The Pinnacles and Monterey Peninsula Getaway

 


 OVERVIEW OF GETAWAY:

 Initially we set out to plan a getaway to the Pinnacles National Monument southeast of Hollister.  However there are no acceptable housing accommodations anywhere close to the Pinnacles.  So we are now combining a getaway to the Monterey Peninsula with a day trip to the Pinnacles for the featured hike.  Given the length of the drive to Monterey (approximately 220 miles), we are planning a 4 day / 3 night trip to make it worth our while.

 DATES:   March 29, 30, 31, returning on April 1st.

This getaway is confirmed for March 29, 30 and 31st.  This is the week before Easter.  We would drive down on Monday and arrive home on Thursday.  These dates will balance the cool Monterey Peninsula temps with the warmer Pinnacles temps and also optimize wildflowers in the Pinnacles    

PRELIMINARY ITINERARY:

             DAY 1 (Arrival Day)

a)     8:00 AM - Drive to Pacific Grove.  Arrive no later than 1:30 PM.

b)     2:30 PM – Hike the Asilomar State Beach trail along the ocean and Sunset Drive from the Point Pinos Lighthouse to Point Joe (approximately 5. 5 miles – easy and extremely scenic).   Could be reduced to 3.5 miles if we don’t go out and back to Point Joe.

c)     6:30 PM – Cocktail hour, followed by a pot luck dinner at the cottages where we will stay on Asilomar Ave

 

DAY 2 (Featured day trip / hike to the Pinnacles)

a)     8:00 AM – Drive to the Pinnacles.  Trip is approximately 75 miles and will take about 2 hours.

b)     10:15 AM – Hike the High Peaks trail of the Pinnacles.  Approximately 6.5 miles – moderately strenuous with approximately 1200 elevation gain.  Outstanding scenery, including a unique trek through a cave (unless it is closed during the mating season of the bats).  This is a unique hiking experience.

c)     6:30 PM – Dinner at the Dona Esther Mexican Restaurant in the historic town of San Juan Baptista on our route back to Pacific Grove.  We may have time to walk the grounds of the Mission San Juan Baptista, which is built on the faultline of the San Andreas Fault.

 

DAY 3 (Point Lobos)

a)     9:00 AM – Drive to Point Lobos State Reserve.  Trip is approximately 12 miles and will take about 25 minutes.

b)     9:45 AM – Hike the perimeter trails of Point Lobos.  Trek is approximately 6 miles and will take about 3.5 hours.  Easy and very very scenic with its wind swept trees and interesting coast line.  Includes the Whalers Museum, sea lion point and bird island.  Lunch will be a bag lunch on the ocean.  (Dave Wood said it best when asked if he’d hiked Point Lobos before:  “I’ve hiked it a dozen times and just can’t wait for number 13”.)

c)     2:30 PM – Arrive back to the cottages.  

d)     Free afternoon to relax or shop around Monterey, Carmel, Cannery Row, the Monterey Fishing Pier or Pacific Grove.

e)     Dinner can be on your own or we can select one of many fine restaurants and go as a group (optional)

 

DAY 4  (Departure Day)

a)     8:30 AM -  Target hike is in the Garrapara State Park  (The trail is beiing prehiked the weekend of Feb 26th.)  Plan is for a relatively short hike to allow us to return to Pacific Grove and checkout by 1:00 PM for our return to Lincoln.  Stay tuned.  

b)     1:00 PM – Check out and head for Lincoln.

 

 


Dennis & Margaret Ratay