I just could not stop taking pictures at Spooners Cove--so full of unusual geologic formations and crashing waves.
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| Can you see the five birds just above the water's horizon? |
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| Jump, Kent, jump! |
North of Morro Bay and north of Cambria, a lovely town where we ate at the Black Cat Bistro and shopped, and just north of San Simeon, is a beach known as the Piedras Blancas Lighthouse Rookery. It is the birthing place, rest stop, mating area, and molting place of literally thousands of elephant seals. These seals are not adorable ones; in fact, they are the largest, and arguably the ugliest seals of the species, and the males are known by their long snouts--thus the name. The lower picture shows a female cooling herself off by tossing sand on herself. They were on the beach this day resting and molting.
Near the town of San Simeon is the spectacular set of buildings known as Hearst Castle. The publsihing magnate of the early 20th century called this his "ranch", and called the hill on which it sits the Cuesta Encantada, or Enchanted Hill. Politicians and movie stars frequented this amazing place. We took a tour in the evening (highly recommended) and were delighted by the many, many volunteers who sat or stood, inside and out, in 1920s or 1930s clothing, to give us a flavor of what it must have been like.
There are two wonderful swimming pools, one inside, and the outside one below. It was drained for repairs. The last of the three pictures was one of the numerous, elegant meeting rooms. Supposedly Mr. Randolph would lay out all of his publications on the floor of this room and read and make corrections.
This was a wonderful trip to an unknown area. I loved its natural and man-made beauties and hope to come back again and again. The Central Coast is just delightful.
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