Silver Strand Beach

Silver Strand Beach just barely falls within the geographical limits of what we consider California's Central Coast AND it's about a 2 hour drive south of Santa Maria AND it's nearly within the urban expanse known as Los Angeles. BUT - Silver Strand Beach is a great getaway which we've been visiting for several years now.

Silver Strand Beach is a one-mile-long by one-quarter mile wide slice of shoreline and homes along the western edge of Oxnard; bordered by Channel Islands Harbor (think fishermen, sailboats and million-dollar yachts) on the north and Port Hueneme (think Navy SeaBees and commercial freighting port) on the south and east.

Silver Strand is well known among surfers for it's great winter swells and is the birthplace of several hard-core punk bands during the mid-80's. The beach community itself is extremely close-knit but friendly and ranges from year-round locals to vacation homeowners to folks who just need to escape the hustle of the big city and/or have retired into the laid-back lifestyle.

On our visit this weekend, we we're fortunate enough to have met Tillman the Skateboarding Bulldog. Tillman is the sweetest, friendliest bulldog you could ever hope to meet. He loves grownups and kids and other dogs and he loves to say hello. He also loves to play. Tillman's idea of play is a little different from most dogs'. You see, in the laid-back Silver Strand Beach lifestyle; Tillman grabs his skateboard when he wants to play. You may have seen Tillman's video on YouTube or you may have seen Tillman in Apple's iPhone ad. Either way, Tillman's got his own website...check it out.

Here's a Tillman update: Tillman the Skateboarding Bulldog now has another talent. Presenting Tillman the Skimboarding Bulldog.

For more about Silver Strand Beach, check out this Wikepedia entry. It's pretty accurate.

For cheap eats - we highly recommend Pepe's for their outstanding Mexican takeout (try any one of their huge burritos or the fish tacos).

Another popular spot is the Jetty Surf Cafe (right across the street from Pepe's). The Jetty Surf Cafe serves up an awesome breakfast or lunch (and during the Summer is also open for dinner on Fridays and Saturdays). We often enjoy the Hawaiian French Toast for breakfast (3 slices of Kings Hawaiian sweet bread rolled in crushed corn flakes and almonds; served with sliced bananas, powdered sugar and cinnamon). There's also a huge selection of eggs, omelets, scrambles and breakfast burritos. Lunch is served from 11AM to 3PM Mondays thru Fridays and from 12PM to 3PM Saturdays & Sundays. The lunch menu ranges from a Sourdough Swiss Avocado Bacon Cheeseburger to Grilled Ahi Tacos to a Hawaiian Style Plate Lunch to Philly Cheese Steaks to Subs and Salads.