Fun Facts

Did you know these fun facts about Cabrillo National Monument…?

  • The strategic location of Point Loma, serving as a natural barrier to San Diego Bay, led to its designation as a military reserve in 1852. Throughout WWI and WWII, Point Loma's military installations played crucial roles in coastal and harbor defense. Today, Cabrillo National Monument safeguards 21 military structures, including the sole surviving pop-up searchlight, pivotal in safeguarding San Diego Harbor and the West Coast during both world wars.

  • From late December through March, visitors can spot Pacific gray whales from the park's western side as they migrate to Baja California's warmer waters after feeding in the Arctic all summer. These whales boast the longest round-trip migration of any mammal, spanning nearly 12,000 miles, but were nearly hunted to extinction in the 19th century.

  • The Old Point Loma Lighthouse, perched 422 feet above sea level near the tip of Point Loma, guided sailors along the coast and in the harbor from 1855 to 1891. Its light often battled low clouds and fog, prompting the construction of a new lighthouse at a lower elevation. That lighthouse is still active today and is managed by the U.S. Coast Guard.

  • Had the original plan for Cabrillo National Monument materialized, the iconic Old Point Loma Lighthouse would have made way for a 150-foot statue of Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, even though no one knew for sure what he looked like.

  • The California Brown Pelican is a unique diver, plunging from heights of 20 to 60 feet to catch fish with a remarkable success rate of two out of every three attempts. Despite nearly facing extinction in the early '70s due to the pesticide DDT, this species made a remarkable recovery and was removed from the endangered list in 2009.

  • Seventy million years ago, the Point Loma Peninsula rested beneath the ocean waves before being uplifted due to shifting fault lines and receding sea levels. Even today, this geological phenomenon persists, with the west side of the peninsula tilted higher than the east.

  • California Sea Hares, mollusks resembling snails but lacking an outer shell, inhabit a range from the low tide zone to upper tidepools. These hermaphroditic creatures possess both male and female sex organs and lay eggs resembling spaghetti noodles, with a lifespan rarely exceeding one year.

  • Solitary Anemones are Cnidarians found in tidepools and sheltered areas that utilize stinging nematocysts to paralyze prey. Their waste is excreted through the same slit used for feeding, showcasing an efficient biological adaptation.

  • From Cabrillo National Monument, you can spot North Island Naval Air Station to the east, known as the birthplace of Naval Aviation. Looking towards Coronado, the main Navy SEAL training site, you might catch sight of Navy submarines, ships, helicopters, and jets. And to the southeast, you can even see Mexico from the park.

  • Cabrillo National Monument has been frequently showcased in commercials, especially for cars, and the new lighthouse grounds were featured in the 1986 film Top Gun and its 2022 sequel, Top Gun: Maverick.