- Continue north on Highway No. 1
- Visit elephant seal colony at Piedras Blanchas
- Walk to the McWay Fall Lookout
- Enjoy the sunset at Point Lobos State Reserve
After the first camping night in a long time, we continue to the striking Morro Rock. A rock monolite in the sea similar to the famous rock of Gibraltar. Here we have breakfast in wonderful weather and look out over the sheltered bay. There are fishing boats, kayaks and stand-up paddlers on the move. On the other side of the beach, the force of the Pacific surf hits the wonderful sandy beach. Again, it is teeming with surfers.
We continue northwards on Highway No. 1, which is now increasingly lonely. Soon, San Simeon is the last real town for a long time. The first highlight is the colony of the rare northern elephant seals at the Piedras Blanchas lighthouse. At this time of year there are only cute boys and teenagers lying around lazily. Some young males measure and train their strength, most of the others lie lazily or cover themselves with sand. Also to be seen in large numbers are totally overfed ground squirrels, which are wrongly fed by many tourists. From December onwards, the adults over 4 meters long and weighing 2500 kilograms will arrive to mate. The sometimes brutal power struggles between the cops are particularly impressive.
The road meanders directly along the rugged coastline of the increasingly steeply sloping picturesque west coast. Some beautiful bays would invite you to swim, but the water temperature and rough surf less so. The next stop is at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. The picturesque McWay Fall plunge directly onto the beach of an inaccessible bay. We walk to the viewpoint and enjoy the postcard idyll. Unfortunately, clouds now cover the sun.
It continues in the same style, another wonderful, wild stretch of coast awaits around every corner. Pfeiffer Big Sur and Andrew Molera State Park follow before reaching the photogenic Bixby Bridge.
Finally we reach the Point Lobos State Reserve. Here we hike out to the stormy cape. Wonderful how the spray of the breaking waves turns yellow in the evening sun. A colony of sea lions lolls on some of the offshore rocks. The huge waves keep crashing on the exposed rocks with a roar. We watch the magnificent sunset and take photos.
Then the search for a campground with a shower begins, which turns out to be a real challenge in the exclusive Carmel-by-the-Sea. Finally we end up in a motel, as this is only slightly more expensive than the overpriced campgrounds.
