Corona Del Mar

The San Diego River (not in San Diego) drains through the completely transformed Newport Bay estuary and out to the ocean in a channel defined on the western (Balboa) side by a long jetty and on the eastern (Corona Del Mar) side by a rocky promontory (and another jetty).

I believe this is all technically part of Newport Beach, although I'm still struggling with the geographic labels down here (most of what I know about the names of southern California beaches comes from Beach Boys songs and Google Maps).

AERIAL VIEW

There were lots of cool beach things to check out - the jetties, the small beach tucked into the rocks on this side, the beautiful beach cusps, and the classic California style hillside homes. These photos are taken from Lookout Point (west) and Inspiration Point (east), as well as down on the beach itself.