Weekend Tripping

My wanderlust continues.

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Yesterday’s post was more about far off distant lands – so I thought today, I would post about a weekend trip that I have been thinking about taking to Carmel and Big Sur.(If you can’t tell, I live for weekend trips and adventures. Luckily I live in a city that has so many weekend trips in driving distance.)

For those that don’t know Big Sur and Carmel are about two hours south of San Francisco and are totally magical. I have done this trip a couple times, but I promise, it never gets old. Located on the historic Route 1, both Carmel and Big Sur offer amazing views, good food, shopping, hiking – the list could go on. Carmel reminds me of one of those Thomas Kincaide paintings and Big Sur is rugged, raw and beautiful. Best part is – they are only 45 minutes from each other.

So, here is my theoretical itinerary for my unplanned trip. Road trip anyone?

Friday

Drive down after work and check into the Cypress Inn.

The Cypress Inn is one of the original boutique hotels in Carmel and is co-owned by the legendary actress Doris Duke. The Cypress Inn and Carmel are really dog friendly and we all know that I am a crazy dog owner, so Chumley’s attendance on this trip is mandatory.

After checking in and having a drink, wander out for dinner.

Here are a couple good options for dinner in Carmel:

La Bicyclette

Casanova

Forge in the Forest

Saturday 

Saturday morning grab a coffee and head down to Carmel City Beach Park. Best way to ease into the day is staring at the Pacific Ocean. Grab breakfast at Katy’s Place and then head to one of my favorite places in the world, the Monterrey Bay Aquarium. I am not joking. I even looked into having my wedding there. (For the record you can and it would have been awesome)  How could you not love a place that has this fish just hanging out staring back at you?

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After the aquarium, take the 17-mile drive through Pebble Beach and head back to the hotel for an early shower.

After getting ready, head south on Route 1 to Big Sur. Consider stopping at Henry Miller Library en route,  but the ultimate goal is the Post Ranch Inn. In my next life when I am a billionaire, I am going to see if I can live at the Post Ranch Inn.  Sadly I can’t afford to stay there or even eat there, but the trick is to have a drink there at sunset. It literally feels like you are at the edge of the world.

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After one- drink (only 1 because those puppies are like $20 a pop) head to the Big Sur Bakery for more affordable, yet equally delicious food and drinks.  Don’t be fooled because this restaurant is behind a gas station – it is amazing. I like it so much that I even have their cookbook.

After a delicious dinner,  back to the hotel and fall asleep with the windows open to the sound of the barking sea lions.

Sunday

Another morning coffee on the beach- because you can never have too many of those- and then off to a hike. Big Sur has some pretty fantastic hikes, so check this or this site out for various hikes.

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After a hike, head to  Nepenthe for lunch and this view before heading back to real life.

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