California Dreaming (Part 1)

I held my breath as our car hugged every curve. Not because I was scared but because I was anticipating what lay ahead. Each turn yielded a new exceptional view of the coastline.  I wondered how the road we were driving on was still in tact and hadn't fallen into parts of the Pacific with the ocean's waves below crashed unforgivingly into the side of the cliff asserting its dominance as part of the natural and beautiful world we live in.

Our trip had a simple goal: to drive up the California coast from Los Angeles to San Francisco spending as much of the drive as possible on Hwy 1, a highway that hugs the coastline boasting dramatic and picturesque views of the Pacific.  I wasn't quite sure what to expect from this drive.  I had heard that it was beautiful, that it was well worth the extra time it takes to use this route rather than the major interstate to travel north.  But what I found was that it far surpassed any of my expectations.

Our first stop on the trip was Santa Barbara; a place that holds a special meaning for me since I spent four years there getting my Undergraduate degree.  I felt nostalgic walking around the downtown area, admiring the Spanish architecture of the buildings and the hillside dotted with houses that faced sweeping views of the ocean.  As we stood on the pier and admired the sinking sun that was slipping behind the hills casting pink and orange rays through the silhouettes of palm trees, I thought about my time in the town and admitted to myself that I probably took the beautiful setting I studied in for granted - if even just a little.

As we traveled on up the coast, I couldn't help but think about how "new" California is.  It was only established as a state in 1850 as part of The Compromise of 1850.  Compared to South Carolina which declared its independence from Britain and set up its own government in 1776 or New York which was admitted to the United States in 1787 or Illinois which became a state in 1818, California has a much younger history as a U.S. state.  I thought about what early settlers must have thought of the coastline.  You can look out across the Pacific for as far as the eye can see and it's hard not to wonder what's going on across the ocean, or what lies beneath the surface for that matter.  I expected Hwy 1 to be littered with beach town after beach town - who wouldn't want to live in such a picturesque place? But this was not the case.  Much of the drive consisted of our car flanked by countryside and ocean - vast unadulterated scenery.

Next stop was a small town called Cambria.  A person could easily fall in love with the charming town and gorgeous coastline.  Seals are abundant here hanging out in the waters near the shoreline, bobbing up and down with the ebb and flow of the tide and waves that encompassed them.  We left Cambria to head further up the coast in search of a famed Elephant Seal beach.  We were lucky with the time of year we were visiting since the seals had just given birth and had migrated to the protected shores to raise their pups before braving the dangers and threats of the ocean waters.  We arrived at the beach to find hundreds of them sprawled out across the sand and sometimes across each other.  These creatures are quite phenomenal with females weighing in at 1,500 lbs and males topping the scales at 5,000 lbs.  They throw their weight forward just to gain an inch or two across the sand simultaneously putting out strange noises.  I couldn't tell if they were languishing in frustration or if it was some kind of strange mating call they were serenading to each other.  Either way, they were a sight to see and seemed blissfully unbothered by the crowd of people that were staring, gawking and taking their photograph.

We finally pried ourselves away from watching the animals in their natural habitat and ventured further north en route to Big Sur.  This was perhaps the most scenic portion of the drive.  The highway made hairpin turns as we climbed up and then sped down the carved out road in the mountains and we marveled as we passed over several bridges built in the 1930s.  The land seemed as if it remains untouched with cows grazing fields that extend from the road to where they kiss the edge of the water.  (These cows don't have a clue they have the best views for miles around).  Once in and around Big Sur, the scenery changed slightly to where I realized I was now in Northern California.  There are beautiful big Redwood Trees that create forests and provide an aesthetically appealing contrast to the blue of the ocean.

It was bittersweet leaving the Big Sur area.  In part because that meant we were halfway done with our adventure up the coast.  The next stop was to be Carmel; before arriving in the quaint town that was for a brief time the state capitol and also has claim to fame because Clint Eastwood served as mayor of the town.  This is also the place where the famed Pebble Beach Golf Course makes its home.  To me, the most exciting leg of this trip was a visit to Point Lobos state reserve.  In one short hike we witnessed a group of four gray whales right off the coast, passing by as part of their migratory route they travel each year.  We were also lucky enough to see seals and sealions playing in the coves and an otter snacking on what we think was a crab.  There's something quite serene and even magical about seeing animals in their natural environment. Instead of viewing them in cages, eating hand fed fish or playing on artificial rocks their playground is the expansive blue waters of the ocean that are often times rough and choppy, cold and salty but beautiful and immeasurable.

The last two legs of our trip were a stop in Walnut Creek, in the bay area and to round out the adventure, a stay in San Francisco.  I had my own love affair with San Francisco and it's hilly streets, delicious food and victorian style homes.  But that is for a different story.  For now I just want to relish in the beautiful Hwy 1 drive, the scenic views, the seemingly untouched territory, the quiet calm and steady breeze of falling asleep to the crashing of waves.

To be continued...