California Highway 101

Mikki and I had the opportunity to take a few days this week to drive up the California coast. We needed a vacation from our vacation:-) We started off in Ontario, California and headed North. Our first night was in Solvang, California, a Danish village that is really a wonderful place. From there, we drove up to Santa Barbara, took in a farmer's market, and then drove on to Cambria / San Simeon. We stayed there two nights and toured the Hearst Castle. Wow! Go do that! Then, we drove up through Big Sur along highway 101 to Carmel-By-The-Sea and Monterey. What was really wonderful was that we just took our time. No hurry any day. The only thing we had to meet a schedule on was checking out of hotels and our tour of the castle. Other than that, we could have left our watches at home. What a wonderful trip. Truly relaxing! And beautiful. 

Downtown Santa Barbara, California... looking toward the Pacific ocean. 

Fresh-cut flowers at the Santa Barbara Farmer's Market

Fresh, non-organic tomatoes at the farmer's market

We're going in the Canned-Tomato business... Organic Heirloom Tomatoes.. $12.50 per quart... But it is California.

At the Farmer's Market sat this motorized bike (jerry-rigged, but well done), pulling a trailer with a tent and surfboard. Someone's son. And they think he is at school...

We left Santa Barbara and was headed North near Santa Maria when we spotted these beautiful fields of Gladiolas. They were absolutely beautiful. The pictures just can't capture the beauty. 

Gladiolas as far as the eyes can see! We also saw strawberries, citrus, lettuce, etc. There were fields all along the less-mountainous areas of the drive. 

Wine grapes for as far as your eyes can see... Thousands of acres in some of these orchards.

The old San Simeon, California School house with the Hearst Castle in the backgound on the hill. What an amazing place! If you are ever on the California coastline between L.A. and San Francisco, do not miss the tour of the castle. 

Hearst Castle

Hearst Castle main steps and fountain

The outdoor pool. The indoor is equally exquisite, if not more so. 

There are architectural pieces from the world over embedded all through the Castle. Some amazing pieces. 

On the drive down the mountain, there are some of the most beautiful pastures and oak trees. This is the way the land looks in a lot of the areas up the coast. 

Just below the castle on the beach, there are hundreds of Elephant Seals sunning themselves. I sent this photo to Amber to show the kids and they thought they were all dead:-)

This guy wanted my hamburger in Cambria... I think he meant it. He just sat and stared at me. He'd look off, and then just glare at me.

As we got into Big Sur, we couldn't help (well, I was driving) but pull off and take pictures. Unbelievable coastline! We were lucky this day that there was no fog.

A Seagull looking to get one of Mikki's treats. 

This is at the Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park along Hwy 101. This area is the most photographed of all of Big Sur, and there is a great reason why. 

Stunning beauty.

This is one of three waterfalls that land on a beach in the world... or so we were told. What's amazing about it is that it doesn't drill a hole in the sand.

This was up the coast near Carmel-By-The-Sea. There was a lighthouse out on that rock along with a Naval installation of some sort. Looked like a house to me. 

A cactus type plant that was growing in Big Sur at a cafe along the highway.

The Maceys at the Hearst Castle

The Maceys and Mikki near Hearst pool