Point Lobos is a State Natural Reserve in California that offers an intricate trail system loaded with coastal views and wildlife. If you heard of Big Sur, one of the most popular coastal hiking attractions in California, this is just as good in my eyes! Or even better.
When you enter this park, the trail map looks a little intimidating at first. But the trails are well marked and the trails aren’t that long in millage, plus there isn’t much elevation gain. If you are healthy and in good shape, you can hike this entire park in one day.
The tail map can also be reached by this link here! Trail Map
This park is also accessible to people with disabilities. You can see a lot of this park by wheelchair which is awesome!
If you pay the fee to get into this park, which is ten dollars per vehicle, there are parking lots all over this park if you don’t want to walk a lot of the trails.
If you do want to hike a lot of the trails and want to save some money, park on the side of the road, right on Highway 1, right outside of the park. It is a short walk in the park and the park isn’t that big. You can see the whole park just by day-hiking.
Weather:
Depending on what season you attend, expect different weather. Temperatures average 57-65 degrees year round so the temperature is pretty stable.
Summer: fog in am, usually clears by afternoon. This is when I went and sure enough, that’s exactly what it did.
Spring: cool and sunny.
Fall: sunny mornings and warm afternoons. Cools off at night.
Winter: mild winters and occasional showers.
Attending this park in the morning can be great because you tend to beat the crowds, but being on the coast in the summer, many morning can be filled with fog. But don’t worry because if you plan on spending the day there, chances are the fog will uplift around 11 am and then you will be encompassed with clear blue skies. Most of the time, not all the time! Don’t yell at me if the fog doesn’t dissipate for you.
There’s a crab in the picture. He tends to blend in.
It is not uncommon to find starfish here!
Anyway, if you are looking for wildlife and wanting good views of the coast without a lot of people in your pictures, the mornings are crucial. There are so many opportunities to go to the “tide pools” and look for starfish, crab, fish, plants, hermit crabs, etc. And it’s a lot easier to do so when you don’t have a bunch of people trying to do the same thing. But going in the afternoons are good too. Then you will most likely have clear blue skies, it will be warm and you can still get a lot of great shots!
Harbor Seals!!!
They even have their pups on these beaches.
There are also opportunities to see whales, dolphins, sea lions, harbor seals, elephant seals, sea otters, and other marine wildlife lurking near-by. Many divers come here because there is such a high demand of sea life. You can dive with the park. There are tours offered.
If you want to check out their tours, you can go to this link: Tours
Even when you are hiking inland and are not on the coast, you get to experience the different types of trees. I enjoyed walking through this. I was on the Lace Lichen Trail for this picture.
And this one too!
Bird Island
A good spot to view the birds!
Well, that’s Point Lobos in a nut shell. It is a pretty magnificent place! And a great place to go if you want a romantic evening! There are benches all over this park to enjoy the sunset and the views whether it is with yourself, or your loved ones 🙂
Here is a link that shows you exactly where this park is. Map
I hope you enjoyed and thank you for reading.
Sincerely,
Shelly/Livingonthedirt
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