You Will Find that the OC is Spectacular!

I spent last week in theoc. What is theoc? Orange County California! Newport Beach, Laguna Beach, Laguna Niguel, Crystal Cove, Balboa Island, Irvine, Orange, Anaheim…so much to see and do! Shopping, beaching, whale watching, eating, kayaking, paddleboarding, and a million other activities await you in Orange County. There is something for everyone.

Staying at the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach was a good decision, not only did I love everything about the iconic hotel, but the location was perfect. On my first day I headed over to Balboa Island (it is walking distance from the Hyatt) and decided to either paddle board or kayak. I chose a sit on top kayak at Island Paddleboard for a specific reason. Next January I am headed to Antarctica, and there will be a lot of kayaking and walking. My spine, which is fused from L-2 through the sacrum complete with titanium rods and eight pedicle screws, does not like kayaks very much, so I have to get comfortable with kayaking prior to my trip. The sweet folks at Island Paddleboard set me up and set me loose. I wish I had seen a sea lion, but alas, they just weren’t around that day. I spent two hours paddling around the island, and enjoyed every moment of it. I did have to lie back once in a while, and switch leg positions, but all in all it went very well. I paddled against the wind for ninety minutes, so I certainly had a great workout.

The next morning I was up bright and early to go Whale Watching with Captain Dave’s Dana Point Whale Watching. When you are in California, you have to go whale watching. I went on the early morning cruise, hoping to see the animals active. I was not disappointed. Gray Whales were in season, and these animals very rarely breach. We saw two breaches from a momma Gray Whale! There were many bottlenose and common dolphins along with sea lions and plenty of birds. The most exciting animal was a Fin Whale! Fin Whales are baleen whales, and are second in size only to the Blue Whale. They can grow up to 90 ft in length…a huge animal. It came close to the boat, but did not breach (I’m not sure it could it is so huge!). The Fin was an amazing sight.

These two days, spent in Orange County, were incredibly fun. As everyone knows by now, I love water, so two days spent on the ocean was marvelous, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I highly recommend the tour companies mentioned, and of course, the wonderful Hyatt Regency Newport Beach!

Have you ever been to Orange County, California? What activities did you enjoy?