Jan 24, 2019 Big Sur CA

January 24, Big Sur Country

We take showers ($.25 for 3 minutes) and do a little house keeping this morning, then turn north.  We stop again to check out the elephant seals. Lots of activity this morning! 

They use their flippers like hands. Itchy nose?

We spot a mama who just gave birth…you can tell because she is surrounded by sea gulls who will vie for the afterbirth.

She barks and chases gulls away from the pup who is in a kind of trench that she has dug.  The tide is coming in and after a while she moves a bit, exposing the afterbirth, which the gulls fight over.

  The probiscus continues to grow on the males, so some of these guys are pretty old! Handsome, eh?

I think the muppet character Gonzo may have been inspired by these seals - what do you think?

We continue to head north to Big Sur Country, stopping now and then for photos.  There are many rivers that pour into the ocean along the way, some of which have nice beaches and beautiful breaking waves.

We stop at a hotel/restaurant complex called Ragged Point, which has nice gardens and a terrific view up the coast.  Interesting flowers too!  This wooden portal says this is the beginning of Big Sur.

  The mist which has rolled in lingers between some of the hills and mountains.

We stop at a restaurant called Nepenthe which is perched atop cliffs, overlooking the ocean.  Lots of folks here for the beautiful views – food is so-so and pricey, but the view is fantastic! We sit between  a table with folks from Sweden and one with Chinese.  

After lunch, we continue up the coast to Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park where we are able to get a site (#140) under the redwood trees! Since the park is old, the sites are large and far apart. Named after Julie Pfeiffer Burns, an early pioneer to the area. She was a lifelong resident of Big Sur and an independent woman who ran a large ranch  and didn't marry till her mid-forties.

  The park is only partially open due to fires and record flooding.  It is a bit dark and damp under the trees, so we go for a walk along the Big Sur River. We come to another trail called Buzzards Roost and decide to go for it.  This trail is a series of switchbacks and after about a mile, I give up and we head back down. Lots of ferns and brush under redwood and other trees, some of which show signs of charring from the fires.  They have had an unusually wet past month or so.

Look at these leaves!  Don't know what type of tree they came from.

We have a nice dinner and relax a bit.  The stars showing amongst the tree tops are clear and bright.  Tomorrow we will continue into Monterey Bay.