Touring the Harbor

Because I like to be involved in our local community, I often sign up for emails from nearby organizations.  The ones I get the most are from our local Bixby Knolls Business Improvement Association, which plans all sorts of great events from dinners to book clubs to happy hours and the like.  However, I also get emails from organizations further afield, and one of those is the Port of Los Angeles.  How I got on this email distribution list, I don't really know, but it comes only once a month and keeps us updated on what's going on in San Pedro, the city just to our west and only a 20 minute drive away.  A few weeks ago, the Port sent out an email blast, offering free harbor cruises to celebrate global trade day or something like that, and we jumped on the chance to see the inner workings of the busiest port in the nation (fun fact - the port of LA is the busiest in the nation and the port of Long Beach is the second busiest - they're right next to each other, so we see a lot of those shipping containers around these parts).

A glossy, artsy photo of the Port of LA.

As you probably know by now,

I did not take this shot.

While the harbor folks were running tours all day, they were first come, first served without any way to make reservations, so we figured we'd hit up an early time slot, around 10:30am.  While the line was already snaking out away from the pier where loading would take place, we were able to get on the first boat!  

Boat selfie!

Our trusty vessel, getting ready to dock

The port folks were offering tours from both Wilmington and San Pedro, and we picked those in SP, starting right next to the LA Maritime Museum and the USS Iowa Museum.  A few hundred folks packed on the boat, and we were off!  Our captain gave us narration for the entire length of the cruise (about one hour), and we had a good time being on the water and learning about the area.

The Iowa in front of the Vincent Thomas Bridge.

The two breakwater gates into the ports are

Angel's and Queen's Gate, named, respectively,

for the Port of LA and the Queen Mary,

over in our LBC.

The Iowa

Just a few of the many, many cranes we'd see on the tour

Fireboats are essential to safety in the port areas.

The captain told us that one of the fireboats here

has enough pressure to put out a car fire

on top of the Vincent Thomas Bridge.

Scroll back up and see how giant that thing is -

that's pretty impressive!

The Maritime Museum

As we pulled further away from the museum, we headed toward the open ocean (we'd never get there, which was completely fine in this boat); along the way, we saw the Ports O' Call complex, which is currently the subject of all sorts of consternation (the city has plans to tear it down, but it seems to be a beloved place - or at least, everyone realized they'd miss it once the city said they were tearing it down) as well as the San Pedro Fish Market.

Are you near some docks on the California coast?

Then prepare to see sea lions.

Some of the truck traffic on Terminal Island.

Saturday is a pretty quiet day at the port,

as most of the trucks come in and out on weekdays.

When I go for a lunchtime run on the River Trail,

I can see semis with shipping containers

all up and down the 710.

It's really mind boggling how many come through this area.

The Fish Market, where - spoiler alert - 

we'll be in just a bit!

Just so.many.cranes.

Abandoned warehouses that are now used

primarily as movie sets.

We live in a weird place, this part of the state.

The back side of the commercial fish market - 

each door bore the name of another seafood company.

As we drew closer to Angel's Gate, we saw a few other watercraft and the LA Harbor Lighthouse.  

The tower on top of the port building - 

bearing the word "welcome" in several languages.

Zoom!

As we got ready to turn around, our captain had us get decently close to a buoy, the better to peek at the sea lions chilling out there.

As if I'm going to pass up taking pictures of wildlife.

It's like you don't even know me.

Looking back toward Terminal Island.

Check out all those shipping containers.

Dang!

Looking back at the bridge from the lighthouse area

The SS Lane Victory,

a Merchant Marine ship and museum.

More cranes.

As we turned and headed back to our dock, the captain's narration focused on Terminal Island, which was now to our starboard side.  Terminal Island holds all sorts of things - hundreds of docks, a Coast Guard station (hey, Ethan!), a federal penitentiary, a Japanese memorial, and soon (well, in the next ten years or so), a Space X facility.  Not bad, right?

Part of the Coast Guard station

The correctional facility -

notable guests here included Al Capone,

Timothy Leary, AND Charles Manson.

Not too shabby!

Just some of the port activity occurring while we were out.

Seeing Terminal Island up close and from the water was really a great way to get an idea for the true scope of the port's shipping operations.  Even though we were there on a quiet day, the scale of everything was impressive.

Stacks of trailers ready for shipping containers

As we got close to our dock, I grabbed a few more shots from the tour boat, just for kicks.

Since we got on the boat around 10:30, and the tour lasted an hour, it was high time for lunch once we disembarked.  We dropped the big camera off in the car and strolled down to the fore-mentioned San Pedro Fish Market, which was actually a recommendation my buddy at work George gave me when I was in Phoenix a few weeks prior.  They're really well known for their shrimp trays, but Chris and I each selected other options, since neither of us care for the little pink dudes.  The Fish Market can be confusing, but with some help, we eventually figured it out.

First, you get in line to walk through the fresh fish area, showing all sorts of "catch of the day" type options:

 I think he may have picked grouper or something.

I obviously eat fish a whole lot.

Next, you pay for your fish while it's being de-scaled and cleaned, and then you take it to a cooking station, where you have the option of having it fried, grilled, and the like.  We then moved to the "drinks/sides/other" counter, where I ordered my fish and chips, he picked a side of onion rings, and we grabbed some beer as well (Mexican delights, I believe).  We picked up our pager things to let us know when our food was ready, and we moved to the gigantic patio to find seats.

Liquid noms!

Watch out.  This dude looks shady.

After a short wait, our pagers both went off, and we tucked into a great lunch.

I think it's smiling at me.

After lunch, we wandered about a mile down the road to Brouwerij West, a local brewery we'd visited before last year when Mom was in town.  We had a few tasters of their wares, and then we hiked back to the car to head home (we were going to take the free trolley that runs around the area, but it was quicker to walk, so we did - we could use it after all that fried food and beer, anyway).  On the way, we made a quick stop at Petco to bring home a new kiddo - meet Snuggles!

He is a happy little fish!

Although the weather wasn't great for our harbor tour (the "May Gray" in full effect), we had a lovely time being out on the water and spending part of the day along the waterfront.  I'll keep an eye on the port's emails and we'll be back next year!

Later!

Amy