In November, Travelzoo offered lodging in Carmel, CA, for $69 a night, which included breakfast! Needless to say, we booked our first 2012 get away for January, and stayed for two nights at the Fireplace Inn in Carmel.
Although we had a stormy weekend, when we left on Tuesday on the 2 hour drive to Carmel, the weather was gorgeous. We "tiki toured" our way down the coast, with stops in Davenport and Capitola, where we enjoyed a hand-made dish of ice cream, while watching the ocean.
We continued on, and toured through Monterey and Pacific Grove, before going into Carmel. We got checked in to our room just after 4:00. After getting settled in, we walked through Carmel to the white sand beach. We've been to Carmel and that beach many times, but this was the first time that we walked the length of it (tide was out). We reached the south end of the beach, where there were steps to the street and we went up to take a walk along the street and see some of the houses there with amazing ocean views!!
Some of the homes there are old originals, some are new or remodeled, but ALL are very expensive! We found a home on a lot facing the ocean with a price tag of $7.9 million dollars! Yikes!! We fantasized about winning the lottery for awhile, then watched the spectacular sunset as it grew in intensity and color.
Back in the room, we had a glass of wine before heading off to dinner, where we shared a plate of calamari and each had a Mediterranean salad - must be getting ready for Greece!
Wednesday morning dawned bright and sunny. We had breakfast, then went to Monterey to visit the gym there (yes, we're still at the fanatical stage). After our work out, we drove to Lover's Point in Pacific Grove and had a light picnic. Then we took a marvelous walk all along the coast. The sky was blue and the ocean was that turquoise color that you see in Hawaii. It was pretty warm, too, so we left our jackets in the car. It was almost 5:00 when we finally headed back to our room.
Dinner on Wednesday night was at Basil - our favorite restaurant in Carmel. We discovered it a couple of years ago when John was visiting. We took Vivian there when she visited last year. It's a "must do" for us when we are in Carmel.
After dinner and a brief stroll around, we went back to the room where we "skyped" with Bryan and Peter, firming up details for Lee's trip to NZ.
Thursday morning was again spectacular and we were wishing that we had thrown caution to the wind and booked 3 nights! We will next time. After breakfast we checked out and headed south to Point Lobos, one of our favorite places on the planet. The ocean was roiling and boiling and the waves were just amazing! They were rolling in from way out to sea, and when the hit the rocks, the waves shot up 30 or 40 feet.
We walked several trails around Point Lobos, all of them with amazing views. Then we had lunch at Whaler's Cove (John will remember that), where it was protected and sunny and gorgeous. There were lots of harbor seals and sea otters in the cove, and it was great to watch them as they dove and then resurfaced to float on their backs while they dined.
By 3:00 the sun had gone behind the mountain and it was beginning to cool, so we headed home. The drive up the coast is always beautiful and enjoyable. However, we lost the sun and encountered heavy, wet, drippy fog north of Santa Cruz, which continued all the way home.
What a wonderful first get away for 2012! I'm sure that all of the get aways that follow will be just as amazing! Life is good!!
Looking north at Carmel beach
Lee, just at sunset
On it's way down - the clouds in the sky made the colors really spectacular
Even the wet sand in the foreground was red!
Room 22 at the Fireplace Inn.
All of the units have these dutch doors. There was a cute patio right outside our door.
Walking the coastal trail in Pacific Grove - there were HUGE red hot pokers all along there
Some of the scenery along the beach walk
A butterfly sculpture at the park at Lover's Point - Pacific Grove is one of the places that the Monarch butterflies come to winter, and the trees are just hanging with thousands of them
This is a replica of the Swan Boats that were popular in the area in the early 1900's
We were amazed to see all of the deer munching away in the local cemetery!
Point Lobos wave action!!
The ocean was really putting on a show!
Along the Cypress Grove trail - yes, it was a bit windy!
Lee and a very busy ocean!
A walkway along the bluffs
The stone staircase
Rocks, waves and "tree bones"
Another beautiful spot
As you can see, it was a glorious day! And, to make it even better, Lee even found a piece of sea glass AND a quarter on one of the beaches!
We will definitely be visiting Carmel again! Come and go with us!
