You can easily fit both these routes into one day's worth of hikes, giving yourself a meal break at a restaurant in downtown La Jolla. Instead of parking right around downtown, find a sidestreet a little further south off La Jolla Blvd., which parallels the ocean, around Windansea Beach. Walking around the shores here is all flats, sand and some rocks, you need to come into the town's downtown areas along Pearl Street and La Jolla Shores for a short distance to continue north. You'll skirt the world-famous curve of La Jolla Cove to continue north along the cliffside path. You'll see the sea lions basking down on the rocks on many a warm afternoon, oblivious to the surfers and scuba divers. You'll pass the Scripps Oceanographic Museum and the La Jolla Hangliding Center where you may actually see people launching themselves off the cliffs towards the Pacific. The area and paths leading north from above La Jolla Cove demand the most stamina on this hike, heading back south is much easier.

Torrey Pines State Reserve is vast preserve of twisting and sloping pathways on the cliffs just near Del Mar. People park in the huge lot at ocean level and head up the hills towards the reserve. On any day you'll catch world-class marathon and multi-sport athletes taking advantage of the glorious stretches around here. The paths are well-mainted but also conform to the steepness of the hillsides, so again hiking down toward the occasional platform station is easier than taking the steps and slopes back upward. The low-lying foliage allows you a sensational view either down towards the Pacific or back upward toward the heights behind you. Bring plenty of liquids, put on the sunblock and don your shades--you're going to be out here exploring in the wide open for possibly a good two to three hours.