Aubrey E. Austin, Jr. Park

Elite '09

1751

1364

Joan S.

Los Angeles, CA

7/16/2008 18 photos

I've been coming here regularly since I moved to LA several years ago.  It's such a cool place that it feels magical.
When I lived on Venice Beach I used to walk here, a long walk, but lovely.
One year I photographed myself with Russ on one of the overlooks and sent the pic to all our friends back in Chicago.  Russ used to sit there with his laptop as I walked the jetty and the beach.  Not that many years ago, but before Yelp was born!

I've been photographing the park for a long time, but I'll post just the pics I took the other day.

Austin Park includes the grassy strip along Via Marina, with the overlooks, and it includes the north jetty.  And apparently it includes the lagoon overlook on the other side of the road.  Looking north from there, you can see the Santa Monica Mountains in the far distance, over the Grand Canal.

You've got amazing channel views here.  You are at the very end of the Marina Peninsula.  We used to see Johnny Carson heading out on his boat.  Celebs lived in the immediate proximity, like Nick Cage.....and I think Suzanne Somers owned that brown house facing the beach, the one at the very end of Speedway.
And how about the building with the pirate figure on the roof?!  Too cool.

It's peaceful to just watch the boats going back and forth in the channel.  Sailboats, speedboats, huge yachts, kayaks, jet skis.  And dogs swim off the rocks, although it's not officially allowed.  Shhhhhh........

LAX is nearby, just the other side of the Playa del Rey hill that you can see from the park, so you got planes taking off in the distance in addition to boats floating by.  

There's metered parking all along the border of the grassy area of the park, and on a sunny weekend you might have to wait for a space, as I did last weekend.

The Marina Peninsula is a treasure, for sure.  Would be one great place to live.  Very expensive real estate, understandably.  So for now I will just enjoy the views.....

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