17 Mile drive in Scenic Monterey Peninsula/ Visit California

 

Last year , around March we paid a visit to my sister’s family who are based in Bay Area, California. This was my first visit to this beautiful state  ( though been to LA and Las Vegas in west coast before) and became  enamoured of its beauty and aura. Having covered all the known touristy places in California in the first few days, we decided to go for two-day trip to the neighbourhood towns Carmel and Solvang via taking the scenic 17 mile drive .

What is 17 mile drive?

It’s a 17 mile long scenic road  through Pebble Beach and Pacific Grove on the Monterey Peninsula in California. The road runs along the beautiful Pacific coastline, offering picturesque views as one travels the winding roads which also nestle golf courses, luxury mansions and other scenic attractions .  Throughout the entire drive one can stop at various designated and marked points to soak in the beautiful nature , the highlight being the blue waters passionately kissing the rocky California shoreline.

We entered the DRIVE  at Monterey , through  the north end of the pacific grove ( there are total 5 gates to access 17 mile drive) . After paying the entrance fee of 10.25 dollars and collecting the map at the gate , we were all set to explore the drive on a balmy March day. The entire drive can be explored at a leisure pace, wherein we stopped at many scenic points as mentioned in the map.

Points to explore:

Bird Rock: Here you can see  ( with binoculars) hundred of birds roosting at a distant rock. And other than birds, sea lions, seals, gulls and pelicans ; all hang out at this place. One can also time the visit to this point at sunset , which makes the rugged coastline looks more beautiful.

Pic courtsey: Wikimedia Commons.

Lone Cypress on Pebble beach: It is one of the most Instagram worthy spot as this lone standing tree overlooking the pacific ocean, makes a beautiful backdrop. It is said the tree has withstood storms and winds for more than 200 years.

Seal rock: With white sand beach, this makes a great picnic point too. A lovely spot to stretch your legs and soak in the spectacular scenes which the place has to offer.

Ghost tree: Evoking image of the ghost, Ghost tree is a twisted, white bleached Cypress tree standing next to a sign marker along the road at  Pescadero Point

Point Joe: This is another interesting point to view the awe-inspiring Pacific ocean. As the legend goes, A Chinese man named Joe used to live here, making a living by selling trinkets to the visitors. But No one knows if Point Joe was named after Joe, or if Joe was named after the point.

 

I would also recommend the visit to Pebble beach visitor center where you can you can stop to grab a quick snack or shop for a souvenir.

Three more lovely pictures from the trip:

Other than the above mentioned , you can park the car at various designated points to look at the surrounding vistas;  with sea sometimes calm at a few places, while crashing violently against the rocks at other places.

This blog post is part of SpeakEasy Blogging Challenge by Dipika and Ruchi.’

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8 thoughts on “17 Mile drive in Scenic Monterey Peninsula/ Visit California”

  1. Mayuri at 12:11 pm

    That must have been such an amazing experience! Your pics take us with you on that beautiful journey. Thanks for sharing this amazing experience with us.

  2. Neha at 3:17 pm

    The 17-mile drive does look scenic & mesmerizing. I would love to visit this beautiful place someday, will be adding it to my travel bucket list for sure. The pictures look lovely, thanks for sharing your experience.

  3. Nitisha at 6:07 pm

    Wow! That indeed was a beautiful trip, Milan. The pictures are absolutely mesmerizing. I guess I’m adding this to my checklist.

  4. Archana at 11:02 pm

    What a lovely virtual trip of a serene beauty of nature of California. The most amazing place that attracted the most to me is ‘Bird Rock’ , I would definitely love to visit the place when the travel become safe corona free like before.

  5. Debidutta at 1:02 pm

    Wow!! That was a treat to the eyes. Lovely picturesque trip and amazing captures. Lived the “Bird Rock” site. Would try visiting all these places when I next visit my sister .

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