outdoor1

My husband and I are in our 40's and just spontaneously booked this trip as an opportunity presented itself. We will be flying in from Ontario on a Tues night., and will have 5 full days plus the morning before our flight on Mon. We love nature, food (gluten free for me) , wine,,and are very active. We enjoy a wide variety of food , but will be looking for fresh California food !as well as ethnic food. Casual market style or picnic style lunches and breakfasts will suit us best. A sit down reasonably priced dinner most nights would be preferred. We are going to try to spend under 200 a night for accommodations.
Preliminary ideas
day 1 Wednesday Tour San Francisco -cable cars, market , Alcatrez, walking across the Golden Gate Bridge are all possibilities but we are open to suggestions
Is Muir Woods worth seeing or will there be opportunities to see Redwoods enroute to Big Sur (I'm very aware that I have more on the list than possible)
day 2. - Either tour San Francisco more or take a wine tour complete with ferry ride to Napa Valley ( I suspect my husband will want this option)
Day 3. And 4 Rent a car and head out towards Big Sur. I thought maybe we should head all the way there in one leisurely day and then explore the Big Sur area on day 4. I was looking at the wildlife park with the yurts. would that be a good base?
Day 5. Drive back to Carmel stopping to see anything we missed. Spend the night in Carmel and be back to San Francisco for our 3:30 flight the next day.
Does this sound doable.? Is there a better plan We are in need of hotel recommendations Hotwire perhaps? If so some hints on making that work would be good as we haven't used it .
Also any advice about restaurants, activities wildlife viewing and restaurants would be great.

sf7307

Just one question - is your flight out on Day 6? If so, there is no reason to leave Carmel on Day 5. Just stay in Carmel overnight, and drive to SFO (2 hours, depending on time of day) in time for your 3:30 flight.

november_moon

sf - the way I read it, they are staying in Carmel for Day 5, heading back to SFO on Day 6.

For your Big Sur portion - Big Sur is basically 90 miles of coastline from San Simeon to Carmel. If you wanted to drive the whole length of the coast, you could take Hwy 101 south on Day 3 (inland route) and then spend Day 4 driving up the coast, spending the night on Day 4 in Carmel. Another option would be to base yourselves in Carmel and do a day trip into Big Sur from there. Both are good choices, just depends on what you want to do.

I am not sure what/where the wildlife park with the yurts is. The only yurt accomodations in Big Sur that I know of is Treebones. I don't know of a wildlife park. If Treebones is what you mean, then it would make a nice overnight on Day 3. It is on the southern end of Big Sur, so it doesn't really make a good base for exploring Big Sur itself - so if you stayed there on Day 3 and 4, you would end up doing a lot of backtracking on Day 4 to get back to your lodging, and then driving over the same roads on Day 5 to get to Carmel. Also, if you don't get to Carmel until Day 5, you won't have much time at all for the Monterey Penninsula - getting to Carmel on Day 4 would be better.

outdoor1

Yes we will head back SFO on day 6. It is Treebones-sorry the name escaped me . I was wondering if that would create too much back tracking so that is good advice. Thanks
I hadn't thought of basing ourselves in Carmel. We would like to maximize the outdoor experience while we are in the area. lots to think about

outdoor1

Oh another question- is ocean swimming feasible anywhere enroute? . I really have no idea about ocean temps and safety of the beaches. Coming from Canada we will swim in what others consider less than desirable temps.

hazel1

For beaches in Big Sur, check out this website:

http://www.bigsurcalifornia.org/beaches.html

Our favorite is Pfeiffer Beach (driving south, look for the first road (unmarked) on the west side of Hwy 1 after you pass the entrance to Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park). Most people think the ocean is too cold for actual swimming, but I'd say if you can handle Canadian ocean temps, you can handle it at Big Sur.

november_moon

I haven't stayed at Treebones, but it is on my list. So if you do end up staying there, be sure to report back on your experience. It looks like a really neat place.

If you were to base yourselves in Carmel and day trip down to Big Sur, you probably wouldn't drive the whole length down to San Simeon because that would make for a very long day, but there are some really great views and state parks on the northern half of Big Sur. Actually one of the best parks is Point Lobos, which is just 3 miles south of Carmel. If you even drive an hour south of Carmel, you will be a lot of great scenery.

For ocean swimming, our ocean is always cold, so most people don't swim. The surf can also be very rough, so most people just wade in the water. There are some beaches along the Big Sur coast, but most of the coastline is very rocky and steep. Probably the best beach for possible swimming would be Carmel beach - it is long and wide, lots of sand, and I think that the ocean remains reasonably shallow for a little ways, so you don't get the bigger waves. If you do go in the water, never turn your back on the waves and watch out for the undertow - undertow is what happens when the beach decends steeply into the water and when the waves go out, the under current can pull swimmers under and out into the water.

outdoor1

hazel1- Thanks for the link. I'm very excited now I want to go to every single beach. I think Tofino is my very favorite place ever , followed by Cape Breton. This looks a little similar . I love wild and rugged.
november-moon I am still very tempted by Treebones but it has a 2 night minimum so not sure how practical it is. I have always wanted to see San Francisco but when I see the coast I get excited. I'm an outdoor girl at heart. Maybe we should skip the wine tour and have an extra day on the coast. Decisions decisions

outdoor1

Believe it or not we get undertows on the great lakes, but I have felt ocean undertows too, that's why I'm leary.

november_moon

I've been caught in the undertow a few times - it is very strange. The thing to do is just relax (easier said than done, I know) and wait until you surface. The swim back to shore. Most drownings due to undertow happen when people fight the undertow and then don't have enough strength left to swim back to shore. Just be careful and you'll be fine.

Regarding the wine tour - there are other wine regions right on your route, so if you don't make it to Napa, you will have other opportunities to see wineries. If you take Hwy 101 south and cut over to the coast at Hwy 46, you'll go through Paso Robles - this is a great wine area, esspecially if you are a Pinot Noir fan. The Carmel Valley, just east of Carmel itself, is also a wine region which produces some great wines.

If you want a wine tour so you can taste and then not drive, there is a wine trolley from the Monterey area that goes to the Carmel Valley. I haven't done it because it is a little spendy, but it looks fun.

http://www.toursmonterey.com/WTPages/WTHome.html

sf7307

In this thread, very first post, I give specific instructions for finding Pfeiffer Beach, which is REALLY hard to find!! I think I might have linked to some pictures I took with my phone, too.

http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...t-part-way.cfm

outdoor1

November-moon We are red wine drinkers and love Pinoit Noir . Cabs are our favourite. For some reason the ferry ride after the Napa tour intrigues me even though it might be lame. I will definitely think about the trolley tour though.
sf7307-That's a great trip repot . We will make a point to see that beach. Passion Fish sound awesome as well. Do they take reservations?
Any accommodation suggestions in Carmel or Montery?

Tomsd

If you get caught in an undertow/rip tide - ride it out and then swim parallel to the beach for a little ways and ride the waves back in.

As for combining wine tours and use of your time - you could stay at one of the beautiful wineries that was suggested along 46 - from Paso Robles over to the Coast, or stay in lovely Cambria - and decide which wineries to visit. (see some pages copied below. The main point is that by going down 101 - you get there much faster than if you went down PCH/Hi way 1 on the Coast.

You are then positioned to drive to the Coast and head up to Big Sur from the South and spend a couple of nights in the Carmel/Monterrey area, where you can easily get back to Pt. Rayes. I am also a big fan of Hearst Castle - and you could arrange for an early tour (think they open around 9 AM or so first tour at 9:30?) - for a couple of hours, and still make it leisurly up the Coast Hiway to say Nepenthene for coffee and enjoying the magnificent view - before finishing the last 30 or so minutes on in to Carmel/Monterrey.

http://www.nepenthebigsur.com/

http://www.monterey-carmel.com/

http://www.paso46westwineries.com/

http://www.hearstcastle.org/

http://www.cambriachamber.org/

Tomsd

Oops. I meant Pt. Lobos.

sf7307

I was wondering what you meant

Tomsd

SF7 - just read your other blog on dining at the restaurant Passionfish. Great stuff that - and fyi - the Oceangoing Trout - is called a Steelhead. It's really a Rainbow Trout that heads to the ocean for 3 or so years and comes back to the freshwater rivers/streams to spawn. A very delicate salmon - or a stronger tasting trout - between the two really - and it might be my favorite - plus they are a great fighting fish if you like to fish.

Coho Salmon are very good but some like the Sockeye the best (even saw Copper River Sockeye the other day at one of my favorite fish stores) - and the King/Chinook salmon is also very good - if they aren't too big when caught - as then they get tougher and are best for smoking.

And if they visitors like swimming in the ocean - they also might like snorkeling at Pt. Lobos. Here is a site - and you can rent gear along Cannery Row in Monterrey, and if you are going to be out long - you might want at least a thin wetsuit.

I am part polar bear - but if you are in the water long enough - and not vigorously swimming (which you shouldn't be doing when snorkeling or you will scare the fish away) - you can eventually get a bit chilled.

http://www.shorediving.com/Earth/USA...Cove/index.htm

tomfuller

http://www.hihostels.com/ About 50 miles south of San Francisco is the Pigeon Point HI Hostel. The advantage of the hostel over a yurt is a full kitchen with refrigerator. Within 5 miles of the hostel, you can see big Redwoods not far east of the highway.
At Ano Nuevo on the west side of the highway are trails over the sand dunes to get to a place where you could swim.

outdoor1

Well you certainly have my attention when you mention snorkeling. We absolutely love snorkeling but very rarely get to do it. I'm also a whale fanatic but will not drag my poor husband on yet another unsuccessful whale watching tour. I am not part polar bear. As much as I adore winter I think I was meant for warmer climates. I would freeze without a wetsuit.

Not sure about a hostel. That makes me a bit nervous though the location sounds lovely

outdoor1

Any other accommodation suggestions?

SAB

Accomodation suggestions where? Carmel? Big Sur? My usual Carmel suggestion is Mission Ranch, because of its location and the range of room prices. The two places we have stayed in Big Sur are way out of the price range you stated (actually out my price range too)--Ventana and Post Ranch Inn. Oh I forgot one other place, Deetjens.