Welcome to Paradise!
The unbelievable coastline of California…
I forget how spectacularly beautiful this part of our country is, with obscure places to pop in and see amazing beauty, like this:
Garrapata State Park – 19 Sign Posts Of Beauty!
Nestled on Highway 1, just 6.7 miles south of the art community of Carmel – Garrapata State Park hugs the coast and offers amazing views in all directions…with more than two miles of beach, and a number of hiking trails in all directions…
The state park is “scattered” along 19 separate areas – so obscurely “numbered” that you’ll never find them as you drive past…however, each one has a nice turnoff to park your car, and once you get a sense of why people are pulled over, you are on your way…
Alex found our turnoff, and the small trail that took us to an incredibly hidden find: a Calla Lily Valley!
Welcome To California’s Hidden Calla Lily Valley!
Yes, after a short walk, you drop down to the ocean – and inland there is a small valley full of wild Calla Lilies!
Here is video that shows them off:
As you can see, some of them were GIANT – and there were hundreds surrounding the small creek that came down from the hills and emptied into the pacific ocean…
As you can see, I was out standing in my field…it really is a beautiful, serene getaway, and after you see the flowers, you walk back to the beach, where you see this view – check out the video:
Once you are on the beach, you can see the ocean, sand, rocks, and of course, some enterprising visitors left an igloo made of driftwood as well:
This hidden valley of Calla Lilies is just a half hour south of Monterey, and the entire drive is spectacular…one reason the flowers are in such full bloom is that California has record rainfall this year – much needed with a decade of drought conditions, and the flowers really took off –
Here is a look at how much rain fell in the state, and how important it is to the future:
Alex and I also had an amazing trip down the Oregon coast – another drive of spectacular beauty:
Here are some highlights of that trip, including a stop at the Tillamook cheese factory!
Let me know if you’ve seen the Calla Lily valley that sits at the edge of the Pacific Ocean!
Categories: Books / Media, Exotic Travel, Memoirs, Travel, Travel Adventures, Travel Memoir, Uncategorized
johnrieber 
Wow, John, these photographs are incredible. A really beautiful place.
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And literally along the side of the road!
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Gorgeous! I’d love to see those beautiful flowers and wild coastline!. It’s been years since I’ve been to that stretch of the California. I’m surprised you were able to get there!
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Oops. Hit send too soon. I meant to ask about a big mudslide near there that I thought blocked the highway. But obviously you got there! ☺
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Yes the road is closed about 15 miles south – a large part of highway one is inaccessible and no reopen date yet
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It is closed fifteen miles south of Monterey
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Amazing to see those flowers growing wild like that, John. What a great place indeed.
(Surprised to see you both wrapped up though. I thought it was hot in California.)
Best wishes, Pete.
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