Kariann HaskellOur first trip to California brought me to anticipate some blue skies, aqua water, warm weather, and a beer for every meal. As our luck would have it, our entire trip was plagued by heavy rains, relentless fog, and no waterproof pants.
After our flight lands and we pick up the rental car, we found ourselves starving, slowly making our way to Monterey. Lunch was enjoyed on the wharf of Monterey at Big Fish Grill.
Met Edward at Big Fish Grill. We chatted.
McWay Falls was incredible, a waterfall pouring into the beach below. We sent out the drone to get some different views, and naturally we fly it backwards into a tree. Ronny had to scramble down the cliffside to retrieve it. Luckily, no body damage had happened, and we were able to fly once more.
As the sun set, the clouds rolled in and started pouring rain on us.
We retreated to our room at Colonial Terrace Inn, turning in for the night.
The next morning we headed out, despite the constant rain forecast. Garrapata beach was windy and producing horizontal rain. Quickly, we retreated to the car.
Point Lobos/China Cove was our next choice for stopping, but the park was closed due to the weather. LAME! This area looks incredible and diverse, would love to come back when the weather was better.
SeaCliff State Park was a long pier out into the surf, but the end of the pier was chained off due to unsafe conditions.
We still toughed out some photos but the rain started damping our spirits. Lunchtime was nigh.
Our paths led us to lunch on Santa Cruz Wharf at Stagnaro Bros. Trying to find a bite to eat, we grab a seat upstairs, hoping in some way to have a better view of the pier drenched in water. Lunch here was not that fresh, so our stay was short.
Shark Fin Bay was our final destination for the day, laughing in the face of all storms and rains alike.
Our stay for the night was Sea and Sand Inn. A small room overlooking the bay with the warmest electric fireplace to warm up with, while the earth cried into the night.
After a relaxing evening, we traverse the state to Natural Bridges Beach. Seagulls screeched and seabirds pick at the water. Ronny droned and I did telephoto shots of the wildlife and waves.
Inn at Mavericks was our final stay in California, what enticed me the most about this place was the patio. Originally our stay had us on the bottom floor, but we were upgraded to an upstairs suite at no extra charge. Our room was bigger than our apartment, with a king size bed, fireplace, balcony, jetted tub, huge beautiful bathroom…we even bought a wine package with some house wine and it was the BEST Cabernet Sauvignon I’ve ever had. It was dangerously good.
The balcony was a dream. We were treated to a view of the Romeo Pier, an old commercial fishing pier that has since been demolished. I’m glad we were able to see it before it had to go. A glass of wine was enjoyed as we watched the sun dip below the Pillar Point Air Force Station.
A short walk down the road is Half Moon Bay Brewery, and that’s where you could find us for dinner. A huge order of beer and fries, we were stuffed. Everything was so good! After we started feeling comfy and sleepy, we dragged ourselves back to the room.
Morning came swiftly and we take our final ride, hugging the coast and stopping at Pacifica Beach for a short walk.
Devil’s Slide Trail (south parking lot) brought us a dense fog in downtown San Francisco. Hiking around a bit, we explored the drizzly grey auras around us.
Here is a really great image of how well we could see the bridge.
In true last lunch efforts, we ended up at Kim Son Restaurant, a Vietnamese restaurant we found on google maps.
Pho and Stir Fry later, the trip closed at the San Francisco Airport.
