A Cherry California Road Trip 2015: Big Sur + Highway 1

After our Yosemite adventures, we loaded up and headed to the coast. After a few nights of having to keep every stitch of food + toiletries in a bear box, we were headed to camp on the ocean far from any of those sweet ol’ bears. Jeremy and I had never driven Highway 1, and it’s something we had talked about ever since our awesome friends Chris + Adrienne drove the coast a few years ago.

And wow…this drive did not disappoint.

The colors, the cliffs, the rocky terrain, the mountains, the succulents and that vibrant teal water. I could have sat along this drive for hours without needing a rest. The salty air truly heals in a way I can’t describe.

Of course, we had to stop by McWay Falls in Julia Pfeiffer Burns Park on our way to Kirk Creek, where we would be camping. This place was every bit as stunning as you could imagine. And seeing it two days back-to-back in totally different cloud coverage brought out such different beauty.

We finally made it to our campground after about 15 stops (we couldn’t help it!) along the way, and pulled up to a small green area that literally backed right up to an ocean overlook. We fell asleep to ocean waves and viewed the most spectacular starry skies I’ve ever seen in my entire life. We HIGHLY recommend camping at Kirk Creek if you ever get the chance!

The next day, we headed halfway up the coast to stay in Seaside near Monterey where we did the 17-mile drive. Which was beautiful…(it’s where the lone cypress is)..but I really don’t think it could top the views we saw in Big Sur. After a night in Seaside (our first shower in 3 days…yes, you read that right…no showers at the campsite!), we headed up to Napa and stopped in Half Moon Bay among other coastal stops!

(See the rest of our trip: Part I // Yosemite + Part III // Napa Valley)