Sunny California is as if created to travel by car along the ocean: picturesque views and wild beaches, hot sand, the sound of waves, hitting the rocks.
You can fall in love with California just through numerous amazing photos. The picturesque Pacific Coast Highway stretches along the Pacific coastline from San Diego to San Francisco. The ocean does not hide from sight for a second throughout the route. It sounds tempting, does it?
Despite the fact that all the beauty is almost by the roadside, many landmarks are very easy to miss. With the help of our friends from J4L.com, we present 5 places where you should definitely make a stop!
El Matador Beach
This is a pretty famous Malibu beach and usually there is crowded. But if you are lucky and the weather will be rather cloudy, there will not be a soul on the beach. This is a favorite place for famous Californian photographers and bloggers. And It is not surprisingly. Despite its popularity, the beach is absolutely wild. El Matador Beach is surrounded by grottoes from all sides, which means that the risk of finding children with buckets is reduced to zero. You will take an absolute pleasure from unity with untouched nature.
Beach Piedras Blancas
If you drive by this place, you will see a crowd of people on the beach because this is a rookery of elephant seals! There are only two places around the world where you can see elephant seals on land. There are several thousand of them here! Observation areas are equipped with wooden decking and railings. Watching animals in their natural environment without disturbing them is one of the most amazing sights. It is difficult to understand how it happened that this miracle of nature is not indicated practically in any guidebook.
Big Sur
The most picturesque place is the Big Sur part. The famous McWay Falls and Bixby Bridge are located right there. This place attracts not so many tourists, because there is not a large city nearby. In order to get there, you need time, which a common tourist does not have. There are very few cars on the road, but you will not be able to drive fast through the serpentine. And you will not want to. The feeling as if you have left this world and got into another reality. Beauty in its pristine form. Just have a look!
Pfeiffer Beach
It is very difficult to find this beach without a map: the signs do not stand at all corners, so you cannot do without a navigator. A narrow road goes through the thickets to the beach. Parking near the beach is paid ($ 10), but you can park for free at the road and walk a bit. The beach is known for its pink sand and the fact that there was shot the scene from The Sandpiper movie with Elizabeth Taylor. The beach is incredible. It is surrounded by rocks on all sides, next to a small waterfall, and the sand really has a light pinkish-purple hue. You should come here at sunset when the beach gets the most cosmic view. And do not forget to make sure that all your telephones and cameras are charged, this stunning view is worth shooting.
Carmel
It is impossible not to mention the small town of Carmel. The town is located 120 miles from San Francisco, on the picturesque Monterey Peninsula. The permanent population is only 3.5 thousand people. A fabulous town with miniature houses, luxury boutiques, Spanish-style architecture and stylishly dressed people. This is definitely a special place in its atmosphere. The ideal end of the trip with your beloved person will be dinner in any restaurant (Carmel is famous for its chic restaurants and respectable hotels!). The most difficult will be the choice of the restaurant, as they all offer fresh seafood and will please you with the unique interior.
