Big Sur California for Little Sirs and Ladies

Big Sur South Ragged Point

Big Sur, California covers an almost 100 mile stretch of striking rugged Pacific coastline. With its scenic, fog shrouded and spectacularly rocky coast, this is an ideal spot for a romantic weekend. But how about for a family? Indeed with some advance planning, travelling the Big Sur can be a wonderful family adventure. 

The Big Sur region is approximately 3 hours South of San Franscisco, or 4 hours North of Los Angeles, so if you’re flying in to either of those cities you’ll definitely need to rent a vehicle. Big Sur is both about the destination and the journey. Driving spectacular Highway One gives you a chance at a huge array of look out points with expansive views of hills, ocean, rocks and cliffs. You’ll find easy to reach forest trails, pristine streams, sandy coves, deserted beaches, and rolling pasture land – plenty of beauty and plenty of it easily accessible. 

Big Sur is a great spot for experiencing not only the vast sweep of nature but the small things too, like bird song, monarch butterflies and clumps of purple lupine. 

As a base camp, we like the Ragged Point Resort. While there are some rooms with hot tubs and fireplaces, we like the simpler, motel-like rooms with expansive views, porches or patios showing you ocean, sunsets, and the flower filled property. Simple strolls down pine lined tar paths past flower beds or across an expansive and great-to-play-on lawn are enhanced by the sea and sky views. We’ve spent hours in the Adirondack chairs on the lawn, sipping hot chocolate, juice, or tea, reading aloud to the kids. There’s a pretty gazebo with a telescope through which you can view the stunning, rocky beach far below. 

Ragged Point view

There’s also a fascinating, rough cliff side trail all the way down to the water, but this is not for kids under the age of ten. 

Great fun for all ages – the patio seating at the hotel restaurant. Hummingbird spotting by the minute, pretty fountain, nicely prepared American style food including kids meals. 

When you’re ready to go off property there’s a host of sights to see as you drive either north or south. Looking south, there’s the world famous Hearst Castle with a variety of tours available. While little ones may not understand the history of William Randolph Hearst’s eccentric masterpiece, they’ll enjoy seeing the fountains, pools, gardens, and ornate architecture. Docent led tours are an hour and fifteen minutes, so bear your kids’ restlessness in mind. We’ve toured the castle beginning when the kids were two years old, but every child is different. There are also self guided tours in place, allowing for a leisurely pace. The feeling of being in a fairy tale type structure will fascinate the kids and give you a wonderful dose of magnificent architecture. 

Also to the south, the sea elephant colony at Piedras Blancas (white rocks in Spanish), just off highway one, and only a few miles from Hearst Castle. A short walk on an easy boardwalk trail over low dunes allows you and your kids to see hundreds of elephant seals. Depending on the time of year, there may be babies, males, females, or all three present. Volunteer docents from the Friends of the Elephant Seals are almost always available to answer questions. 

Hours of beach combing fun at Moonstone Beach, Cambria

San Simeon State Beach offers a great pier and plenty of long sandy expanses for running and exploring. The town of Cambria has a real prize in Moonstone Beach – an easy to stroll boardwalk spans the length of the coast revealing the beautiful rocky cove; flowers, trees, and easy to relax on benches dot the way. It’s also a simple walk on to the beach for hours of shell and pebble picking. Bring some bags and fill them with the beautiful, multi-colored stones; making a game out of how many colors you can find or how many stones of one shade can fill a very pleasant afternoon. When the tide is out, the tide pools reveal beautiful starfish, sea anemones, crabs and tiny shrimp. 

In the town of Cambria: galleries and shops to browse, and the fine home cooking of Robin’s restaurant with a variety of excellent vegetarian dishes supplementing more standard fare. For pizza and casual Italian, there’s Moustache Pete’s across the street. 

Also in town – another sort of castle as a fascinating book end to Hearst’s – Nitwit Ridge. This now privately owned home was built almost entirely of junk and sea shells and is an excellent example of folk art. Now a California State Historic Landmark, this structure was built over a period of fifty-one years by Arthur Harold Beal. Beal used rocks, cans, abalone shells, and even old auto parts to shape his “Hearst Castle”. The friendly owners offer tours daily if you give them a call at 805-927-2690. 

Next up, we’ll give you some great activities heading North into the true heart of Big Sur from Ragged Point.

About the Author: Genie Davis is a multi-published fiction author, screen and TV writer, and travel writer. If it was possible, she'd like to spend every day traveling. www.geniedavis.com