We parked north of the pier, so that’s a pro tip to you. It gets crowded in the main part of Pismo. Cars, people, no parking, people darting out on the streets. So, go north on the frontage road and park on a beach access residential street instead. Take the wooden stairs down to the beach and don’t go barefoot unless you feel lucky in the splinter-free yatzee roll of the dice (but you’ll be fine once on the sand). Bring a kite. Bring a sweatshirt. Bring your dog. Bring a friend. Or get lucky and get your mom to take a beach walk with you. That’s what I did.

This is my mom, my Beach-a-Week partner for the second time.

We ran into the Twin Fam. Their mom, Angela, is one of my long-time SLO blogger friends (before Flickr even). I’d never met Angela’s family, but I’ve seen so many photos over the years that I said “Hi!!” when I saw her husband and the kids and their friend and immediately stuck out my hand and introduced myself. They were nice enough to pose for a quick pic.

Precariously placed houses. Gravity: it’s the law.

Picking up after your dog: it’s the law, too.