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Friday, March 18, 2022
We left Lompoc in the morning and wended our way up the coast. Our route passed through Pismo Beach and we just had to stop. If it was good enough for Bugs Bunny it would be good enough for us.
We left the highway and promptly took a selfie with a “Welcome to Pismo Beach” sign. We were a mile or so north of the pier and we could see it peeking out into the sea. We got back into the car and drove into the downtown area. We found a parking place on the main road leading to the pier and headed over to the beach. The first thing we noticed was the smell. There was a strong scent of mollusks in the air – and we loved it. Right near the beach was another, much larger sign indicating Pismo Beach. While we waited for our turn to take a selfie we net two Brits who were vacationing on the West Coast. One of them noticed my camera and soon we were fast friends. We delighted in taking pictures of each other before parting and wishing them well. We walked towards the pier.
The pier was a large wooded structure jutting into the ocean. It was in excellent condition. All along the way there were signs describing the marine life in the area, the history of the pier itself and many, many rules for proper behavior. Surprisingly, you could fish from the pier without a license and many people were doing just that. On both sides we noticed dozens of people in wetsuits in the water trying their luck with surfboards. The waves were not too impressive but nevertheless they looked like they were having fun.
For lunch we tried Ada’s Fish House. We had a wonderful meal consisting of clam chowder, fish and chips, and clams steamed in garlic broth. Our server tried to remove the bowl of empty clams but we didn’t let them. Instead we used the leftover broth to dip our bread in. It was just too good to waste.
Our next stop was just a short distance south of San Simeon: The Fiscalini Ranch Preserve. The property originated during the Spanish Mission era and, when it was later subdivided, was owned for over a hundred years by the Fiscalini family who used it as a cattle ranch. The family sold the property in 1979 and in 2000 was preserved in perpetuity through a unique coalition of public and private funding for its purchase. Today the property is a large preserve with diverse flora, serves as a refuge for many types of animals and hosts hiking trails through hilly, wooded areas and spans along the waterfront. It was a very pleasant way for us to work off our lunch before finally settling into our hotel in San Simeon.
Saturday, March 19, 2022
One of the major attractions in the area is the Elephant Seal Rookery. It was a short drive north on the Pacific Coast Highway from our hotel. About five minutes down the road we noticed the Hearst Castle nestled way up high in the hills. The castle has been closed since the pandemic started but we were told that it might open again starting in April. We’d been there once before 26 years ago but would love to visit again. We resolved to check the website again when we travel back from Los Angels to San Francisco early next month.
In 1990 large parts of the coast around San Simeon were designated as protected. Almost immediately the elephant seals started coming to the beaches in the area. They spend a surprisingly large amount of their lives out of the water. They come ashore for about a month during breading season. They also come ashore for about a month during the birthing season. Babies nurse for about a month and reach weights up to 500 pounds before the mothers abandon them. The pups have to learn to swim and to feed all by themselves. About a month after the pups have left the rookery many seals return for another month of molting. It’s interesting to note that during the times they are on the beach they do not feed and can lose up to half of their body weight.
When we arrived the beach was crowded with elephant seals. There were several large, breeding males that were overseeing their respective groups, there was a large number of mature females who had recently given birth and there were well over 100 pups of various sizes. The newborns are easy to spot because they are entirely black. The beach was lively with many of the seals vocalizing while trying to find comfortable places to sun themselves. To keep from getting too warm they throw sand on their bodies to protect themselves from the sun. We saw very few animals in the water.
We stayed for quite a time enjoying the sights and taking huge numbers of photographs. It’s quite a treat to see these animals in their natural habitat. There is an organization called The Friends of the Elephant Seals that helps insure that no one disturbs the animals. They also wander about giving out pamphlets and telling informative stories.
The closest town to San Simeon with any appreciable services is Cambria. We had driven through the day before and had picked up some odds and ends at a gas station store. Today we drove about 45 minutes to Paso Robles to get supplies for the week. The drive was on a twisting, turning mountain road. We appeared to be riding right along the fault line. While in town we also stopped in a small restaurant called The Sunrise Cafe for an above average lunch consisting of a chicken pesto sandwich and a burger.
Sunday, March 20, 2022
Since COVID started many hotels have started providing continental breakfasts instead of the typical buffets. This hotel provided us with a pair of breakfast boxes. No two boxes were the same. Most had some sort of hot or cold cereal, a pastry, some cookies and random other things. The boxes weren’t really our idea of breakfast but they did contain some fun items. We had fun picking through them each morning and kept quite a few things for snacks later in the day.
Our first excursion was to visit Pico Creek Beach, which was just across the highway from our hotel. It was a long beach with sandy shores backed by large groups of rocks. We walked along the shore for as much as we could. We had to step carefully over the slippery rocks from time to time. The air was fresh and smelled just like the beach should. There were just a few other people there. Most were walking, some with their dogs, and just a few had fishing poles in the water. We walked for a little over a mile before traveling back up the coast to see our new found friends the Elephant Seals.
Monday, March 21, 2022
We intended to start our day back at the Elephant Seal Rookery but got sidetracked along the way. We saw Zebras(!) standing in the meadow below The Hearst Castle. By 1939 Hearst was having financial difficulties and, in an effort to save some money, decided to disband his zoo. Some of the animals were sold or donated to public zoos and some, like the zebras, were simply set free. We saw a small heard of about 15-20 animals and noted that there were several smaller ones that were likely recently born.
After our visit with the elephant seals we went into Cambria for a pepperoni pizza at JBJ Round Up Pizza n’ Grub. Afterwards we went for a stroll at the nearby Moonstone Beach. Moonstone, a state managed beach, had a nice boardwalk that extended all the way through the park. We walked for over a mile and saw a variety of wildlife including seagulls, brown pelicans, cormorants and salamanders. The way had also been landscaped with very pretty flowers and native shrubs. Calla Lillies and Pride of Madera seemed to be everywhere.
Tuesday, March 22, 2022
This morning we had reservations to tour the Piedras Blancas Light Station (Piedras Blancas translates as “white rocks” after the two large white rocks off shore). Being that it was just up the road from the elephant seal rookery and we were early we couldn’t help but stop to see the seals. They never disappointed.
Our instructions explicitly stated that we were not to meet at the lighthouse but that we were to meet at the building that used to be the Piedras Blancas Motel. Seriously??? At least they had given us a street address. We put the address into our GPS and found it without any issues. We joked, given that it was the off season, that we’d wind up getting a private tour so we were surprised when approximately 30 people showed up.
Our docent gave us a 30 minute talk about the history of lighthouses throughout the ancient world, their history in the United States and the history of this specific lighthouse. It was all very interesting but the real emphasis was on the fact that the area was an important wildlife preserve – not just the birds, seals and sea lions, but the flora as well. People from various Federal agencies come to the isthmus during various times of the year to study and count the migrations of numerous whale species, too.
Why does the lighthouse look like it’s top is missing? Because it is! In 1948 an earthquake damaged the top of the lighthouse causing it to be declared structurally unsound. The top was dismantled and the lens was put on permanent display in the town of Cambria.
After the talk we were left to wander about the nature trails. They were marked with informative signs. At one point we not only saw seals but sea lions basking high up on the rocks. As we stared out into the ocean one of the docents pointed out some whales spouting in the distance. She said that at this time of year the gray whales were migrating from the south to the north. We were told that the mothers with calves tended to stay closer to the shore to help protect their young from predators but we didn’t see any.
There were a number of buildings on the site, too. Some were basic barracks where visitors could stay. Another was a beautiful brick building that used to house a steam driven fog horn. The last building we saw was the lighthouse itself. We were only permitted to see the ground floor. The brick building was not reinforced. They were concerned for its stability especially in the case of earthquakes. They are raising funds to stabilize the building. The docent said they were seeking about $5,000,000 in total for the project.
Afterwards we headed back into Cambria for lunch. We had asked one of the docents at the lighthouse about the Zebra. She said that there were two herds totaling about 75 animals. The one herd, which we’d seen, hangs out below the castle. The other hangs out just past the Motel 6. As we passed the Motel 6 we kept our eyes peeled and sure enough we saw them. This was a much larger herd of about 40 animals. We watched them for a while and then continued on our way for lunch.
We chose Linn’s Restaurant for our lunch. It also sports a full bakery as a separate but related business. I had a grilled cheese on sourdough along with homemade tomato bisque. Deborah had a turkey sandwich with clam chowder. We couldn’t help but share of piece of banana cream pie for dessert. Everything was quite delicious.
Wednesday, March 23, 2022
After another walk on Moonstone beach we went into Cambria for lunch at the Cambria Cafe. We’d noticed it the other day when we were at Linn’s. It’s menu had all sorts of interesting, Mediterranean and Eastern dishes that we were really interested in trying. It also had one of the best ratings of any restaurant around – and it was reasonably priced.
We ordered some humus with pita bread. It was freshly made in house and loaded with garlic. Yum! We also had some falafel balls with tahini sauce and cheese borek (they were out of meat borek). We’d had borek many times in Eastern Europe. Basically it is meat or cheese wrapped in phyllo dough that has been baked in the oven. This was small triangles of dough that had been fried. We asked the owner about the difference and he said that this was the way it was done in Syria. It was different but also quite tasty.
Thursday, March 24, 2022
We’d been going to see the elephant seals just about every day. By the end of the week there was a noticeable difference in what we saw. The large males had left days ago. Now virtually all of the mothers had gone. Previously we’d hardly seen any animals in the water but now quite a few of the youngsters were venturing out into the shallow areas to practice swimming. In fact, we saw some immature males on the beach. We assumed that they were back early for molting season, which was to commence in full in a few weeks.