Sea Lion Saturdays: Photo Walks, Coastal Drives, and Marine Life in Marina del Rey & Beyond
March 2025 // Marina Del Rey, California
Camera:
Sony α6700
Lenses:
Sony Alpha 70-350mm F4.5-6.3 G OSS Super-Telephoto APS-C Lens
Locations:
📍 KC’s Crêpes Café — 104 Washington Blvd, Venice, CA
Sweet + savory crêpes, outdoor seating, and the kind of breakfast that doesn’t rush you.
📍 Burton Chace Park — 13650 Mindanao Way, Marina del Rey, CA
A quiet spot for a coastal walk and (if you’re lucky) some quality time with the sea lions.
📍 Dockweiler State Beach — 12000 Vista Del Mar, Playa Del Rey, CA
When the marine layer rolls in, this beach turns soft, moody, and cinematic in all the right ways.
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We like to start slow. A little something sweet, a little something savory - KC’s Crêpes Café never disappoints. It’s the kind of breakfast that gives you permission to linger, sip your coffee a little too long, and ease into the morning without a plan. On a spring weekend morning, this area is sleepy. Parking is plentiful, crowds are minimal, and there’s the perfect amount of outdoor seating.
There’s been talk of moving lately, and we’ve started wondering if this area could be our next home. We’re here for apartment hunting, technically. But we’re also here for boba… and sea lions… and photos.
After breakfast, we head to Burton Chace Park for a walk. Camera in hand, just following the sound of marine life. I never have an agenda, but I always end up inspired. The sea lions are usually the first to greet us - grumbling, stretching, completely unbothered by the rest of the world. They pile on top of one another like puppies in a sunbeam, then snap to life without warning, flopping dramatically into the water or nudging each other out of the way with sass. There’s something about their energy I can’t get enough of. They’re loud and awkward and wonderful to watch. Every visit feels new because they are new - restless and rearranged, like the tide.
After some time with the sea lions, we drove down to El Segundo before looping back toward Santa Monica. We pulled off at Dockweiler Beach, where the marine layer had already rolled in. It was thick enough to blur the horizon line entirely - ocean fading into sky, sky disappearing into nothing. Just a few miles north, it had been blue and bright. Here, it was gray and moody. It’s wild how quickly the coast can change. One moment you’re squinting into the sun, and the next you’re wrapped in fog. These in-between drives are one of the reasons I love living near the water.
A short morning, but a lovely one. Already counting down to our next Sea Lion Saturday.
Gallery
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