Blacks Beach Now

In the late 1940s, William H. Black, a wealthy Texas oilman with a passion for thoroughbreds and fancy cars, purchased roughly 250 acres of undeveloped land atop the Torrey Pines bluffs. He established a horse farm known as , but because the property was so isolated, the path down to the sand became known simply as "Black's Beach". For years, Black guarded his private road fiercely; local lore tells of him waiting with a shotgun loaded with rock salt to deter surfers and hikers from trespassing. The Secret Surf Spot

By the 1970s, the beach's isolation made it a natural sanctuary for "naturists." In 1974, it became the first—and only—publicly sanctioned nude beach in the United States . Though the city of San Diego officially banned nudity on its portion of the beach in 1977, the practice has persisted for decades on the northern half managed by the state park. Today, the beach remains a place where "nakes" (as surfers call them) and world-class athletes coexist under the gaze of multi-million dollar mansions. The Living Landscape blacks beach

The story of Black's Beach is one of isolation, transformation, and a unique subculture that has thrived beneath the towering cliffs of La Jolla for nearly a century. From Horse Ranches to Hidden Shores In the late 1940s, William H