Scripps Canyon

La Jolla Shores, with its northern part Scripps Beach, is a beach and vacation/residential community of the same name in La Jolla, San Diego, California. The La Jolla Shores business district is a mixed-use village encircling Laureate Park on Avenida de la Playa in the village of La Jolla Shores. The beach is approximately one mile (1.6 km) long and stretches from the sea cliffs just north of La Jolla Cove to Black's Beach south of Torrey Pines State Park. Shores meets the Scripps Institution of Oceanography campus and Kellogg Park, encompasses the Scripps Pier and borders the San Diego-La Jolla Underwater Park Ecological Reserve to the south. The beach is a popular launch point for kayakers as it is the only beach boat launch in the San Diego city limits. The beach is also popular among stand up paddlers, swimmers and snorkelers. The southern end of the beach is especially rich with wildlife. During certain times of year, leopard sharks, diamond stingrays, round stingrays, and species of guitarfish are common. Green sea turtles and broadnose sevengill sharks are elusive but can be found farther offshore. Described by the Orange County Register as "the best beach in the area", La Jolla Shores regularly features in the TruTV show, Beach Patrol: San Diego and Lifeguard on The Weather Channel.

The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (sometimes referred to as SIO, Scripps Oceanography, or Scripps) in San Diego, California, founded in 1903, is one of the oldest and largest centers for ocean and Earth science research, public service, undergraduate and graduate training in the world. Hundreds of ocean and Earth scientists conduct research with the aid of oceanographic research vessels and shorebased laboratories. Its Old Scripps Building is a U.S. National Historic Landmark. SIO is a division of the University of California San Diego (UCSD). The public explorations center of the institution is the Birch Aquarium at Scripps. Since becoming part of the University of California in 1912, the institution has expanded its scope to include studies of the physics, chemistry, geology, biology, and climate of Earth. Dr. Margaret Leinen took office as Vice Chancellor for Marine Sciences, Director of Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and Dean of the Graduate School of Marine Sciences on October 1, 2013.Scripps publishes explorations now, an e-magazine of ocean and earth science.

The Old Scripps Building is a historic research facility on the campus of the University of California, San Diego in La Jolla, California. Built in 1909-10, is the oldest oceanographic research building in continuous use in the United States, and the historic center of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. It is also architecturally significant as a work of Modernist architect Irving Gill, and for its early use of reinforced concrete. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1982. It now houses Scripps administrative offices.

The San Diego-La Jolla Underwater Park spans 6,000 acres (24 km2) of ocean bottom and tidelands. The park's four distinct habitats (rocky reef, kelp bed, sand flats, and submarine canyon) make it a popular destination for snorkelers and scuba divers. The park was created by the City of San Diego in 1970 and actually has two other parks within it: the "look but don't touch" Ecological Reserve and the Marine Life Refuge. Within the underwater park are two artificial reefs, created to attract and enhance marine life. The first was built in 1964 with Santa Catalina quarry rock dumped in 70 feet (21 m) of water near Scripps Canyon. The second was started in 1975 and is located at a depth of 40 feet (12 m) just offshore from Black's Beach. From La Jolla Shores, the ocean bottom slopes gently out to sea. The reefs keep the waves minimal, making this an entry point for divers and kayakers. Kelp beds on the outer edges of the slope are popular fishing spots and great for observing seals, dolphins, birds and fish.Beyond the slope the bottom takes a sudden and 500-foot (150 m)-deep plunge into the La Jolla Canyon. The canyon reaches depths of 600 feet (180 m) within the park. The abrupt drop and abundance of marine life help to explain why migrating whales can often be spotted close to shore. A 30-foot (9.1 m) by 75-foot (23 m) lithocrete map of the underwater park was completed in September 2008 at La Jolla Shores beach. It is located near the boardwalk between the restrooms and the children's play area at the south end of Kellogg Park.

The La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club is a private social club located on the shores of the La Jolla area of San Diego, California.

La Jolla Cove is a small cove with a beach that is surrounded by cliffs in La Jolla, San Diego, California. Point La Jolla forms the south side of the cove. The area is protected as part of a marine reserve and is popular with snorkelers, swimmers and scuba divers. The swells that often roll in from the open ocean can be large and strong. The water temperature is often a little colder than the average San Diego beach. While the beach has a small dry sand area at high tide, during very low tides, tide pools are revealed at the cove. California sea lions can be found in the waters of the Cove and hauling out, temporarily leaving the water to rest on its beaches, cliffs, and bluffs. Similar to the events of the Pacific harbor seals at Children's Pool Beach, there is controversy concerning the interactions of people with the sea lions.

The Green Dragon Colony was a group of unique rental cottages that attracted musicians and artists to the seaside community of La Jolla, San Diego, California, between 1895 and 1912. Established by German immigrant Anna Held Heinrich, the colony became a well-known tourist destination in Southern California. The site of the Green Dragon Colony was listed as a San Diego Historical Landmark in 1973 (HRBS 84).

Coast Walk Trail is a pedestrian trail along the bluffs above sea caves in La Jolla, a community of San Diego, California.

Birch Aquarium at Scripps (sometimes referred to as Scripps Aquarium or Birch Aquarium) is an aquarium and the public outreach center for Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego. Accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, Birch Aquarium at Scripps has an annual attendance of more than 439,000, including more than 40,000 school children, and features more than 3,000 animals representing 380 species. The hilltop site provides views of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography campus and the Pacific Ocean. The mission of the aquarium reads: "At Birch Aquarium at Scripps, we connect understanding to protecting our ocean planet".

Sunny Jim's Sea Cave is a cave in the La Jolla community of San Diego, California. It is a popular tourist attraction in the area for its resemblance to the British cereal mascot Sunny Jim. The Cave Store, a gift shop above the cave, offers access to it for a fee. It is also the only underwater cave that can be accessed through land in California.

The Red Roost and The Red Rest, built in 1894, are historic beach cottages overlooking La Jolla Cove in La Jolla, San Diego, California. At one time, they were outstanding examples of the first-generation California bungalow. Their placement on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 has not prevented serious deterioration due to neglect. The La Jolla Park Coastal Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 9, 2024, includes The Red Roost and the Red Rest as contributing resources.

The Tyrolean Terrace Colony (1911–1912) was an Arts & Crafts-style hotel bungalow court in La Jolla, San Diego, California, adjacent to the former Green Dragon Colony. It catered to early automobile traffic along Coast Blvd., a scenic drive that led to La Jolla Park and other sites along the shore. The property, but not the buildings, was listed as a San Diego Historical Landmark in 1975 (HRBS 102). The Village Stairway to Goldfish Point and Caves, leading from Prospect St. to Coast Blvd., is located on the former site of the Colony.