Monterey Peninsula

Sunday and Monday found us on the Monterey Peninsula.  When we were planning our day trips from SF, Mike said Monterey was 3 hours away – a little too far.  I put an option on the table: leave the motorhome at the RV park, drive to Monterey on Sunday, spend the night in a hotel and come back on Monday. 

I’m not going to say this fell under Mike’s Life Rule #1 (compromise and do it her way).  Instead I choose to view these two days as an early Mother’s Day gift!  And the fact that 3 famous golf courses, and several others, lie on the scenic 17-Mile Drive of the peninsula really helped my cause.

I had heard of the Monterey Peninsula, including the towns of Monterey and Carmel, but had honestly not ever heard of the 17-Mile Drive.  I came across it while searching online about the area and for hotels.  We arrived on Sunday in Monterey about noon.  I had booked a small boutique hotel there.  We were happy when we drove up, because. . . well. . . you know, the internet can make anything look good.  (you have to be thankful for the little things. . . )  They let us check in early and were extremely helpful with all my questions about the area.  They directed us to a local sports bar for lunch and to try to catch the end of the NASCAR race. 

We decided to drive the peninsula first and explore the rest of downtown Monterey later.  Before we even got to the 17-Mile part, we went along the coast with some great views.   I said I would drive.  Sometimes when Mike is driving, I’ll see something cool and think, “He’s going to pull over so we can see this better.”  When he doesn’t, it is too late for me to say “Pull over!”  If I drove, I could stop wherever!  I demonstrated this when we had not even gotten to the beginning of the Drive and I pulled over.  When there is a parking area, with lots of people, that’s a pretty good indication that the view is worth stopping for.  And it was.  And had I not stopped, we would have missed Lover’s Point! 

We have observed that every green space or neighborhood park that we have seen in California is always filled with people having picnics, playing games, flying kites.  In the case of Lover’s Point, it involved climbing on the rocky shore, too.

We entered the 17-Mile Drive at the Pacific Grove gate.  You have to pay a $9.75 fee to travel the Drive.  This seemed strange, but I’m sure it goes toward garbage removal at the numerous (at least 18) turnout areas, restroom facilities at some of the stops, and general road maintenance.  What we discovered is the Drive goes through a private residential neighborhood.  Quite an exclusive neighborhood, to be sure.  We saw one house for sale on the water for $3.9 million!  The coastline is dramatic and with 18 designated stops, there were plenty of places to get out and walk the beach or just admire the rocky shore. It was windy and overcast, so I’m sure the pictures aren’t going to adequately convey the beauty. There are plenty of signs along the way to keep you on the Drive, but just to be sure, they have a red and yellow stripe down the center of the road to follow.

The Drive takes you to Spanish Bay Golf Links, Spyglass Hill Golf Course, Cypress Point Golf Course and last (from our direction), the crown jewel – Pebble Beach Golf Links.  We did not drive up into Cypress Point because the sign said “Members Only”, but we did see the others, and the road goes right past Pebble Beach.  We didn’t stop because we had reservations for lunch on Monday at a restaurant at the course.

Our drive ended in Carmel.  We stopped here and walk the main street, which was upscale shops, jewelry stores, and restaurants.  We went into one gallery – the Thomas Kincaid gallery as the walkway back to it was so inviting.  We didn’t seek out Clint Eastwood, or continue south on Highway 1 to Big Sur.

 It took us 17 scenic miles to drive from Monterey to Carmel.  When we headed back to Monterey, the direct route was 3.5 miles!

Monterey is an old, historic fishing town.  It was the capital of California at one time.  Like San Francisco, it has a Fisherman’s Wharf, which, like San Francisco’s, is no longer used for fishing purposes, but is a pier of shops and restaurants.  The Custom House near the wharf stakes its claim to “the oldest” – it is the oldest government building in California.  On July 7, 1846, U.S. Marines landed at Monterey Bay and raised the American flag over the Customs House, which meant Mexico and the United States were at war.

A mile down from the wharf is Cannery Row, which we liked much better.  This several-block area is still the shops and restaurants like the wharf, but the buildings are old sardine canneries and the vibe was just “cooler”.   The Monterey Aquarium is at the end  - a world-class attraction we were told, as we didn’t get there.  After walking around, we settled on Sly McFly’s (the most famous, oldest, historic restaurant on Cannery Row, according to their menu cover) for dinner.  We were done eating, but waiting for the band to start when an older couple sat next to us.  They were from Sweden, here on a 5-week vacation.  Anders and Birgitta Graffner.  You know how several times I have mentioned that we dislike the traffic in California?  These people put things into perspective for us.  They had a flight from Sweden to London, then a non-stop to LA.  They landed in LA at 5 pm – peak rush hour.  They rented a car to drive to Monterey.  When he talked about having to cross 8 lanes of traffic to get to his exit, we realized he did it after flying a quarter of the way around the world! 

To further help my case that these two days were an early Mother’s Day gift, Mike got up Monday morning and went to a French bakery across the street to get me a foo-foo coffee and an apple tart for us to share.  We had a noon reservation at The Gallery Café at Pebble Beach.  You have to pay the $9.75 to get on the 17-Mile Drive to get to Pebble.  There is no other way.  If you enter it at the Carmel Gate or the Highway 1 Gate, Pebble is only about a mile or two down.  But if you are going to pay the fee, why not see the scenery again?  So we did the exact drive we did on Sunday, but Mike drove this time. (if you play Pebble or eat at a restaurant there, the fee is refunded.)

The Galley Café overlooks the putting green and the first tee.  Halfway into lunch, we saw a deer walk out onto the first fairway!  After a visit to the Pro Shop for some souvenirs, we went into The Lodge and sat on the deck that overlooks the 18^th green and the bay behind it.  Lunch at Pebble Beach was perfect.   Golf at Pebble Beach for Mike will have to wait for a “guys” golf trip.  While we didn’t see any famous golfers or celebrities like you would during their tournament, going on a regular day, parking right onsite, having access to everything and not fighting crowds was priceless. 

Someone had told me about a beach close by where we could find sand dollars.  It was on our way back, just not the exact way we would have gone.  In yet another example of my Mother’s Day gift, Mike drove to this beach and walked it with me looking for sand dollars.  Remember, we were dressed for lunch at Pebble Beach, not for digging in the sand.  We found lots of broken sand dollars, but none intact.

Going back this way took us by fields and fields and fields of a variety of vegetables and strawberries, most under the Dole name.  Artichokes – 12 for $1.  What a bargain!

This route also passed the outskirts of San Jose where I serenaded Mike with “Do you know the way to San Jose?  I’ve been away so long, I may go wrong and lose my way. . . “

We have had several conversations during this journey, usually with store clerks, that, when we say we are from Michigan and are on a 3-month trip in our motorhome to see the west, they say, “That is SOOO neat” or “I would LOVE to do something like that” or “That is on my bucket list” or “I haven’t had a vacation in 2 years so I would love even ONE week to travel.”

It reminds us that you have to be thankful for the BIG things, too. . .

Many pictures today: us at Lover’s Point; varied views of the peninsula coast; Bird Rock; the Lone Cypress Tree (the symbol of Pebble Beach).  It has survived perched on this rock for over 250 years; the entrance to Pebble; downtown Carmel; Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey; the Customs House; Cannery Row; me on the beach at Spanish Bay; Mike walking toward The Lodge at Pebble; a cute statue called “Just Like Dad”.  Notice the oversized golf shoes and club; our view of the first tee during lunch; overlooking the 18^th green and looking back down the 18^th fairway.