We left our hostel fairly early so we could get to Monterey as we could see that the weather was better up the coast. En-route we stopped by along the coast next to the surfers museum (which was closed the whole time we were there!). When we arrived in Monterey we took the 17 mile scenic drive around to Pebble beach, it’s $10 per vehicle and there are several stops to make along the way at this very beautiful coastline. The sea is wild against the rocky shores and we read about the ships that came crashing into the bay in search of Monterey. Some areas are inaccessible by foot as they are protected wildlife and conservation areas and it’s not exactly the type of place to go for a swim.

We stopped off at Pebble Beach resort to check out the golf courses and more fantastic views beyond, we looked on at people enjoying their champagne lunch on the veranda! They also house golf tournament trophies at the lodge. Moving on from Pebble beach we came to Carmel Bay, a more sandy beach to enjoy but the sea again was very rough, still it didn’t stop the surfers. After our scenic drive we checked into the motel we were staying at which at $69/night between the 3 of us wasn’t a bad find! We ate in a highly rated mexican restaurant that night, not exactly one to get dressed up for but the food is really good at a low price plus we had left overs for the next day!

We started the next morning with a trip to the Monterey Aquarium. It’s a huge place and so we set aside half a day to explore. This aquarium is the biggest in the world and houses much of what is local to the Californian sea including a juvenile great white shark. Highlights for us included the Deep Blue feeding time aswell as meandering around the sea horse exhibit. It’s a pretty spectacular place with several marine life experts dedicating their time to preserving the marine life in the Monterey Bay.

When we left Monterey we journeyed along the Big Sur with our end destination being Cambria to stay with Helen’s relatives Jill and Joe was again! We had intended originally to stay on the Big Sur and if we’d have been camping this would have been possible as campsites are fairly cheap given the location. However because there were 3 of us it was looking pricey for us to get accommodation at an affordable price so we couldn’t really resist Jill’s offer of getting into Cambria sooner and using their location as a base to explore.

Driving along the Big Sur was again fantastic, there are a lot of stops and a lot of cars wanting to stop, but we chose a few places along the way to explore and take in the views which were breathtaking. It’s tricky to get down to the ocean unless you’re hiking but the views from the road side do it justice enough. We stopped off at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park to walk to a waterfall and at the beach area where a waterfall pours onto the beach and into the sea . As we left the Big Sur we found the elephant seals on San Simeon Bay herding together in their hundreds and we eventually arrived in Cambria at 7pm welcomed by Jill and Joe and some good home cooked food and wine! Home comforts!

(Leica M9, Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0, Leica 90mm f/2.8, Zeiss 18mm f/4 ZM processed in Lightroom 3)