Things to do in Big Sur
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Big Sur Bakery & Restaurant
This funkily decorated, warmly lit house has offerings that change through the day and season. Wood-fired pizzas and stellar burgers share the lineup with more refined - but just as satisfying - dishes like wild salmon with succotash. The bakery pours the best coffee in Big Sur and sells its own house granola. In the words of one local, 'their ham and cheese croissant is...mwa! Tasty shit.' Poke around the spirit garden next door.
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Partington Cove
From the western side of Hwy 1, a poorly marked steep dirt trail descends half a mile along Partington Creek to Partington Cove , a little visited but very beautiful section of Big Sur. On the 1-mile loop you cross a cool bridge and then walk through an even cooler tunnel.
During Prohibition it was a landing spot for rum-runners. The water in the cove is unbelievably aqua and within it grows incredible kelp forests. There�s no real beach access, but you can scamper on the rocks and look for tide pools as waves cuff ominously. The turnoff is inside a large hairpin turn 8 miles south of Nepenthe restaurant and 1.8 miles north of Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park.
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Big Sur Roadhouse
The Fosters opened this Roadhouse after working together at Sierra Mar, the Post Ranch Inn's posh eatery. Thankfully, they've chosen to share with us fresh, impeccable cuisine (like plantain tostones with tiger prawns) minus the haute attitude. Inside, the restaurant fairly glows from the corner fireplace and copper-top bar, not to mention the smiles from diners' faces. The front patio is more often than not covered in exuberant chalk drawings.
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Bixby Bridge
About 13 miles south of Carmel, the much photographed landmark Bixby Bridge, spanning Rainbow Canyon, is one of the world's highest single-span bridges at 714ft long and 260ft high. Completed in 1932, it was built by prisoners eager to lop time off their sentences. There's a photo op pull-off just north of the bridge. Don't be tricked into thinking that the similar-looking Rocky Creek Bridge, just north of Bixby, is the real deal.
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Pfeiffer Beach
Across the highway, detour onto the obscurely marked Sycamore Canyon Rd, which drops for two narrow, twisting miles to crescent-shaped Pfeiffer Beach, with its towering offshore sea arch and strong currents that make it too dangerous for swimming. Dig down into the sand - it's purple!
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Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park
Named after Big Sur's first European settlers who arrived in 1869, Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park is the largest state park in Big Sur. There is miles of pristine hiking through redwoods in its 964 acres, though the popular trail to reach long and lean Pfeiffer Falls is only a 1.4-mile roundtrip walk.
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McWay Falls
California's only coastal waterfall, the 80ft McWay Falls drops straight into the sea - or onto the beach, depending on the tide. Dare you to take fewer than a dozen photos. To reach the waterfall viewpoint, take the short Overlook Trail heading west and cross beneath Hwy 1.
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Esalen Institute
About 10 miles north of Lucia is the new-agey Esalen Institute, famous for its esoteric workshops and ocean-view hot-springs baths. With a reservation you too can frolic nekkid in the latter - but only from 1am to 3am ($20, credit cards only). It's surreal.
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Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park
Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park harbors California's only coastal waterfall, 80ft-high McWay Falls, which is reached via a quarter-mile stroll. Perched on a cliff are two walk-in campsites.
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Andrew Molera State Park
Visitors often overlook Andrew Molera State Park, but locals love this trail-laced pastiche of grassy meadows, waterfalls, ocean bluffs, rugged beaches and wildlife watching, including California condors.
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Molera Horseback Tours
A quarter-mile trail leads from the Andrew Molera State Park campground to a beautiful beach where the Big Sur River runs into the ocean. Molera Horseback Tours offers a variety of guided trail rides from around US$25.
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Point Sur Lightstation
Six miles before the famous Bixby Bridge, take a tour of 1889 Point Sur Lightstation. Meet your guide at the locked gate; arrive early as space is limited (no reservations).
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Nepenthe
Nepenthe, meaning 'island of no sorrow is very famous for its Ambrosia burger and has a beautiful ocean views at clifftop.
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Maiden Publick House
Maiden Publick House has an encyclopedic beer menu, decent pub grub and live-music jams.
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