Last weekend we ventured out to explore. Friday night we went to happy hour in nearby Capitola. I had mahi mahi with delicious island rice (aka, coconut rice), and artichokes–neighboring Castroville is the artichoke capital of the world! AC had clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl. Then we walked the cute streets of Capitola Village, saw the iconic and colorful beachfront houses, and watched some surfers do their thing.
Saturday, we explored Pinnacles National Park. We actually had time for two hikes! Might not sound like much, but it was so nice to be able to take our time–most of our National Park visits have been quick stops en route to our next farm so it was nice to take this one slower.
We started with a 4.3-mile hike up Juniper Trail to High Peaks. This trail was challenging with about 1250 feet of elevation gain with, again, lots of switchbacks (story of our National Parks lives), but pretty views of the valley below. We also saw some condors flying around at the top.
We started with a 4.3-mile hike up Juniper Trail to High Peaks. This trail was challenging with about 1250 feet of elevation gain with, again, lots of switchbacks (story of our National Parks lives), but pretty views of the valley below. We also saw some condors flying around at the top.
We got back to the parking lot and refueled with ham and cheese sammies, carrots, and fruit snacks (don’t judge!). Then we hit the trails again, this time heading for a cave! Our legs were pretty tired from hike #1 so it was a good thing that the second hike was about half the distance and much less elevation gain. We saw several rock climbers scaling the cliff faces along the trail. When we reached the cave entrance, we donned our headlamps and headed in. It started out pretty easy, but got dark really quickly and we had to do a good bit of scrambling over rocks. It was fairly short, but still a nice little unique treat in the middle of that hike.
After the cave hike, our legs were kaput so we decided to head back to the farm.
We wrapped up the weekend with a Santa Cruz Sunday. Santa Cruz is a cute little city and the surfing culture is huge! After church, we stopped at Zachary’s for brunch then, because of all the carbs, it was nap time. As we headed to our nap spot, we drove down the popular West Cliffs Drive and stumbled upon a surfing competition. Unfortunately there was nowhere to park so we could get out and watch for a bit so we carried on.
We parked at our next stop, Natural Bridges State Park, hopped in the bag of the truck and took a quick power nap. Then we explored the park a bit. This park is a hotspot for monarch butterflies so we ventured down the Monarch Trail and gawked at the clusters of butterflies hanging on tree limbs and vines. On our way out, AC got an awesome shot of a monarch in the pollinator garden.
The next trail was a short walk to the beach to see the natural bridge–a rock formation with a hole in it. It was neat to look at, but we were more mesmerized by the waves crashing against the rocky shore.
Next stop: the Santa Cruz Boardwalk. This is, essentially, a permanent carnival, complete with games, junk food vendors, roller coasters, and all manner of stomach-dropping rides. We walked from one end of the Boardwalk to the other in order to get to the Wharf.
This area was much quieter and calmer. There were folks fishing off the pier and sailboats dotting the horizon. We took a seat on a bench and watched the sailboats and seals for a while. One of the boats brought some dolphins in with it! After enjoying the sea breeze, we meandered back down the wharf until we found a restaurant whose menu we liked, and ate dinner. We got a nice little after-dinner walk back to our truck and drove through a couple of cute streets before making our final stop of the day…for ice cream. What better way to end the day?!
Until next time,
Charli
I am really enjoying the pictures you are taking of your adventures.