A Day In Big Sur

The Big Sur coastline.

Blogger’s Note: Today marks the inauguration of the Trip ‘n’ Clip blog. In this blog, I am combining my love of travelling, writing and sharing my travel experiences with others. My goal is to provide you with an honest review of places to visit. I will only write about places where I have been and will not take any payment from sites to get me to say good things. I won’t mince words but will tell you honestly what I thought of a place and how much things cost. Eventually, I hope to contact places that I write about to see if they would like to offer you discount coupons, thus the “Trip ‘n” Clip” title. Initially, however, I just plan to write and gain a following. Enjoy and travel!

My daughter imagined Big Sur – what the Spaniards dubbed “the big south” – as a place of expansive valleys and meadows with a quaint little town. Never having been to Big Sur, despite growing up just 75 miles to the north on the Central California Coast, her view was distorted. Big Sur IS a valley, but one that is narrow, deeply forested, and sans town center.
So we went for a day to unlock the mystery of Big Sur.
So can you.
First, the essentials. Big Sur is extremely casual. Wear comfortable shoes for hiking and/or walking and dress in layers as the weather can change from foggy to sunny throughout the day. Big Sur is located on the Central California coast, with the northern border 120 miles south of San Francisco and the southern end 245 miles northwest of Los Angeles.
Leave early enough to time your arrival for lunch at Nepenthe, an eatery that epitomizes all that’s Big Sur (we’ll get to why later). Traveling south from San Francisco, give yourself at least three hours if you are winding the down Highway 1. For us, we allocated two hours for our 75-mile jaunt from Santa Cruz, leaving at 10 a.m. on a sunny June Saturday when skies were predicted to be clear and temperatures in the upper 60s. Always check on weather conditions as Big Sur can be temperamental and decide to shroud itself in fog any time it feels the urge.
Stop along the way at anyone of the many turnouts along the highway for a photo of yourself with the spectacular undulating cliffs of Big Sur stretching behind you. Chances are the fellow tourist whom you ask to take your photo will be a foreigner as this is a destination place known the world over. Ours was a young man from Sweden who was more than happy to take a photo of the 21-year-old daughter accompanied by her grinning parents. Your next stop should be Big Sur River Inn, which could be construed as the “town” of Big Sur since there isn’t a town. The Inn is about 30 miles south of Carmel on the east side of Highway 1. Here you’ll find a well-stocked Big Sur General Store for those supplies you may need – like super-glue to fix the 21-year-old’s broken sunglasses. While at the Inn, take a stroll down to the Big Sur River where you can relax in a willow chair that’s placed right in the water. Or sit out on the front patio that is surrounded by planter boxes spilling with a rainbow of flowers and enjoy a coffee or snack. That’s what our Swedish fellow was doing (was he following us?)
Don’t eat or drink too much at the Inn because your next stop is Nepenthe, 4.7 miles south of the Big Sur River Inn, again on the east side of the Highway. No chance for reservations in advance unless you are a party of six or more. Even if there is a wait, it is more than tolerable to lounge out on the pillow-covered steps on the expansive patio that overlooks the craggy cliffs and foaming ocean that make Big Sur look like a postcard that’s come to life. Nepenthe serves lunch every day of the year from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Dinner is also served, but this is a day trip.) If you happen to have the misfortune of hitting a wet and foggy day, the outdoor fire pits will keep you warm while you wait. The food is as famous and mouth-dropping as the view (they are known for their Ambrosiaburger), but lunch can be pricey (our bill for three with two alcoholic drinks came to $106).
After lunch, there are two required stops for shoppers and art aficionados. Wander through the Phoenix Shop downstairs from the restaurant and take a step back in time to a ’70s-style art and clothing store featuring items from local artists as well as from all over the world. If you really want to dream big, drive across the street to the Hawthorne Gallery featuring works of modern art by members of the Hawthorne family and other selected artists that run into the thousands of dollars. The building itself is a work of art, but also take the time to walk through the gardens dotted with metallic and stone creations set among the lush greenery. And they are friendly to the casual non-millionaires who just want to gawk and dream (oh, wouldn’t this $10,000 vase look great in our living room).
At this point, head back north 3.5 miles to Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park where you can walk your lunch off with a 3-mile hike along the Valley View Trail. It will cost you $10 per car to enter the park, but the small fee is worth the views on this relatively easy hike (you’ll hike up 200 feet). As you get near the top of the trail, veer to the right at the fork to take in Pfeiffer Falls. Then head back and take a right at the fork to end the day at the top of Valley View Trail. Sitting on the perfectly perched park bench, spend time to reflect on your day and to take in the narrow, deeply wooded valley laid out before you. That’s Big Sur.




Fellow tourists will take your photo at one of many turnouts.

Take a relaxing break on a chair in the Big Sur River.



End the day at the Valley View Trail overlook.