After backpacking to Sykes Hot Springs my sis and I spent several days exploring the Big Sur area.
Friday
We were pretty tired and sore from backpacking so we decided to take it easy on Friday. As it turned out we didn't have much choice about taking it easy because it started pouring down rain Thursday night. It rained so hard that mud was splattered up the sides of the tent.
Fortunately by the time we woke up the rain had mostly abated. Taking advantage of the break from the downpour we headed down to Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, about 30 minutes south. We headed to the viewpoint for McWay Falls, a nice waterfall that drops right down onto a beach.
Until 1983 that waterfall dropped straight into the ocean. But an ENORMOUS landslide that year sent so much debris into the ocean that much of it washed up in this cove and created a beach.
Even now, more than 30 years later, you can still see the scar of that landslide just north of the waterfall viewpoint.
Just a short drive north of there is the trail down to Partington Cove, a nice little beach. We sat there for awhile watching the waves.
A side trail crosses Partington Creek and leads to Partington Landing via a tunnel. The hand-split redwood tunnel was built in the 1870s by John Partington, who harvested the bark of the tanbark oak, transported it down the canyon and through the tunnel by mule, then loaded it onto ships in the cove. Legend says that the cove was also used to smuggle booze during Prohibition.
It started raining pretty hard on our hike back up to the road. It wasn't far to go, but we tried to wait out the rain under some trees. The rain didn't let up, so we hurried up the trail as fast as we could. We still got soaked.
Rather than return to our soggy campsite we hung out with our expensive tea at the Big Sur Lodge near our campground. For months I've been hearing about the drought in California and here it was pouring down rain as if we were back in the Pacific Northwest.
Eventually we returned to our campsite and our sad soggy chairs.
In the late afternoon the rain let up for awhile and we wandered around the park exploring.
Although there was more rain the forecast the skies seemed to be clearing a big around sunset so we headed down to Pfeiffer Beach to check it out. We arrived just in the nick of time before the sun disappeared behind a whole bunch of clouds.
More rain headed our way.
That night it poured again. This is the sound of a tent getting muddy and filthy: https://flic.kr/p/noZgE1
Saturday
With the rain behind us (hooray!) on Saturday we headed up to Andrew Molera State Park. Right away we had to cross the Big Sur River, which has no bridge, but is easy to wade. (Our guidebook said there was a seasonal bridge here, but we saw no evidence to support that. Someone we talked to at the crossing said he had been there several times before and had never seen a bridge. Just one of many errors we found in that book, which was supposedly updated last year.)
The first part of the hike took us through Creamery Meadow, a former pasture for cows that produced Monterey Jack cheese.
Then our route turned south to follow the Bluff Trail above the ocean. The beach at upper right is where the Big Sur River flows into the ocean.
The landscape is so different from the beaches at home. There are almost no trees here. The unimpeded ocean views were fantastic.
After 2.8 miles we took a short side trail down to a little secluded beach. An astonishing amount of driftwood has piled up here!
We sat on this oh-so-lovely beach for awhile, enjoying the gorgeous sunshine, crashing waves, and passing pelicans. (The little patches of reddish purple sand, by the way, are from a rare mineral called almandite.)
The higher we hiked, the better the views became (and the windier it got!)
A VERY windy spot on the way up.
We were now at the southern border of the park and just beyond was private property where multi-million dollar homes sit high above the ocean.
Now our route turned north again on the Ridge Trail, which is an old fire road. Up here there were some trees.
Then the landscape opened up again and we were treated to views of the mountains due east of us.
Way down in that canyon is the Big Sur River.
To the west was the BLUE BLUE ocean. So beautiful!
Once we were down off the bluffs we took a side trip to Molera Beach. It's a little hard to tell from this picture, but the placid Big Sur River is flowing into the ocean at far right.
Back through Creamery Meadow towards the car.
....then rushed down to Pfeiffer Beach for the sunset. Lovely!
Sunday
On our last full day in Big Sur we returned to Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park to hike the Ewoldsen Trail. The first part of the hike follows McWay Creek (which becomes that waterfall we saw a few days prior). It's so pretty here with the redwood canopy above!
When we got to the loop junction we were surprised to discover that half of the loop was closed. There had been no signs about this at the trailhead.
So we crossed a new-looking footbridge and did the other half of the loop.
Looking out onto that stunningly blue ocean.
We hiked right over the top of the 1983 landslide that we had seen two days earlier from a different vantage point.
The day wasn't as clear as Saturday and we found ourselves hiking up into the clouds.
We passed through open areas and forests of oak and redwood.
Poppies!
Of course the park ranger had to count the tree rings. About 300 of them!
Whatever California State Parks is spending day use fee money on, it sure ain't trail maintenance. I lost count of how many trees we climbed over/under.
The acorn woodpeckers have been busy stashing acorns in the trees here.
Up on top at the end of the trail was a wonderful viewpoint that we had all to ourselves. Unfortunately we were totally in the clouds at this point and there wasn't much of a view.
BUT... that was okay because we got to see a condor! California condors are a threatened species due to habitat loss, lead poisoning (from eating animals that have been shot with lead bullets), and poaching. It doesn't help that they only lay one egg a year. Various organizations raise condors in captivity and then release them. Big Sur is one of three release sites in California and condors are spotted frequently on this trail. It was exciting that we actually got to see one! (In November 2012 Oregon Field Guide did a segment on condors, which I highly recommend watching.)
We hiked back down and started back towards the campground. But since the campground is in a dark forested canyon and we wanted to enjoy the sunshine a big longer, we stopped at Big Sur Coast Gallery Cafe, got lemonade and chips, and enjoyed the view.
Monday
Time to start driving home today, but before we did we stopped at Point Lobos State Reserve, just south of Carmel.
Sea lions like to hang out on the rocks offshore. We could hear their barking loud and clear, even over the crashing waves.
In one of the little coves we were treated to a view of two sets of harbor seal pup and parents bobbing in the waves!
There were park docents with tripod-mounted scopes and one of them was focused on some sea otters floating in the kelp beds offshore. It was the first time I had ever seen an otter in the wild. I couldn't photograph though the scope, obviously, but trust me when I say that it was very cool.
And then it was time to start the long drive home. I'm glad we visited this beautiful part of California. There is a whole other section of Big Sur south of where we were that we didn't have time to see. An idea for a future trip! If you ever have the opportunity to visit, I highly recommend it. We certainly enjoyed it!
Exploring Big Sur, CA - April 25-28, 2014
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- BrianEdwards
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Re: Exploring Big Sur, CA - April 25-28, 2014
McWay Falls/cove is awesome. You even lucked out and had a couple sunsets with the sun out. All your photos rock, u still using the D90?
Clackamas River Waterfall Project - 95 Documented, 18 to go.
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Re: Exploring Big Sur, CA - April 25-28, 2014
Thanks! Yes, I'm still using my good ol' Nikon D90. Great camera, just wish that it did better at higher ISO (it gets pretty noisy past 800 or so).BrianEdwards wrote:All your photos rock, u still using the D90?
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Re: Exploring Big Sur, CA - April 25-28, 2014
Wonderful report, Cheryl! We just returned from a trip to SF, returning along the CA/OR coast -- nice to see what points further south look like! Gorgeous sunset shots -- that first one is a knockout!
Tom
Tom
Re: Exploring Big Sur, CA - April 25-28, 2014
Very envious, I grew up down there and haven't been back in a while. The whole Big Sur area is so lovely...
Cool - I actually did not know this! Some quick research says that the landslide was caused by a fire and road construction, and that highway repair crews dumped sand on the slope that then fell down into the ocean and washed back up as beaches. A before pic:justpeachy wrote:We headed to the viewpoint for McWay Falls, a nice waterfall that drops right down onto a beach....
Until 1983 that waterfall dropped straight into the ocean. But an ENORMOUS landslide that year sent so much debris into the ocean that much of it washed up in this cove and created a beach.
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Re: Exploring Big Sur, CA - April 25-28, 2014
Great trip report! Thanks for a trip down memory lane. I had the great pleasure of working at Andrew Molera State Park one summer when I was in college and consequently Big Sur is by far one of my favorite places on earth. It is a fantastically beautiful area and it was great getting to catch up with some of my favorite trails and beaches through your report. Whenever asked I list the Ewoldsen Trail at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park as my favorite hike ever. I'm bummed you weren't able to do the whole loop. I love its diversity and the experience of hiking through lush redwoods, climbing up to oak forests and then up to those great ocean views. I know the area was affected by wildfires a year or two ago and was wondering if that was why the loop was partially closed? Did they list a reason?
Also love the trails at Andrew Molera out over the cliffs and the beach that always seems to have pelicans flying over. The stretch of coastline through Big Sur is just so rugged and untouched it gets me every time.
It's also amazing that you were able to see a condor! In the three months I lived there I never saw one, though this was much earlier in the reintroduction program. Great to see them flying high over California again.
Also love the trails at Andrew Molera out over the cliffs and the beach that always seems to have pelicans flying over. The stretch of coastline through Big Sur is just so rugged and untouched it gets me every time.
It's also amazing that you were able to see a condor! In the three months I lived there I never saw one, though this was much earlier in the reintroduction program. Great to see them flying high over California again.
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Re: Exploring Big Sur, CA - April 25-28, 2014
I think the fires were north of that park. We saw burned forest in the region of Pfeiffer Big Sur SP. There was no reason given about the trail closure, but their website says "The Ewoldson trail is open on the ocean side of the loop, while the eastern side is closed and under construction."wendyr wrote:I know the area was affected by wildfires a year or two ago and was wondering if that was why the loop was partially closed? Did they list a reason?