Big Sur

Long known for its rugged beauty and isolation, Big Sur is a region often missed by travelers in the Golden State. Comprising windswept mountains, wildflower filled meadows, redwood forests and tumbling streams, this region stretches approximately ninety miles from Monterey to San Simeon.

The Big Sur area was first discovered by Europeans in 1542, when Juan Cabrillo sailed the California coast. Cabrillo bypassed the region, daunted by impenetrable cliffs and difficult seas. The area received little attention until 1770 when Gaspar de Portola landed in Monterey Bay and established the capital of the Spanish colony of Alta California. This large area, south of Monterey, was known by the Spaniards as El Pais Grande del Sur, or The Big Land to the South. It remained essentially unexplored.

Between 1770 and the turn of the twentieth century, Big Sur stood largely wild and isolated. Difficult terrain and a lack of roads prevented thorough exploration. During this period, timber harvesting, gold mining, and limestone processing were the main catalysts to population growth. At Alder Creek, near the southern end of the region a gold mining boom occurred during the 1880s. The town of Manchester rose almost overnight with 200 residents, several stores, a hotel, restaurant, and five saloons. All were doomed to abandonment near the turn of the century. Little remains of Manchester, as it burned in a wildfire in 1909.

Today, California's scenic Highway 1 is the sole paved road through the region. In 1932 engineers pushed Highway 1 across Bixby creek, thus opening up one of the last and largest roadless coastal regions in the continental United States. The often photographed Bixby bridge, at the northernmost end of the Big Sur region, is 714 feet long and rises 260 feet above Bixby Creek, making it one of the highest single span arch bridges in the world. With the arrival of Highway 1, a new industry became available to the few residents of the Big Sur area, tourism.

Tourists, today, come to enjoy the dramatic views where the Pacific meet the Santa Lucia mountains, rising to nearly 6000 feet at the summit of Cone peak, just a few miles from the shore. The highway clings precipitously to the western edge of the Santa Lucia range varying in elevation from near sea level up to nearly 1000 feet above the ocean. Since the views are difficult to appreciate while driving, several vista points are available to stop and appreciate this spectacular scenery. The stretch of Highway 1 through the Big Sur area was ranked by TripAdvisor 2008 as the second most scenic driving destination in the United States.

Besides the joys of driving highway 1 through Big Sur, many other tourist activities are available in the area. Visitors can enjoy hiking, mountain biking, scuba diving and other outdoor activities. Many small, scenic beaches exist along the route that offer an opportunity for photography, picnicking, and beachcombing. These beaches are not usually suitable for swimming due to dangerous surf, unpredictable currents, and frigid waters. The Big Sur area offers nine state parks that have many areas of interest, including one of only a few waterfalls that fall directly into the Pacific Ocean at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. The Big Sur area also offers the only intact 19th century lighthouse open to the public in the state.

Due to the greatly varied topography of the Big Sur region, wildly diverse micro-climates exist. Big Sur typically boasts a mild, mediterranean climate, with sunny and dry summers and cool wet winters. Summertime high temperatures are typically in the 70s with Wintertime highs in the 60s. Coastal fog predominates the areas near the shore, nurturing the southernmost growths of redwoods along the California coast. Inland, as the dramatic mountains rapidly ascend, the temperatures range more broadly without the ocean's ready influence. Here, the redwood forests give way to chaparral covered hilltops and oak woodlands. Along the many streams that tumble from the higher elevations are unspoiled riparian woodlands.

In order to preserve the natural beauty of this place, the people of Big Sur and Monterey County have fought to limit the impact of growth. In 1962, Monterey County won a major court victory, giving it the right to ban billboards and other garish visual distractions along the highway. The County has also adopted a very limited land use plan that prohibits any new construction within sight of the highway.

The same restrictions that keep unnecessary development from destroying the natural beauty of the Big Sur coast also limits tourist accommodations. Lodging opportunities fill up quickly during the summertime travel season. There are fewer than 300 hotel rooms available throughout the entire 90 mile region, and only a few gas stations. Options for lodging range from rustic camping in state park campgrounds to exclusive five star resorts. More lodging choices are available in Monterey and Carmel at the northernmost end of the region or in San Simeon, Cambria, Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo to the south.

The Big Sur region and highway 1 are an opportunity for the traveler to experience California in it's most pristine and unspoiled setting. Little has changed in this area since the first European travelers laid eyes upon it. It remains wild, remote and largely untouched.