Big Sur Coast Travel Information
Rugged rocky promontories flocked with forest plunge away to meet wild
Pacific swell in a shower of surf along particularly dramatic
stretches of California's Big Sur Coast, a scenic strip of shore that
reaches south from the Monterey Peninsula to San Simeon. Lent
topographical distinction through both the work of the sea and the
Santa Lucia Range, the Big Sur Coast offers visitors to these parts a
glimpse of mother nature untrammeled by development and given over to
fog and mist, not smog. Find here the occasional state park but few
other civilized trappings (fill your tank before setting out, in other
words) and expect the sort of sojourn that runs from Pacific Coast
Highway panoramas to peaceful hikes and plenty of photo opportunities
with the occasional hotel or restaurant to lend traveling
comforts.
There are a range of sights to be on the watch for as
you wend your way along Highway 1, the main thoroughfare in these
parts. Starting in the north, highlights include guided tours of the
Point Sur Lighthouse, stunningly set atop a volcanic inselberg linked
to land by a sandy beach; Bixby Bridge, which arches high above
Rainbow Canyon; and cascading Pfeiffer Falls, in Pfeiffer Big Sur
State Park (the falls are hike-in). Beaches carved out of steep cliffs
are periodically accessible along the way, like Pfeiffer Beach or
Plaskett Creek. If you’re after more in the hiking department, look
for trails en route that lead to waterfalls, breath-taking coastal
overlooks or secluded coves. Esalen Institute, a few miles south of
Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, is a “reservations-only" kind of
place that was in an earlier day a notorious hippie hang-out; many a
photograph has circulated of its famous baths (and bare bathers) set
overlooking a lovely piece of rocky beach. Not far from the coastal
town of San Simeon, at the south end of Big Sur, is one of the
region’s most sought out un-natural attractions, Hearst Castle. Built
on a hilltop for William Randolph Hearst, this expansive estate is as
intriguing for its elaborate design as it is for the artifacts and
artworks showcased in the main house. Make reservations for the
requisite tour well in advance, particularly during peak season – this
is the most popular sight in the area.
The Big Sur Coast is in
west central California, and is generally defined as the hundred mile
stretch of coastline between Carmel and San Simeon.
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