Day 4: Big Sur Beaches

Big Sur River Inn

On day 4 of our trip I awoke to what would become one of the best days of my life… In the light of day we decided to check out the river behind our hotel. Rustic adirondack chairs sat almost-haphazardly along the banks and in the water so we took a moment to sit and soak our feet in the cool, clear water – and take some pics of the beautiful property behind the hotel 😉

Well-maintained grounds

Adirondacks in the river

Sun coming through the trees

View of the patio from the river

We then moved on to have lunch at Nepenthe – We were seated at the long “table” overlooking the GORGEOUS view! We split the Ambrosia Burger and Shrimp BLT… Best food of the trip! It was a great start to such a great day 😉

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

After lunch we took a little drive north on Highway 1 to try and find Pfeiffer Beach. It can be a little confusing because there isn’t a sign marking Pfeiffer beach, but there is a yellow sign that says “No Trailers” (or something like that). Anyway, so after a 2 mile drive down the mountain, we came to a small parking lot under the trees. When we walked out from the trees and caught the first view of the beach, we were awestruck… It was like walking into Narnia! We spent about 2 hours just walking around, taking pictures, and resting on pieces of driftwood. It was so beautiful I didn’t even know where to start taking pictures… or where to stop for that matter.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Thanks to a tip from our waiter at Nepenthe, we drove about 8 miles north to Andrew Molera State Park where we could take a mile (or so) walk down a leisurely trail to a beautiful beach that was normally fairly deserted. We were not disappointed – by the beautiful hike or the beach where the river met the sea.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

After another walk on another beautiful beach we went back to the Big Sur River Inn to get ready for dinner. After a day in the sun we both really wanted a good beer so we decided to go to The Maiden Publick House on the premises of our hotel. The food was great, the brew selection was broad, and the beer was cold – The Abita Amber was our favorite 😉