USA Guide
California
The Big Sur Coast
The ninety wild and undeveloped miles of rocky cliffs along the Big Sur Coast form a sublime landscape where redwood groves line river canyons in the shadow of the Santa Lucia Mountains. Running through this striking terrain is the exhilarating route of Hwy-1, carved out of bedrock cliffs 500ft above the ocean, though public transport is limited to the Monterey-Salinas Transit (MST) bus ( 
831/899-2555, 
www.mst.org ), which runs between Monterey to Nepenthe four times daily during the summer (Rte-22; $4 each way). Summer weekends are sunny, and winters turbulent, but the southern coastline of Big Sur is comparatively gentle, with sandy beaches hiding below crumbling ochre cliffs.
Heading north on Hwy-1, the acreage on the east side of the highway by Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park (daily dawn– dusk; 831/667-2315) offers some of the best day-hikes in the Big Sur area, including a short walk along the cliffs to an overlook of McWay Falls, which crash onto a beach below. A less-traveled path leads down from Hwy-1 two miles north of the 80ft waterfall through a 200-foot-long tunnel to the remains of a small wharf at Partington Cove, one of the few places in Big Sur where you can get to the sea. Once you get there, check out the fascinating, 1700-acre underwater preserve where scuba drivers can explore the natural topography and marine life. As with other Big Sur parks, Pfeiffer Burns provides campgrounds for $20–30 per night (reserve at 831/667-2315, www.reserveamerica.com ), while private operations like nearby Ventana Campground ($35; 831/667-2712, www.ventanawildernesscampground.com ) offer campgrounds with bath houses equipped with hot water and electricity. Seven miles north of Pfeiffer Burns, lovely old 
Deetjen's Big Sur Inn ( 831/667-2377; www.deetjens.com ; Price: $76-100) has log cabins with rooms hand-crafted from thick redwood planks and in-room fireplaces, plus fine breakfasts and dinners on site.
Further north at Nepenthe, the rooftop Nepenthe restaurant, just off Hwy-1 ( 831/667-2345), offers pricey steaks and seafood, though you can find similarly striking views at Café Kevah ( 831/667-2344), which serves more affordable organic breakfasts and lunches on its terrace. Two miles north along Hwy-1, unmarked Sycamore Canyon Road leads a mile west to Big Sur's best strip of coast, Pfeiffer Beach (daily dawn– dusk; $5 per car; 831/667-2315), a white sandy stretch dominated by a large rock whose colour varies from brown to red to orange in the changing light.