SAN SIMEON TO CARMEL

En route to the coast, we passed very dry country and hundreds of oil rigs.  Vineyards well irrigated, but golf course was green!!! We hit the coast at Cambria, After seeing the Hearst Castle, we camped at the San Simeon State Park grounds.  Very clean, but cold.  We shared a small tent after cooking a delicious meal on an open fire.  As there was a short walk to the amenities, we all went to the bathroom at the same time in the middle of the night, hoping a big cats in the area were not in our area.!!!

San Simeon is a town on the Pacific Coast on State Route 1, approximately half way between Los Angeles and San Francisco, each of these cities being roughly 230 miles away.  A key feature of the area is Hearst Castle, a hilltop mansion built by William Randolph Hearst in the early 20th century that is now a tourist attraction.  The area is also home to a large northern elephant seal rookery.  The road winds around Santa Lucia mountains.  We met 2 cowboys in a parking bay, who gave me two gemstones.  Gum trees abound in the Pfeiffer Burns Park.  Coffee at Nepenthe restaurant overlooking a beach was enjoyed while chatting with a few travellers.  We stayed a second night in our comfy motel at Carmel.

These characters had been for a surf, to the beach down a steep cliff.  They had a large property nearby.  Gave me a couple of precious stones which have to be cut.  One day? 

Gum trees made me homesick!!

Pfeiffer Beach in the Big Sur area is definitely off the beater path, but well worth the drive.  Just south of Big Sur Station is unsigned Sycamore Canyon Road which winds its way down to the shore.  Pfeiffer Beach is on land within Los Padres National Forest. The  area was named after Julia Pfeiffer Burns, a respected resident and rancher in the Big Sur region in the early 20th century who lived in the area for much of her life until her death in 1928.  The 3,763 acre park was established in 1962.  The movie, The Sandpiper was filmed there.