California's Ocean front views....

I was posting pictures of my visit to California's water front areas, the Point Lobos National Park which presents some of the most stunning view of the ocean. While at Point Lobos we also took time off to hike on the Cypress Groove Trail which traverses the cliffs along the ocean. It is a great feeling to watch the waves thunder and collide with the rocky cliffs. The sound of water hitting the rocks and receding back appears like the drum beats of a rock concert. Along the trail there are places where the ocean is completely hidden behind a curtain of trees and suddenly comes into view between rock formations or between two cliffs. There is abundance of wildlife such as deer, seagulls and other herbivores. At least during the day we didn't see any carnivores like the Cayote or Hyena or Mountain Lion. I guess hikers are safe in this region because the deer and rabbits wouldn't harm us.

Ocean views along the Cypress Groove Trail at Point Lobos

Stunning Scenery....

Waves crashing into the rocks along the coast

The surf comes in....

Hiking in Point Lobos (cont'd....)

Whalers cove is more like a car park and place for people to have lunch sitting along the sea. Wanting to get out of the civilisation and cars we headed up the steep flight of stairs towards the forest on a well marked trail. Actually the hiking trails are fenced with polymer ropes to prevent hikers from moving out of the path into the forest. It felt constricted and like traffic rules on the road, but well in America everything is enforced and one better follow rules, even if it is in the middle of the forest.

We climbed up the steep slopes and were rewarded by the fantastic vista of the white foamy ocean. As we walked through the thick forest which kept the afternoon sun away, we could hear the sound of the surf as it ruthlessly ran into the rocks far below. Noticing the beautiful scenery and keeping a watchful eye out to sight any wildlife we walked along the trail.


As we rounded a bend in the trail we came face to face with couple of a deer grazing on the grass. Hearing us approach they looked up and gave a cursory glance and went back to their grazing. I was wonderstruck at their familiarity with human beings. Or is that they know that we wouldn't go off the trail in their pursuit. I don't know. It is peaceful, quiet and beautiful. No wonder people from California find it difficult to live anywhere else in the US.

I would compare Bangalore with California, we don't have two things that California has. The roaring sea and the excellent road network, apart from these two features, Bangalore has great weather and wonderful trekking and outdoor places much akin to California.

Point Lobos State Reserve

Having taken in Santa Cruz, we drove further down on the scenic road towards Point Lobos State Reserve. Historically famous for its Whaling connection, Point Lobos is a wonderful hilly tract with forests, rock formations, coves and beaches. This is one place where the sea seems to blend with the land almost seamlessly. Parking fees inside the park are quite expensive $6 (around Rs.250) so we decided to park beside the road walk. Anyway once inside the park we were going to walk or rather hike up the hills along the sea.

We first headed towards Whalers Cove, one of the landmarks in the park. This is a horse-shoe shaped natural cove formed by erosion of rocks due to beating waves. The rock formations here are ruggedly beautiful and stark, but once again the water looks quite dirty and unappealing. A small museum known as Whalers Cabin displays the various whaling implements used by whale hunters used to kill the giant aquatic mammals. The methods and procedures used by ancient whalers to cut sheets of blubber and extract oil is detailed in graphic and nauseating detail in the museum. Most of the whalers were of Chinese and Japanese origin and they extracted oil for fuel and burning lamps. Other animals such as sea otters and sea lions were killed for fur and skin.
I am glad all that has been banned and such things don't happen any more.

This is me at the Whalers cove. I posted this on my blog to remind all my friends who seem to have forgotten me