Monterey County – My Home Away from Home

When you get engaged and married in Monterey, Ca it doesn’t take a genius to find out why someone would call such a beautiful area their home away from home.  But let me share with you some of the great things about Monterey County besides having those great beautiful memories for me.  If we could retire anywhere and money was not an option, as of right now this would be our spot.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium 

Being raised in San Diego I was a regular to Sea World with Annual passes, so it’s never really been on my list to go to any Aquariums.  When Terry took to me there in 2012 I fell in love.  A absolute must see if you’re a fan of marine life and in Monterey. It features more than 35,000 creatures representing over 550 species. With nearly 200 exhibits in all, the Aquarium is a window to the wonders of the ocean. My favorites exhibits include Jellies, Green Sea Turtles and the Giant Pacific Octopus and how can you not love the otters that are all over.

Located at:
886 Cannery Row
Monterey, CA 93940
http://www.montereybayaquarium.org

 

17-Mile Drive

Just miles south west of Monterey Beach make sure to pack a lunch and make a date out of it. As you cruise the coast of some of the most beautiful scenery California has to offer. 17-Mile Drive is a scenic road through Pebble Beach and Pacific Grove on the Monterey Peninsula in California, much of which hugs the Pacific coastline and passes famous golf courses, mansions and scenic attractions, including the Lone Cypress, Bird Rock and the 5,300-acre Del Monte Forest of Monterey Cypress trees

Make sure to not forget your camera

The drive is the main road through the gated community of Pebble Beach. Inside this community, nonresidents have to pay a toll to use the road. The 17-Mile Drive is a 17-mile long scenic loop having its main highway entrance at California State Route 1, and entrances in Carmel and Pacific Grove.  Map of 17-mile drive.

 

Big Sur

With a 30 Mile drive south of the City of Monterey, about 60-90 minutes of driving through the winding road of California’s Highway 1.  The beauty continues into Big Sur.  Here are just a few of many places to check out, that we have been to while in Big Sur.

Bixby Creek Bridge –

Built in 1932 it is one of the tallest single-span concrete bridges in the world and one of the most photographed bridges along the Pacific Coast due to its aesthetic design and location.  It’s often commonly recognized from it’s use in commercials for automobiles.

McWay Falls –

An 80-foot waterfall (click on photo to view it better) is located in Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park, the waterfall flows year-round.  Unfortunately due to a 1983 fire and landslides in 1985 the grounds were altered, making the beach inaccessible except by boat.  However I am sure that their are a handful of risk takers still find their way down there. For us non risk takers it is still a beautiful site to see, and so worth the stop to take a moment with nature.

China Cove –

(Just north of Big Sur) – This was one of Terry’s original locations where she wanted to propose to me.  However the access down to this particular beach has been closed off and may never reopen.  Point Lobos contains a number of hiking trails, many next to the ocean, and a number of beaches. Wildlife is seen everywhere, seals and blue whales in the ocean, marine life on the shores, rabbits in the bushes  we were even lucky enough to see California condor fly right over our heads.

 

The Mystery Spot

So the Mystery Spot is not in Monterey County, however if your coming in from out of town you may want to consider the extra 50 mile drive north of Monterey to Santa Cruz and check it out.  It’s simply mind blowing, big heads up if you are considering going buy your tickets two weeks in advance (on their website below). I will say I loved the experience how ever it did make me very dizzy, but for those who like that feeling this is a must.

Located at:
465 Mystery Spot Rd
Santa Cruz, CA 95065
http://www.mysteryspot.com/

I can go on and on and get into more details about Monterey.  With stores to check out, restaurants to enjoy and hotels to stay in , but maybe I can continue that another day.