Joan S.
Yelp
This is one of the most interesting & unique parkland spaces I've ever experienced.
It covers an area that includes Malibu Creek, the lagoons, Surfrider Beach, Malibu Pier, and the historic Adamson House.
(Tip: if you don't mind walking a few blocks, there is plenty of free parking on Malibu Road, behind the plaza where Ralph's is located.)
The entrance to the park is across the street from Malibu Country Mart, and the beach's north end borders the star-studded Malibu Colony, a guard-gated enclave of multi-million dollar beachfront houses. Celebs are everywhere. They live here, surf here, shop and dine here. You'll see them without their makeup, with kids in tow. I never turn my head to look, in Malibu the unwritten rule is to allow privacy.
I took photos of the landscape, but pics can never do justice to this setting: rolling hills as a backdrop for a lagoon, a true wetland, that is separated from the ocean by a narrow strip of sand.
I used to come here at least every couple of weeks when I lived closer. And not having visited since the last Malibu fire, I can see how things have changed. The castle on the hill is gone, burned to the ground, heartbreaking. And the parking lot for the state beach has been reconfigured (I liked the previous one better). Some seating areas have been added since my last visit, and now you can circle the lagoon via a path. But what happened to that handy ped underpass, the "secret" dirt trail that went under PCH? Booooo.....I think it's fenced off, and that damn light at Cross Creek makes you wait forever to get across the street. If that's progress, it's not working very well.
The lagoon is home to so many birds it looked like they were overcrowded. I was right up next to pelicans. And there were egrets and herons and ducks, and who knows how many species......
The best way to explore this area is to start with the lagoons. Walk across the bridges, walk around on the paths through the wooded areas.
Then hit the beach. At low tide, you can walk into gated Malibu Colony, along the sand, and admire the fab beach homes (I assume this is still allowed). Then go the other direction, along Surfrider Beach toward Malibu Pier, and stop at the Adamson House if it's open.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/adamson-house-malibu#hrid:XjrCixvkoLUzEauKXa9LAA
On weekends this area is very popular, but don't let the crowds keep you away, it's great people-watching.
Malibu Pier has recently changed, too, but that's a different upcoming review.
This part of Malibu to me is like another world entirely. It's secluded from the rest of LA, with hills on one side & ocean on the other. It takes a bit of effort to get in and out of this spot, especially during slide season, and then there are all those wildfires that plague the area.........but it still feels like something close to paradise. Which is probably why I keep going back for more.....