On a recent Friday night, a few dozen people gathered at Marston Point, a parking lot and lookout perched at the southwestern end of Balboa Park. Inside each car, audio stories played on repeat. Things have calmed down considerably in recent years, but Marston Point and the road leading to it were once an epicenter of gay culture in San Diego. Some folks, gay men mostly, used the dark pocket of the park to meet for anonymous sex. A few still do. And especially after the sun went down, the illicit activity cranked up.

San Diego Gay Pride Attacker Pleads Guilty



25 Reasons Why You Need to Visit Balboa Park San Diego!
Hiked around near the It was pretty. Good to get some outside time while close to the city. Too many homeless guys and gals asking for money. Public bathrooms were in shambles dirty and nasty! It was terrifying! Do not go here with your family if you are hiking around.


San Diego Pride
From the July 24, issue of New York Magazine. The west side of that acre section of Central Park known as the Ramble had a reputation as a homosexual meeting ground long before Cole teased his friends at private parties with this suggestive lyric. But though Central Park at night—any part of the park—is dangerous, the gay ghetto that is the Ramble is perhaps the section most fear-ridden. Gangs of toughs—teenagers and the macho middle-aged, usually drunk, occasionally including a couple of off-duty cops—roam the Ramble at night, engaging in an old American pastime: fag bashing.



There are many places to see and things to do while in San Diego. It can be hard to narrow down your list of activities while visiting this Southern California city. I wanted to see and do everything, but you know when you want do everything you end up doing nothing, so I widowed down my list to a few special places and experiences.