Since it has been nonstop & epically hot lately we went up to Cambria hoping to cool off by the ocean for my birthday. Naturally, it was super sunny and quite warm up there too! It was a charming little getaway with stops in San Luis Obispo for tapas at Luna Red, wine tasting and sightseeing in Harmony and then a giant surf & turf feast on Moonstone Beach in Cambria.
Our go-to beach this summer has been all Loon Point, all the time! Every day is a different scene from the same exact spot on the coast. We pack up all of the umbrellas we can find, a cooler full of rosés, sauv blancs or chards, the owl kite and our GoPros and the rest of the magic delivers itself!
Part 2 of Linda’s birthday extravaganza was an amazing campout at Orella Ranch, just north of Santa Barbara on the Gaviota coast. The ranch was established in 1866 and has been in the same family ever since, with amazing views up and down the coast, oak trees dating back hundreds of centuries and sustainably built cob structures.
Perfectly situated on a hilltop overlooking the finest vineyards in Central California is The Casitas of Arroyo Grande, a four casitas bed and breakfast with a pool and luxuriously appointed amenities. We were searching for a special place to unwind and spend the night celebrating our friend Linda’s 50th birthday and after laying out all of our options – The Casitas won uncontested!
Since we had so much fun at Maluaka with the turtles, we planned our last day there on another turtle mission. Apparently the turtles like to get up and at em pretty early, so we matched them and found one guy sleeping in some coral! He came up for air a few times and let us get a couple pix with him. More and more magical every time!
We didn’t want to drive the whole road to Hana since I’ve done it before and Mik wasn’t up for it, so we just went part way and did a little hike, stopped in at Mama’s Fish House and then did some touristy stuff in Paia…
Thanks to the time difference it was really easy to get up and out super early and beat a lot of the crowds. We must have been there in a little bit of the off season, because there weren’t many people around anyway! Our first morning adventure was back to Maluaka Beach to search for turtles. We snorkeled around for a little while when all of a sudden a giant turtle just swam up and started swimming beside us! So unreal.
Getting the lay of the land by starting out local – shopping, going south to La Perouse Bay, snorkeling at Maluaka Beach and homemade dinner at our condo.
Our second trip up to Big Sur to spend Christmas at Ripplewood cabin resort… We had lunch at Nepenthe, hiked out to the ocean at Andrew Molera State Park, ate a divine Christmas dinner at Deetjen’s and then built a cozy fire to drink the ever-amazing Pip Pinot Noir while we watched movies.
