California's San Onofre State Beach is found in a busy location about halfway between San Diego and Los Angeles. The 3,000 acre park protects three and a half miles of the legendary Trestles Beach, 100 foot tall sandstone bluffs and rugged hills to the east. Squeezed between the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant and Camp Pendleton, the state park also sees the busy Pacific Surfliner, an Amtrak passenger train that moved 2.89 million commuters last year. The Surfliner follows the Pacific coastline for most of its 350 mile journey from San Diego to San Luis Obispo.
     This photograph, titled Hard to Leave, alludes to the ultimate surfer's beach and the world renown surf break. Another big reason this surfer may find it hard to leave this wonderful sanctuary is knowing the Transportation Corridor Authority has plans of taking 60 percent of the park land for a toll highway. The tug of war between development and preservation surfaces again, calling for concerned citizens to speak out.