So, as Jocko mentioned... We stayed Thursday night at the Big Sur Lodge... Which was our "splurge" hotel... Certainly didn't live up to the idea of splurge... But quaint and lovely (aside from Creepy Craig... Who was totally hoping jocko would join him in the natural hot tubs... "you never know what youll find up there... A fun, jovial atmoshere... Spiritual Meditation... Or an orgy". He was so creepy!!!)

Anyhow, we had a big, open cabin... And were able to wake up and start our morning with a beautiful hike, just outside our door, up to the Julia Pfiffer Falls. "i dont know what it is about waterfalls that draws people to them... the ionization or the naturaly beauty... Most likely the ionization..." (Craig quote) It was an AWESOME hike!!! As Craig had warned us, the hikers conundrum is that your hiking uphill on the way up to the falls... And uphill on the way back too!!! It was true... And we're certainly feeling it in our legs today!!

The falls was our first of many hikes of the day... Next up was the Pfiffer state beach... Completely unmarked, but we read about it one of the tour books... One car in... One out... But we didn't have to wait long... We had no idea what to expect... And were in sheer amazement at the power, beauty and magnitude of nature. There were massive rocks... With caves through which the ocean pounded violent waves. It's funny how something so powerful, fierce and full of rage could be so spectacularly soothing, beautiful and mesmerizing... Jocko was completely mesmerized by the strength and magnitude of the ocean and climbed out onto the rocks and got some great pictures... Though as beauitful as they are, it can't compare to being there... Hearing the thunderous pounding of the waves, feeling the spray, and seeing it live! (maybe it was those ions that made it so alluring!!)

Second to those amazing caves... The sand at this beach had purple patches of sand and supposedly, if you dug down, you could find jade rocks... We didn't dig... Left that to the kids. The beach was beyond what we ever could have imagined a beach to be!

Following our beach excursion, we had lunch at the most commonly recommended place in Big Sur... Nepenthe... Pretty much every person we met in the last 2 days told us to stop there for lunch and get the ambrosia burger... So we did! The resturaunt was atop a cliff, overlooking the ocean below... But that's on a clear day... While we were there, we couldn't see 20 feet into the thick fog!! The wait for a table overlooking NOTHING was 1hour, 20 min... But there was no wait at the bar!!! So we sat down and ordered ourselves the famous burger! It was fantastic!!! Fresh, clean flavors! Very, very good!!

After lunch we drove along curvy cliffside Rt 1 in the dense fog till we arrive at a hairpin turnoff, unmarked with a small dirt path leading down the creek... Pattingtons Ridge. Pulling off, we hiked down a long zigzag path, crossed a beautiful old bridge, went thru a very cool old tunnel, to arrive at a spectacular cove!! This was another place mother nature got out her frustrations! The cliff we were on jetted out into a narrow rock peninsula, with coves on each side... Waves crashing and splashing us with the surf!! This cove was once a port for rum runners during the prohibition... Which is crazy to think... As you could easily imagine ANY wooden boat coming near this cove would be shattered to pieces against the rocks! But they liked their liquor I guess... Again, awe inspiring and completely mesmerizing! We sat on the rocks for a while took it all in.. Check out flickr!

Our next stop was McWay Falls... Once owned by a wealthy hieress to a big Boston Bank fortune, the propery has Californias only waterfall to fall strait into the pacific ocean! Stunning views from a cliff walk take you the perfect place for photos, and the original spot of the owners home. When the Boston Bank heiress died, she willed that her magnificent home be taken down and donated the property to the state for preservation... So tha no one person could ever own it, and the views could be enjoyed by all! Thank god for philanthropists!

Leaving the Big Sur was bitter sweet... We're very excited for the rest of our trip... But this land was just so majestic... So awe inspiring... We didn't want to leave! And our disappoint continued on the drive out, as the fog was too thick to see the depths of the falls beneath us... Or the great rocks metric out of the surf below... :(

However... Just as we got out of the forest, some a**hole was riding us so closely, Jocko barely ably to pull over... But when we did... We stumbled upon ElEPHANT SEALS!!! Hahaha!! Please check out the pics on Flickr!! I thought the era lions were awesome... But they didn't hold a candle to these massive mammals!! They werejust chillin' on the beach... Flippin sand onto their backs, wiggling over to the another to snuggle!! What a relaxed place Clalifornia is... If this happened in MA, the beach would be closed off, not trusting people to enjoy without interfering... You'd never catch a glimpse of them... In Cali, they build a boardwalk the length of the beach so you can see ALL of them, not just the ones closest to the parking lot. I love this laid back state!

Finally, for dinner (as this trip was decided upon based on food), we made our way down to San Luis Obispo (aka SLO) where we had sinner at an AMAZING tapas bar on the creek, Novo. I think Jocoko was a bit skeptical, never having tapas, (neither had I), but as we were guided thru the impeccably clean kitchen, back to the heart of the restaurant, on the creek... He got excited too! The ambiance alone was sureal! Lit by candles and novelty string lights... With propane heaters for each table... We got morrocan lamb satay for an app... Ten split the pork carnitas sopas and duck mole... WOW!! It was a first on the mole for both of us... Absolutly delish!! And the carnitas had the most amazing balance of textures... Onions feta cheese, cremy pulled pork... Wonderful!! I had a remarkably smooth malbec, Jocko had a pear margarita and locally brewed root beer... To finish off the evening, our waitress surprised us with a desert on the house... We got a great coffee & vanilla bean Sunday with chocolate ganache... The perfect ending to a perfect day!

(sorry for any spelling mistakes... Not only am I terrible at spelling... But I'm doing this on the phone... No spell check). Miss you all!! MUAH!!!