course, there’s UNDER the pier too. I don’t think you’re supposed to go there, but I’ve been known to break a few rules now and again. And again. And again. There’s some life rafts tied up vertically to the supporting pylons in case you get caught in high surf (yes, its been known to happen to the best of us) so remember they are there. And remember weird things happen under the Pier when no one’s looking. Expect a vagrant or two, or just a young couple necking. And if you see a middle aged guy running around with his two young kids and it happens to be a Thursday Night at the Pier during the summer Twilight Dance Series, be sure to say hi – It’s probably me with my kids running amok, breaking the rules again.
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Murphy was an optimist.