A Few Extra Miles

     Although we had been up since 4:00 EDT, and had gone through all the rigors that traveling can bestow on you, when we got to Santa Cruz(where our hotel was located), it was only mid-afternoon PDT.  Another 30 miles or so would get us to Monterey and, having fond memories of taking the 17-Mile Drive around the peninsula, we pushed on.  Thank goodness we had brought our Garmen GPS(this is not a paid endorsement) with us because finding the entry point for the Drive was more difficult than I remembered.  It was well worth the time and effort however.
     The sea was particularly active the first day of our trip and the rocky coast of the peninsula was a welcome recipient of its fury.  Of course as a golfer it was fun to drive through and around some of the most famous courses in the world.  The Inn at Spanish Bay was the first course we saw.

     Right across the street were parking areas to view Spanish Bay.  It was close to this spot in 1769 that Spanish explorer Don Gaspar de Portola camped while searching for Monterey Bay.  Along this section of rocky shoreline are Point Joe, which mariners often mistook for the entrance to Monterey Bay and wound up on the rocks, and China Rock, where Chinese fisherman built lean-tos for their houses in the late 1800s.
      

     Bird Rock is home to shorebirds and groups of harbor seals and sea lions. As we stood on the shore, we could hear the barking of the seals over the crashing sound of the surf.

     From Cypress Point Lookout you get a great view of the Pacific coastline and we were able to observe some sea otters floating and eating on their backs, which is now they enjoy their meals.

     Probably the most famous image from the 17-Mile Drive is the Lone Cypress, which is said to be 250 years old.  If you look closely at the picture below you may see the little help it is now getting to remain on its perch.