Classic California – Monterey & Carmel – A 2 day tour

Well, it’s officially Fall here in Victoria, it’s sunny today, but we’ve had major winds the last 24 hours, ferries were cancelled, power was lost by some, and trees/branches everywhere. I’ve haven’t stepped foot outside yet today, but it looks chilly, somewhere around 10c so yeah, chilly. I’m just not ready!

And because of that, I hang on to the memories of my trip in early October, I took a road trip to warm, sunny California. I went down with my mom to visit family in the Sacramento area. Sacramento is more desert like, it gets quite cool there in winter, but super hot in summer. And late September, early October cooperated nicely (except for the first 2 days!).

And because no road trip is complete without snacks…we went a little cray, but as they saying goes road trip snacks should look like a 9 year old shopped unsupervised!

We drove the I-5 because the goal was to get there sooner rather than later, otherwise, I’d recommend driving the Oregon Coast. We did however take the Port Angeles ferry allowing us to skip both Vancouver and Seattle traffic, so basically cutting out about 5 hours of travel time. The trip was rather uneventful, which is always the goal when going from A to B! There are some beautiful vistas along the way, but we didn’t stop all that often!

Arriving safe and sound, I hung out with my relatives for a couple of days, and then I took myself on a mini road trip; I headed down to Monterey and Carmel. Because I’ve wanted to go for a while now, and I can’t go on vacation without going somewhere new! It’s always been ranked as a top California destination, and now I get it! If I had to choose one area in California in which to live, this would be it. Carmel in particular, but once you were off Cannery Row in Monterey it was also really charming.

I have no idea how I got there from Loomis, cause that’s what GPS is for! I just set it to the fastest route and off I went. However, if you’re driving in that part of California, and have never done so before, be prepared to pay attention, not just to where your GPS directs you, because you have 5 or 6 lanes of traffic most of the time, and if you’re in the wrong lane and need to move over 5 lanes, you may miss your exit.

My one safety tip, do NOT tailgate, most of the time you’re flying along at 70 mph, and then suddenly with no warning you are coming to a complete stop, and if, you were one of the rare people that tailgate, you will end up in a crash, involving several cars! I saw it happen, and they were tailgating! There were so many times, that had I not left that 3+ car length between me and the car in front me, I would have been in a crash as well!

And no, I did not take that picture while driving at 70 miles an hour, this was at the dead stop stage!

So enough road safety tips! Let’s get to my little mini-adventure.

Let’s also keep in mind that I was there off season, meaning the beginning of October, where your rates are much, much cheaper, the Cannery Row Inn runs about $80 USD per night, in comparison to peak summer at $589 per night. If you go peak season you’re looking at the $589 to $1,500 USD per night depending on where you stay. So why would you not go off season if you can, there are way less people, and the temperatures are really ideal for wandering around.

That being said, your accommodations in the heart of Cannery Row all depend on your budget; I went with reasonably priced (I was paying an additional 27% because of the Canadian exchange rate as it was). The Cannery Row Inn is on the very outer border of Cannery Row, and within reasonable walking distance to all the attractions. The price is reasonable, and the rooms clean. It’s not fancy, but the rooms have been updated, with a Keurig for your morning cup of joe and a really comfy bed. And that was all I needed. One note, it does not have A/C which was fine in October, but in the middle of summer, I suspect it would be hot. Oh, and they have free parking, which considering the costs of parking in the Cannery Row and Monterey Aquarium area it’s worth a lot!

Monterey is charming, and the old Cannery Row is equally charming.

I wandered around the heart of tourism for a while, straying off track long enough to go for a delicious pasta meal at Il Vecchio Traditional Italian cooking, and it was worth it!

Because I’m not big on buying chachkas, and because I was on a budget holiday I didn’t do a lot of shopping, and my preferred shopping items are always art related, and that was definitely NOT in my budget this time. So off I went to my primary destination in Monterey. The Monterey Bay Aquarium. It was without question, amazing, the fact that I’m a bit of a marine biology geek probably didn’t hurt. But seriously, you have to go, it’s worth every penny, plus some! You can spend as long as you want, your $50 (adult) ticket gives you all day in and out access.

There are all kinds of activities for both adults and children, and there are lots of children, even off season and during the week. You can watch them feed the otters, the penguins, see a scuba diver in the kelp tank feeding the fish, and even in the open ocean tank. The feedings happen twice a day.

There are multiple kelp forest tanks. Schools of flashing fish (anchovies), swell shark, leopard sharks, seven gill shark, wolf eel, bat star, spiny dogfish, big skate, red octopus, giant kelp swaying in the tidal swell, to name just a few of the amazing creatures that live off the West Coast.

Then there’s the Jellyfish exhibits. Crystal jellies, Lions Mane jellies, Moon jellies, Sea Nettles, Cross jellies to name a few. There was something magical about watching them float in the blue waters.

Now my favourite part of the aquarium was amazing Open Sea Exhibit. Open ocean environments have no kelp or seaweed, they are essential a water desert. Only the strong survive out here. With Scallop Hammerhead, Yellowfin Tuna, the ever weirdly wonderful Sunfish, a school of Sardines, Dolphinfish and Pacific Bonito; it’s incredibly therapeutic to just wander up and sit in their upper level observation deck.

So I wandered down to Fisherman’s Wharf just towards sunset, and it was lovely, but the wind, the wind was downright cold (and apparently that’s normal for this part of California). Fisherman’s wharf is just a small little wharf with lot’s of restaurants to choose from (nothing like Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco). Being a researcher I had done mine, and picked the place I was going to eat long before I got there. So after wandering up and down the wharf once (I only had a hoodie on) I was freezing so dinner become an immediate priority.

I went to Old Fisherman’s Grotto, with a specific menu item in mind. Clam chowder in a garlic bread bowl! Their clam chowder has been voted the best in Monterey County 15 years in a row! And trust me, there was no room for dessert, despite the amazing tray of options presented!

It had been a full day, including my 4 hour drive from Loomis, so that was it for my day!

The next morning, after a very good nights sleep I got up, checked out and went in search of something to eat; I had come across a lovely square, with a coffee shop called Tidal Coffee, the day before, so decided to go back and check it out. They served the most amazing almond croissants! It’s connected to the Monterey Plaza Hotel & Spa, and I’d go back there just for those croissants!

After some more wandering, I drove around a little, taking the long way to one of the entrances that would lead me to 17 Mile Drive. There is a $10.50 charge per car to take this scenic tour, but it was worth it. When you pay they give you a map, just follow the red-dotted line to “arrive at an enchanting world full of dramatic coastal cliffs, snow-white beaches, mystical forests and iconic golf courses“.

It’s probably one of the most scenic drives in the world as you “meet the inspiring Lone Cypress, ponder the giant trees at Crocker Grove, digest the untouched beauty at Fanshell Beach, behold the power of the Restless Sea at Point Joe, stroll the boardwalk above the beach at Spanish Bay, and much, much more”.

This is the iconic lone Cypress tree, the logo of Pebble Beach Golf Course, the tree sits on a bed of granite, and is believed to be somewhere around 250 years old. It is also thought to be the most photographed tree in North America.

With 5 golf courses plus the home of the world famous Pebble Beach golf course, I would have loved to play a round, but it’s way out of my league, in both skill and price! At $550 USD for a round of golf, I could fly to London, England and back instead! But I did stop, wandered the gift shop, bought a super cute pink baseball cap for when I do golf, and checked out the club house. It’s pretty grand!

Because I stopped at just about every single highlight along the way, it took me about 2.5 hours to do the drive. I then arrived just outside of Carmel, and made my way directly through their main street to the beach. Because it too is iconic. Soft white sands that went on and on. It was gorgeous. However, I didn’t hang out at the beach, I just sat on ledge and took it all in.

After checking out the beautiful beach (I wish I’d more time), I drove back up the very steep hill and found a free parking spot in the heart of Carmel. It is so charming, will all kinds of little shops that branch off the main street for about 2 blocks in each direction. They are mostly art galleries, because the history of Carmel is that of a town for artists and the outliers of society over 100 years ago.

Artists moved here and built charming little cottages, some of which are still standing. Many of which are now worth millions and have been expanded. The below picture isn’t mine, but I had to share it to give you an idea of what it was like!

There are all kinds of little alleyways and cute store fronts as you wander around. The art galleries specialize in all styles of art from modern to classic.

I wandered the shops and streets for a couple of hours, but I have to confess I didn’t spend nearly as much time there as I would have liked. The reason? Both of my knees are waiting for replacement surgery, and frankly all those hills and walking was just far too painful to spend as much time as I’d have liked. I’m definitely going back.

There is also another iconic piece of architecture attached to Carmel, and that’s a house built by Frank Lloyd Wright, it’s known as the Walker House, and it sits directly on the water. While all the other houses along Scenic Drive are situated on the left side of the road with the beach as their viewpoint, the Walker House is on the water side, on an outcropping.

One thing I wish I could have done (again my knees) was walk the 1.8 mile scenic drive walkway. Instead I drove and it was beautiful, the road winds itself right along the beach/coast line, more designed for pedestrians than cars. I stopped, sat on a bench, ate a sandwich drank and ice tea and enjoyed the glorious scenery.

The final destination if you start at Carmel Beach is Mara Beach, an equally beautiful beach, great for picnics and a day of sun and surf. And I suspect there are less people than at Carmel Beach.

So sadly that ends my in Carmel-by-the-Sea. I wish I could have spent several more days there, maybe once my knees are fixed I’ll make my way back there!

I had reserved another night in Monterey, though at a different hotel, because my first hotel was already booked solid when I decided to stay a second night. The distance back to Sacramento was just too far after a full day; so I checked into the StarGazer Inn & Suites, and was more than pleasantly surprised. I cost me significantly less than the other hotel, and I think I liked it more.

I didn’t take any photos, to be honest I forgot! So the next two are from the hotel. I didn’t even go out for dinner, I just grabbed some fast food and went back to my hotel room. It had been a long day, even if it wasn’t late. And I love just crashing into a big huge bed, with the tv after a long day of discovery.

They also have a terrific pool that I was too tired to utilize that night!

After another good nights sleep, I eventually rolled out of bed, packed my stuff and went in search of yet another researched breakfast! I decided on Rosine’s Restaurant in downtown Monterey. They had great reviews, and had been featured on Dinners, Drive-Ins and Dives, so I love the idea of checking out Guy’s featured restaurants. They are known for the desserts, but at 10am, I just can’t do a full on dessert, however I ordered french toast and it was delish!

After my leisurely breakfast, I hopped in the car and was going to try and see this wedding venue I’d found, so I drove the 20 minutes there, only to come to a guarded gate! Apparently it was by appointment or membership only (I had tried to reach someone earlier, but no response), sadly, I had to turn around and go without my little tour.

Knowing I had a 4-5 hour drive ahead of me, I decided to drive the long way along the coastline again. I debated stopping at the Ford Ord Dunes, even drove to the parking lot, then realized that my knees would never make it wandering through sand! So no pics there either.

I got to this adorable little town called Capitola just outside of Santa Cruz. And if there is a California stereotype, this adorable little village is it. With the beach practically part of the town, you have it all there. Great little restaurants with lots of outdoor seating and cute little shops. I hung out for about an hour or so and just enjoyed myself, sat on a beach patio with a diet coke and some fries! Again, I wasn’t planning on writing about this part of my trip, but then had to share it, these pics are stock images!

I hope you enjoyed my little 2.5 day adventure in Monterey and Carmel. Will I go back, absolutely. Is it a long drive from my cousins, yeah a bit, so maybe next time I’ll return to San Francisco before heading back.

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