“Torrey Pines City Park sits at the west end of Torrey Pines Scenic Drive, on the coastal edge of the campus of the University of California San Diego. The park itself offers little in the way of amenities, but it is home to the popular Torrey Pines Gliderport, where lessons and gliding adventures can take you soaring out over the golden bluffs and azure sea. Try it, you’ll like it. Trust me!” Sandbag C. Gull
The dusty parking areas adjacent to the Gliderport also offer treacherous trails down the sandstone cliffs to the remote Torrey Pines City Beach, or Black’s, where surfers and ‘naturalists’ (aka nudists) enjoy the isolated area. Beware false trails as you find your way down to the beach, where many explorers have required emergency rescue once stranded on the bluffs.
Torrey Pines Gliderport & Beach Access Slideshow
Logistics
- Portable restrooms are typically available at the Gliderport
- Meals & refreshments are available for purchase at the Cliff Hanger Cafe, near the launch area of the Gliderport
- Dogs are permitted on beaches and in adjacent parks only from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 a.m. and must be leashed at all times
- Located near the UCSD campus, Torrey Pines City Beach (aka Black’s) is accessible via a long and treacherous path descending from the Torrey Pines Gliderport. It can also be reached by hiking in some distance from neighboring beaches, either north from the Shores or south from Torrey Pines
- The bluffs here are extremely unstable. It is never advisable to find your own trail down the bluffs, and on the beach one should always be mindful of the bluffs above, as they can (and do) give way at any time
- Lifeguard services → if any ← varies by season, day, hours, even weather! Due to the remoteness of this beach, lifeguard assistance may take twenty minutes or more to arrive when lifeguards are not on duty at the beach. There is an emergency call box at the south end of the beach at the bottom of the road
Directions
Take Interstate 5 to Gennessee Avenue, exit west. Turn left onto N. Torrey Pines Road, then right on torrey Pines Scenic Drive. At the end of the paved road, there is a parking area for the Gliderport. Enjoy!
