Point Lobos State Natural Reserve

People have valued this headland for a very long time. The Ohlone gathered abalone and other shellfish along these shores for thousands of years, and their middens still lie in the ground here. In the nineteenth century the point took on a rougher life: a whaling company operated out of the little cove by the entrance from the 1860s to the 1870s, and the weathered whaler's cabin from the 1850s still stands as one of the oldest buildings on the Monterey coast, now a small museum.

By the early twentieth century the headland's beauty had made it a candidate for a resort subdivision, and it easily could have become another stretch of coastal real estate. Instead, conservationists intervened, and in 1933 the California state parks system acquired the core of the land, adding to it steadily through later gifts and purchases. Managed as a reserve rather than an ordinary park, it has been protected ever since as one of the finest and least altered pieces of the California coast.

The signature sight at Point Lobos is the Monterey cypress. These twisted, salt-pruned trees survive naturally in only two small groves on the planet, and one of them is here, reached on the short Cypress Grove Trail that loops out along the cliff edge through a forest that looks sculpted by the wind. In the fog they turn ghostly and dramatic; in clear light their orange, algae-tinted bark glows against the blue water.

Below the trees the shoreline breaks into coves that could pass for the tropics. China Cove and Gibson Beach show off water in impossible shades of green and blue, while Whalers and Bluefish coves shelter kelp forests dived by wetsuited visitors on the reserve's popular scuba days. Everywhere there is wildlife: sea otters cracking shells on their chests in the kelp, harbor seals hauled out on the rocks, barking sea lions, cormorants and pelicans, and, during the winter and spring migrations, gray whales passing offshore.

Part of what makes Point Lobos so beloved is how easy it is to enjoy. A network of mostly gentle, well-marked trails threads the whole headland, and the best of the scenery comes within short, level walks rather than hard hikes. The Cypress Grove and North Shore trails serve up dramatic cliff-and-cypress views, the Sea Lion Point Trail leads to a rocky lookout where the sea lions haul out and bark, and the Bird Island Trail overlooks China Cove and a rookery loud with nesting seabirds.

You can string the trails into a longer loop of a few miles or simply amble to one or two highlights, so the reserve suits both serious walkers and families with young children. Interpretive signs and volunteer docents help explain what you are seeing, from the geology of the folded rock to the habits of the otters. However far you go, the rhythm here is the same: walk a little, stop often, and watch the meeting of land and sea.

Point Lobos lies right on Highway 1 about three miles south of Carmel-by-the-Sea, at the northern doorstep of Big Sur, so it slots naturally into any drive down the coast. The reserve opens in the morning and closes in the early evening, with a per-vehicle day-use fee at the gate; on crowded days the interior parking fills early, and many people simply park along Highway 1 and walk in, which is free.

Come prepared for changeable coastal weather, since sun, wind, and fog can trade places within an hour, and bring water because services inside are limited. Plan on at least a couple of hours to do the highlights justice, and slow down when you get there. Point Lobos rewards patience: linger by a cove and an otter surfaces, wait on a bluff and the fog lifts to reveal the cypress, and the reason people call this the crown jewel of California quietly makes itself clear.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.