Choose your spot

S.J. Cahn

Here’s a choice. Would you rather:

* Take a walk along Balboa Island at sunset.

* Risk bodily injury at the Wedge.

* Sip a cool drink at a bar overlooking the harbor.

* Hang out in your backyard with friends.

In Newport-Mesa, where residents are quick to point out how great

life is (and which is set on a TV pedestal overlooking such spots as

Riverside and Corona), the great thing just might be that the choice

is never so limited. Whether at the community’s extreme south-east

point, Crystal Cove State Beach, or to the northwest at MetroPoint,

there seems to be always something to do, always a place that’s a

“best of” for someone.

An informal survey of Daily Pilot readers, plus a couple of

familiar faces, shows why.

A WHOLE ISLAND IN PLAY

Perhaps it comes as no surprise, but Balboa Island is a popular

pick.

“For years my sweet wife and I have managed to relieve the

pressures of busy lives by taking weekly walks around Balboa Island

and surrounding environs in the early morning hours,” said Costa Mesa

resident Geoff West. “It’s a wonderful escape any time of the year,

but is especially therapeutic after all the summer tourists have

departed. Although our route seldom varies, the scene changes

constantly.”

In particular, the island is a haven for folks as the sun dips

behind the peninsula and below the ocean.

“I would have to say the boardwalk around Balboa Island in the

winter at dusk,” said Doug Stuckey, a former spokesman for the

Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce and now regional marketing

consultant for Wells Fargo’s Orange County region. “The crowds are

gone, the weather is cool, and it is a great place spend some quality

time with my wife talking about each other’s busy day.”

Other pieces of Newport-Mesa’s landscape are powerful draws, as

well.

“My favorite place in Newport is the Back Bay,” said Marlene

Hester. “It is so quiet and peaceful. Problems seem to disappear

there as if they were against the law. The people are friendly and

sometimes a quick smile from someone is like a shot of happiness. I

try to return these smiles because I know how nice it feels to

receive them.”

Other spots make for good hikes, said Corona del Mar resident

George Jeffries.

“Crystal Cove State Beach -- park in the lot near entrance and do

the circuit from along the bluff, down to the beach, and on to a

trail or steps back up to the bluff,” Jeffries said.

SAND BETWEEN THEIR TOES

The beach, too, is a place of solace of some, mayhem for others.

“My favorite spot is Little Corona beach,” said Costa Mesa Det.

Sgt. Jack Archer. It’s peaceful there. I go there by myself sometimes

just to get away from things. And I live in Riverside, so I like to

go to the beach when I can.”

A more infamous spot slams its way to the top of longtime Newport

resident Bill Sharp’s list.

“My favorite spot is the Wedge, because it’s unique,” the promoter

of big-wave surfing said. “Out of all the waves that break around the

shores of this planet, our Newport’s own Wedge is pound-for-pound one

of the most powerful and exciting that exist. And that’s made it

world-famous. I assure you, more people around the globe have heard

of the Wedge than have heard of Fashion Island.

“There are still those mighty days every now and then when the

‘freight trains’ are looming up halfway out the harbor jetty and the

crowds shift to the beach. And those special moments will inject

enough adrenaline into the system to erase the unsavory memories of

impossible parking and banging rails with clueless goofballs,

instantly reinstalling the Wedge at the top my list of favorite

places.”

The other end of Newport’s beach also has great waves that call

out to Newport-Mesa Unified School District PTA president Patty

Christiansen.

“That’s an easy one,” she said. “58th Street beach in Newport.

Great waves and fantastic ocean breezes. But, also some interesting

contrasts, such as the ugly black oil tankers offshore with the

beautiful island of Catalina on the horizon as their backdrop.

Another contrast is the dripping wet rock jetties that spear out into

the ocean, flanked by sign posts holding at least 10 signs each

warning of danger, sharp rocks, you could be killed, etc.

“My friends and I have been going down to 58th Street weekly for

what I have dubbed ‘Beach Fridays’ since my oldest son was 2. That’s

been 27 years now that we meet on the sand at 58th St. to enjoy sand,

sun, salsa (and chips, of course) and sodas.”

AWAY FROM THE CROWDS

Not every popular pick is a public place.

“My favorite thing to do occurs in a house in Costa Mesa,” said

Sue Clark of Newport Beach. “I bring my dog over to my good friend

Dave Riggle’s house, he is my spiritual mentor, and we sit in his hot

tub and watch our dogs run around and play with each other. It’s

kinda like when we used to have kids that little. I listen to his

take on life, which I very much respect, and we talk about how

grateful we are for our good lives and how we don’t even care that we

are in our 50s.

“That is my favorite thing.”

John Blom, who owns a photo studio in Corona del Mar, doesn’t

venture to far from home to reach his picture-perfect point.

“My favorite spot is the back patio of my home in Eastbluff from

where I like to watch the sun set,” he said. “It’s a place of

solitude and quiet. I work with people all the time and it’s a place

where there’s no people.”

Places to eat frequently popped up in people’s minds.

“Mine has to be the Omelet Parlor on 17th Street,” said Bo Glover

of the Environmental Nature Center. “Not a better meal nor company of

friends can be found anywhere!”

A restaurant’s ambience often proved the difference between a good

place and a great one.

“My favorite hangout is Zubie’s Chicken Coop at the corner of

Hospital Road and Old Newport Boulevard,” said Gil Lukosky, owner of

Nikki’s Flags. “The ambience there is fantastic, the food is great

and the drinks are cheap. Just the way I like it.”

Crowds don’t always prove a problem, either.

“Besides my passion for playing golf at Costa Mesa Country Club at

first light every Monday and Thursday morning, my wife and I enjoy

the Metro Pointe food court on summer weekends with friendly crowds

and live music,” said Costa Mesa Planning Commissioner Bruce Garlich.

“And we must include the OC Performing Arts Center for its sheer

magnificence!”

And sometimes plates of food and politics mix.

“The most secret “in” political hangout in Newport Beach is the

Back Bay Cafe,” said the collective political duo of Ron and Anna

Winship. “You can see the people that “really” run our city there!

When you have had enough of traditional food fare and want that one

satisfying moment of “bloated self satisfaction” it’s a trip to Benny

Hanna’s by the Airport, with those giant beer bottles....that say:

“That’s enough!” It’s one of those places you just can’t resist going

back to -- over and over again!”

Two former Piloteers picked, if you think about, similar spots.

“The Anti-Mall and Havana of course, being the cool kid that I

am,” former Newport Beach reporter Mathis Winkler said from Germany,

where he now works.

Former Editor Bill Lobdell put himself along the harbor.

“Yeah, a window table at the bar at Billy’s at the Beach, a mai

tai in hand,” he said.

Finally, for those who follow some of Costa Mesa’s lingering

issues, one last best spot is laden with irony.

“The evening view from the Bear Street bridge at South Coast

Plaza,” said Robert Graham, who has long pushed for a bridge at 19th

Street over the Santa Ana River.

* S.J. CAHN is the managing editor.