Hiking

San Simeon “The Point” Hike

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San Simeon “The Point” Hike

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A local to Cambria and San Simeon told me about this hike in San Simeon called “The Point.”  She said it’s at the State beach and takes you through partly private Hearst land to the farthest edge on the central coast.  She said that at the end of the hike that there is a local store where Hearst winery offers wine tasting and good food like burgers from Hearst land beef.

Based on her description, I couldn’t wait to make time to get to this hike.  Four of us headed on this with water and cameras in hand.  It was a beautiful Spring day.

It starts out at the San Simeon State Beach.  We parked at the State Beach parking for free.  No staff at the pay booth that day but State fees apply.  You can always park up the road by the store for free and walk down.  From the beach, if you look to the grove of Eucalyptus trees, you can see a foot-path going up to the bluff.  Follow the path, it goes along the bluff as it climbs  higher.  As you finish the bluff walk over the beach, there is a fence and a spot where you can go through the fence.  Following the foot path then takes you through a variety of tree  I did this hike in April 2013 so there were wild flowers and high grass among the tree groves.  At certain points on the hike, there is this sound that at first I thought was a bird.  It turned out to be the sound of the wind as the tree trunks swayed with the breeze.  Again, very cool!

As you make your way through the trees, you end up at the tip of the  point.  This would be a great picnic spot but as usual I didn’t have much with me.  I did have water this time around.  From The Point, you get great views of Hearst Castle across the Bay, the green hills of Cambria and San Simeon, coves and bluffs.  You can see arches below with waves crashing all around them.  Lots of birds and sea life.  It’s just spectacular!

I don’t know the length of this hike officially but I would guess it’s about 4 miles round trip.  Not a long one but it takes a long time because there is so much to see and photograph.  Be sure to have your cameras with you.

After the hike, we headed to the Sebastian Store and Hearst Winery.  I had a great Salad with the burger on top.  Everyone  else had the burgers and said they were the best they’ve had.  It was a great day!

Be sure to check out the photos and leave me comments if you ever do make this hike.

I have an audio clip of the trees sounding like a wild bird that I hope to add soon.

Harmony Headlands State Park

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Many times when you hear about hikers being stranded or injured, it’s likely they did something wrong.  Well this beautiful hike could have easily turned bad for us because we took a lot of risks.  It’s a 4.5 mile easy to moderate hike but we went unprepared.  It was a spur of the moment decision at 4 PM to go check it out and then once we parked we decided to go in.  No water, no hiking shoes, no plan, no communication with anyone, no cell signal, no trail map…I could just keep going.  We were really just supposed to have scoped it out but it was so beautiful that we just kept going.  I definitely recommend this place and I will be going back to spend more time.

On our hike we encountered a lot of folks heading back.  How much longer to the water I would ask, just 20 minutes they would say.  This happened a few times and I know they were all just saying 20 minutes when in reality it was a lot longer than that.

Well worth it though.  Great hike! Lots of opportunities for photography and the views are just amazing especially when you get to the ocean.  Can’t wait to introduce it to our friends that visit us up here.

Temescal Canyon Loop Hike

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January 1, 2011 – We (Jackie, Sandi and Edna) met friends Bernadette and David in Los Angeles to hike the Temescal Canyon loop.  We discovered just how popular of a hiking spot this is.  The trail was very busy with hikers making the loop from both directions.  It was a clear and cool New Year’s day and I think others had the same idea we did.  Once we reached the top of the loop, we had 360 degree views of Los Angeles.  We could see Catalina at a distance in the Pacific, Downtown LA, and the snow-capped mountains in the distance.  On the way to the top of the canyon, we could hear a creek running below in the heavily wooded canyon and as you follow the trail up, we got to the waterfall that was feeding the creek. 

Trailhead: We parked in the paid parking lot instead of the Presbyterian conference center (free) and walked past the ranger station to the trailhead.  You can make the loop clockwise or counter-clockwise.  We hiked it counter-clockwise which is slightly easier (it sure didn’t feel easier).   The hike had us climbing almost 1,000 feet and covered a little over 4 miles.  

We managed to finish just before sunset and we were all hungry.  So we drove about 10 miles up PCH to Malibu.  We ate at the Malibu Seafood Market where you can get good seafood for a great price and take home seafood items to cook at a later.  Not only did we get some great fresh seafood but we got a beautiful sunset with spectacular colors. 

It was a great way to spend New Year’s day –  a hike with a creek and waterfall, great views of the Pacific/Catalina and Downtown Los Angeles – capped with a spectacular sunset and a delicious dinner but best of all it was the time we spent with our wonderful friends.