Monaloca

January 27-29

We got lucky with the weather on our trip. The only major rain we hit was right at the beginning, just as we pulled into quaint (and pricey) downtown Carmel. We only stayed long enough for a hot chocolate and sandwich, and were soon headed 30 miles down Highway One to the Big Sur Lodge. That night the sky cleared (we even got to take a walk in the redwoods at dusk) and the stars shone brightly above us. Aaaaah, heaven.

We spent the next day reveling in the chilly outdoors, still glistening from the rain but splashed with bright winter sunshine. After months of feeling cooped up inside (our house, the office, friends’ homes) with only an occasional walk through Tilden Park, the towering redwoods and fresh air were pure bliss. We hiked to a waterfall and lookout point in Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park. As you can see, Baby (23 gestational weeks) enjoyed the hike, too! Btw, you can click all my images to see larger versions.

By mid-afternoon we headed back to our car and drove to gorgeous Nepenthe for a quick bite and a latte. The wait at this iconic Big Sur venue wasn’t horrible (late January after all), but we did pay the price: $15 for a turkey and avocado sandwich! Yikes. Luckily we shared, and it was delicious.

Joey then showed me the Henry Miller Library. I can’t believe I’ve never been here before, especially since my friend Mark (who is well read and loves the Beat generation) was the first to introduce me to Big Sur. The library is an eclectic venue, with a sculpture garden, bookstore, and free coffee and wireless on the deck. If it hadn’t been so cold we would have stayed longer.

We decided to take one final walk before dinner at Deetjens (delicious!) that evening. On our drive to Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park large drops of rain fell on our windshield, but sunshine still covered the sea. We opened our umbrellas for the 1/4-mile walk from the parking lot to the coast to see what is supposedly California’s only waterfall into the ocean. By the time we got through the short tunnel under the highway, the rain had cleared. The afternoon was once again brilliant, and we even saw the tail end of a wedding in the clearing overlooking the sea

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