Big Sur: On the Road to Monterey
Since I had a wedding booked in Monterey - on the central California coast a hundred miles south of San Francisco - Jenn and I decided to drive up via Highway 1 and Big Sur. Winter is the best time to do this drive since there's few cars on this very winding road and the skies tend to be clearer than in summer when they can be fogged in. The clouds are also amazing. We drove up from San Diego and stayed the first night at the Ragged Point Inn which is about 20 minutes past Cambria and at the southern end of Big Sur. It's cozy, the views are great and there's a fireplace in the room.
If you're planning on spending time in Big Sur, it's probably better to stay at one of the hotels in Big Sur since the roads are very windy and sometimes dangerous. We almost got hit by a car coming on the wrong side of the road. A 20 mile drive can take nearly an hour if there's any sort of traffic. Although, if you're traveling through like we were, the Ragged Point Inn can't be beat.
Here's a couple views from outside the Inn's restaurant:
The coastline heading north from there is as stunning as advertised. We only had a day to get to Monterey from Ragged Point, but I could have spent a week hiking around and taking photos. Next time... ;-) Anyhow, our first stop was at Jade Beach. It was windy and threatening to rain with waves that just pounded the shoreline.
As we drove further north, I noticed an unmarked craggy beach on the other side of a field so we stopped to check it out. Here's Jenn on top of the little passover for the barbed wire surrounding the pasture.
With the wind blowing and the winter clouds threatening rain, it wasn't exactly picnic weather. Jenn was cold and windblown waiting for me so I was rushing around shooting as much as I could. This place at sunset would be amazing. (Note to self for the next time.)
Next stop was Pfieffer State Beach. One of the most beautiful beaches anywhere, but equally windy. For this stop, I decided to pull out my 4x5. It was a little tricky navigating the creek and jumping across the rocks with tripod and camera in hand. Being the nimble mountain goat that I am helped though. :-)
Once I got on top of the ridge where I wanted the shot, the wind was howling. I almost fell off, but instead my dark cloth went flying into the river. Film was flying everywhere. It was cold and miserable. But fun all the same. Here's a shot of my set up:
And here's the final shot. It's two photos spliced together. I'm far from the first person to get a shot from this vantage point so I thought that I'd do something different.
For anyone travelling through Big Sur, I recommend a stop at Nepenthe Restaurant. It sits high above the ocean with just a fantastic view. There's a huge fireplace in the center and high open beams and lots of glass. The food's good too. Jenn loves it so it we stopped for lunch. We've had dinner there in the past - it's almost magical. Here's a view from just up the road.
Not too far after is the famous Bixby Bridge. It's the classic bridge that everone photographs. So I did too. Finally the sun came out from under the clouds and just lit up the landscape. Usually, I'm not looking for the sunny sunset scenic shot, but when it's there, I'll take it. :-)
After that, the sun went down and we finished our drive into Monterey. It was a little bit of a let down returning to civilization. But it was good to be off the road once the rain started coming down.
John
If you're planning on spending time in Big Sur, it's probably better to stay at one of the hotels in Big Sur since the roads are very windy and sometimes dangerous. We almost got hit by a car coming on the wrong side of the road. A 20 mile drive can take nearly an hour if there's any sort of traffic. Although, if you're traveling through like we were, the Ragged Point Inn can't be beat.
Here's a couple views from outside the Inn's restaurant:
The coastline heading north from there is as stunning as advertised. We only had a day to get to Monterey from Ragged Point, but I could have spent a week hiking around and taking photos. Next time... ;-) Anyhow, our first stop was at Jade Beach. It was windy and threatening to rain with waves that just pounded the shoreline.
As we drove further north, I noticed an unmarked craggy beach on the other side of a field so we stopped to check it out. Here's Jenn on top of the little passover for the barbed wire surrounding the pasture.
With the wind blowing and the winter clouds threatening rain, it wasn't exactly picnic weather. Jenn was cold and windblown waiting for me so I was rushing around shooting as much as I could. This place at sunset would be amazing. (Note to self for the next time.)
Next stop was Pfieffer State Beach. One of the most beautiful beaches anywhere, but equally windy. For this stop, I decided to pull out my 4x5. It was a little tricky navigating the creek and jumping across the rocks with tripod and camera in hand. Being the nimble mountain goat that I am helped though. :-)
Once I got on top of the ridge where I wanted the shot, the wind was howling. I almost fell off, but instead my dark cloth went flying into the river. Film was flying everywhere. It was cold and miserable. But fun all the same. Here's a shot of my set up:
And here's the final shot. It's two photos spliced together. I'm far from the first person to get a shot from this vantage point so I thought that I'd do something different.
For anyone travelling through Big Sur, I recommend a stop at Nepenthe Restaurant. It sits high above the ocean with just a fantastic view. There's a huge fireplace in the center and high open beams and lots of glass. The food's good too. Jenn loves it so it we stopped for lunch. We've had dinner there in the past - it's almost magical. Here's a view from just up the road.
Not too far after is the famous Bixby Bridge. It's the classic bridge that everone photographs. So I did too. Finally the sun came out from under the clouds and just lit up the landscape. Usually, I'm not looking for the sunny sunset scenic shot, but when it's there, I'll take it. :-)
After that, the sun went down and we finished our drive into Monterey. It was a little bit of a let down returning to civilization. But it was good to be off the road once the rain started coming down.
John
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home