By Teresa Mariani

Photo by Teresa Mariani
	The Big Sur coastline on California's Central Coast offers spectacular sights.

Big Sur is one of those California Postcard places: steep mountain cliffs plunging to the Pacific, cut by canyons with burbling creeks and waterfalls and towering trees. But it's also a state of mind.

"Everyone has their own idea about what Big Sur is. I think everyone comes up with their own individual answer. I think a lot of people come here without initially knowing why," said Suzi Derr. Her dangling earrings glinting in the sun, she says she came to Big Sur 32 years ago from San Jose, stayed, and raised two children - now graduated from college and gone away.

"If you stay, you come up with your own answer" about Big Sur's attraction. "I think initially people come here for the serenity and the beauty. It is more serene - and it's not as fast-paced and populated as Monterey and Carmel."

Big Sur: Where to Go, What to Do

Boy, is that an understatement.

Technically, Big Sur isn't really a town or a place - more of a collection of magnificent state parks, cliff-side hotels, and a handful of restaurant and art galleries perched on little dells and safe spots on otherwise perilously plunging cliffs. It's the last place on the California coast that redwood trees flourish - or the first place, depending on which way you're driving.

Big Sur gained a big following in the 1970s. That's when the Esalen Institute, and the seaside Ventana resort catered to the wealthy looking for a quiet refuge for a weekend, and the smaller lodges, parks, and aging cottages became home to an eclectic group of artists and writers looking for inspiration and a great place to hang out.

They're all still there, selling stuff in shops with names like 'Surenity.' Only now, you can find refugees from chi-chi Los Angeles restaurants setting up shop and selling madelines and specialty breads and $2 cans of soda in scattered, tiny cottages alongside Highway One.

It's definitely a trip, or at least a Day Trip.

Trippin' on the Cliffs
The Big Sur coastline runs from the town of Carmel in southern Monterey County to Ragged Point at the northern tip of San Luis Obispo County. The "town" of Big Sur itself is sandwiched between two breathtaking state parks: Pfeiffer-Big Sur State Park to the north and Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park to the south.

On paper, the Big Sur coastline is about a 75-mile drive between Carmel to the north and San Simeon to the south. If you think you'll make it in an hour and a half, think again.

Those 75 miles are arguably the most curvaceous in California. Add the fact that Highway One winds along vertigo-inducing cliffs for almost all of those miles, plus the fact that Cal-Trans road crews work continuously to keep that stretch of Highway One from falling into the sea, and you've got a 75-mile drive that easily takes most of a day.

For spectacular scenery and photo-ops, though, it can't be beat.

"You know, we came here when I was a kid. And I don't know what it is about this coast, but it always reminds me of eternity," one husband told his wife as they shot photos at a Big Sur roadside Vista Point one hot May afternoon. As the cameras snapped away, the blue-green water sparkled below, waves frothed over jutting sea rocks, and a waterfall spilled from a nearby canyon, where redwood trees struggled to cling to the steep canyon walls.

If you're ready to take a trip from here to eternity and shoot a few of your own photos, here are a few pointers:

The Big Drive
Don't try to drive from San Francisco to Los Angeles (or vice-versa) in one day on Highway One and expect to check out Big Sur in the middle. You will not be happy if you do this. You will be tired. Very tired. If your wallet can afford the $800 a night tab for one of the best rooms at Ventana or the Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur, go for it. Or check out the numerous state park campgrounds in the Big Sur area - most notably Pfeiffer-Big Sur State Park and its lodge, or the campsites at Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. Both are gorgeous.

If camping's not your thing (it's not mine) a better bet is to tour Big Sur for the day, and then head to San Simeon to spend the night. (Click Here to read about lodging in San Simeon.) You can also easily add a day in San Simeon to visit Hearst Castle (Click Here to read about Hearst Castle) or check out the Elephant Seal colonies at nearby Piedras Blancas. (Click Here to read about the Elephant Seals.)

Or, better yet, stay in San Luis Obispo or one of the nearby beach cities (click Here to read about lodging in the San Luis Obispo area) and plan a Day Trip to Big Sur. Leave early in the morning, between 8 and 9 a.m. That should allow time to explore Big Sur's state parks and galleries.

Photo by Teresa Mariani
The view from the patio at Nepenthe, a restaurant and art gallery that's grown into a Big Sur landmark.

In Big Sur
Have lunch at Nepenthe www.nepenthebigsur.com - a restaurant and art gallery with the ultimate patio view. The entire restaurant, in fact, has great views. Nepenthe sits on the top of one of those steep Big Sur canyon cliffs covered with oak, golden grass and, in the shady spots, redwoods. You can look south and see the ocean and jutting Santa Lucia Mountains as they tumble down to the Pacific. You can sip a lemonade (Or choose from Nepenthe's extensive wine list) and literally feel on top of the world.

Prices at the Big Sur landmark range from $3.75 appetizers to $12 sandwiches and burgers. But Nepenthe is not a fast food café - it's a place to savor an afternoon, a drink and the endless views. And soak up a little of that eternity. (The Phoenix gallery below the restaurant has plenty of incense, soapstone, and Kwan Yin statues to put you in a meditating mood.)

When you're full, try exploring Pfeiffer-Big Sur State Park, just north of Nepenthe on Highway One. It's got a ranger station, lodge, and a beautiful forested creek. Or, return south and explore Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. It has a breathtaking beach complete with an 80-foot waterfall dropping out of the cliffs onto the sands, plus beautiful stands of redwoods.

On the way back, stop for dinner at Ragged Point and enjoy the San Luis Obispo County entrance to the Big Sur coastline. Get there before sunset and wander the beautiful gardens behind the restaurant, and take in the view from the gazebo. You'll get that 'From Here to Eternity' feeling again.

Then go have dinner in the Ragged Point Inn restaurant. You won't be sorry. The restaurant mixes California cuisine and old favorites. Try the crab cakes (on the appetizer menu) and you'll be hooked. For more information on fun spots in Big Sur, Click Here.

If You Go, the drive itself can seem like eternity if it's your first trip. Here's a bit of mileage info to give you an idea of what you're in for:

Big Sur, the 'town' is 150 miles south of San Francisco and 311 miles north of Los Angeles.

Big Sur the 'town' is about 30 miles south of Carmel on Highway One. It's some 50 miles north of San Simeon, 70 miles north of San Luis Obispo, 75 miles north of Avila Beach, 80 miles north of Pismo Beach, and 100 miles north of Santa Maria.

The drive from all of those southern beach towns to Ragged Point is fairly smooth sailing. After Ragged Point, though, Highway One becomes extremely curvy and prone to traffic stops by road crews. The 40 or so miles between Ragged Point and Big Sur Proper are true 25 to 35-miles-per-hour driving territory - which is why it takes a while to get there.

Just remember: a true day trip is a journey, not a destination. And no day trip proves that more than Big Sur.

- Teresa Mariani s a freelance writer based in San Luis Obispo likes lunch on the Ragged Point patio on a sunny day.

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