Chill out at Ventura California

Ventura Beach has gone above and beyond for my expectations. It is everything California should be. Great food, great people, great beaches, awesome ocean, amazing wildlife, mild weather, chill atmosphere. 

We loved it here and after spending weeks in the desert, stepping out into 68 degree days is a breath of fresh air…..literally. We have even been sleeping better since we have windows open and cuddle under the blankets instead of the camper being at 85 degrees in the middle of the night. The cool breeze can actually get pretty cold in the night or on the pier.  Make sure you bring a jacket or sweater. We failed to do that, but Kaitlin was lucky enough to find a nice hoodie that fit her. I think I may be too large for the California folks as I could not find anything in fat man size. I just had to buck up and deal with the chill in the air and hard nipples poking through my shirt.

This whole area has been a blessing and I look forward to spending more time here in the future. I honestly did not expect to like California as much as I have. I know that everybody says its great and I fall in love with everywhere that we visit. But there is something different about here. I feel different here, it’s a calming feeling. A “chill” vibe that seems to stick with you. Nobody is rushing here; nobody is rude or bothered. It is a different kind of place that may only exist here. I look forward to trying to embracing it again.

Island Packers Tours

If you are wanting to head out to Channel Islands National Park the best way to get there is though a company called Island Packers Tours. We opted for the wildlife tour, which takes you around some of the islands. Then proceeding to take you out into the channel and look for dolphins, whales, and whatever else you can find. Unfortunately, with this tour we are now 0 for 2 on whale tours. Maybe one day we will see a whale but as of now we are just going to have to deal with watching them on TV.

If you are a little more adventurous you can do an island tour with the Island Packers. This will drop you off on the island for the day, but keep in mind once the boat leaves. You are there until it returns that afternoon. You must take everything with you that you may need.

If you want to explore the caves, I suggest doing an Island Kayak Tour. With this they will take you on a powered boat to the shore of the Channel Islands and then you can kayak around the islands and into the caves for a few hours before returning back to the mainland.

Andria’s Seafood Restaurant

Andria’s Seafood is located in Ventura Harbor. This is about the freshest seafood that you can get! It is literally a seafood market that also serves the fish they sell. You walk up to the counter and order, take your food and go sit on a covered patio. It is the ultimate beach vibe restaurant!

I ordered the Blackened Red Snapper with pasta salad. I know looking at the price it may seem high but this was the best tasting snapper I believe I have ever had. There really was nothing special about it, just good fresh seafood. The plate comes with 2 fillets, so you are getting an entire fish. I should have saved some of it, but you know that fish does not microwave well. So I just gorged myself with as much fish I can stuff into this body…..which is a lot.

Eric Ericsson’s Fish Co

Located at the Ventura fishing pier is Eric Ericsson’s Fish Co. Before I get into the food let me give you some advice. Do not park at the State Park parking lot. That will cost you $10. If you park on the other side of the fishing pier in the parking garage you can get your ticket validated at Eric Ericsson’s. You will be able to access the beach, pier, restaurant, and shops from that parking garage all for free.

Now on to the important stuff. I wanted to order some Halibut tacos but when we got to the restaurant Halibut was no longer on the menu and it was replaced with sea bass tacos. I have never had sea bass so I was intrigued and decided that was the way to go for me. WOW I was impressed, these fish tacos are stuffed with fish and cabbage. They are served as a pair but they give you 2 additional tortillas so you can take what falls out of the original taco and make a second taco. I loved that, so I ended up having 4 fish tacos. I do recommend adding the avocado as it just adds a California vibe to the taco. This was by far the best food I had at Ventura; these tacos were perfect!

Made West Brewing

When you are finished eating at Eric Ericsson’s make sure you head upstairs to Made west Brewery. You take the staircase inside Eric’s and it will lead you straight to the bartender. I opted to try the Vanilla Coffee Porter. It was perfect, it reminded me a lot of Schlafly Coffee Stout which is my favorite beer of all time. The beer is not too sweet and not too much coffee. It is just a smooth icy coffee flavor with a thick head that seals in that amazing fresh brewed coffee smell.

Make sure once you get your beer of choice you head out to the balcony. It overlooks the fishing pier and has great views of the beach and Pacific Ocean. It can be very windy/gusty so make sure you have a jacket. We ran into a couple of awesome locals that was beyond friendly and gave us a lot of input on local food, beers, and things to do.

Brophy Bros

Located right in the Ventura Harbor is an amazing rooftop restaurant that I highly suggest. It is called Brophy Bros. I know it is a funny name but damn they have some good food. Also, I think it is worth mentioning that on this is the only place we ate at that was an actual sit-down restaurant. What I mean by that is you sit down and they serve you. All other restaurants we visited was a order at the counter and take to a table place to eat.

Any who onto the food. I had a seafood pasta that included shrimp and scallops in a white wine parmesan sauce. It was served with cherry tomatoes and the best clam chowder I have ever ate. Yes, that is the take away here, the dish was good but that clam chowder was PERFECT! If I was to eat there again, I would get the chowder as an entrée.

Kaitlin had the sea bass and she said that was the best meal she has had at Ventura. It was a really good place to eat and was priced in comparison to the rest. I was able to try a Hazy IPA from a local Ventura Brewery and I must say, it was delicious. That is not something you will read from me often. I do not like IPA normally. If I say one is good, it must be really good!

Ventura Beach RV Resort

WOW, Ventura Beach RV Resort has been a blessing. After 120-degree days in Desert Hot Springs stepping out at this campground felt instantly refreshing. We all appreciate the cool 65-degree days. Hell, it is even down right chilly here. Being able to have a campfire is superb, it truly feels like fall camping back home. Which by the way is our favorite time to camp! If I could find the original Halloween to play on the outside TV this would be just perfect. Did I mention that we are here in July, not in the fall.

 Ventura Beach RV Resort has well kept manicured yards that they cut and water daily.  Beautiful tall shade trees and palm trees. Fantastic level concrete pads with full hookups and excellent water pressure. You are located right at the beach and easily within walking distance to not only the beach but also downtown Ventura. You are right off the Pacific Highway so that is super convenient to get anywhere but it also is loud and you hear traffic nonstop. If you’re a light sleeper, you may have issues with the traffic and train tracks that are nearby. As for me? I am totally fine with that. I was raised in a house by the interstate so hearing the traffic is very relaxing to me.

Yes, you sure are close to others. You are right on top of your neighbor. I would like to see more room to stretch out, but then that would limit the number of campers that can come here. I can tell you that for our entire stay, this place is packed. There is limited number of open spots so make sure you book well in advance.

If you have kids, this is the place to be. There are kids everywhere! What I have loved to see is that these kids are all super well behaved and kind. You never know what you are going to get but our kids have made friends nightly and they all have played great with each other. I am not joking when I say this campsite has more children of the age 3-15 than I think I have seen at any campsite ever. Killian and Jameson don’t even want to leave the campground. They just want to stay and play with all their new friends. Of course, it also helps that the camp store here has toys and soft serve ice cream!