"Pebble Beach is my favorite coastline in... " a Pebble Beach Travel Page by atufft

Among the world's most famous landscapes, the Lone Cyprus near Point Lobos creates a natural portrait for the tourist. Not to long ago, the tree was vandalized, and so fearing the tree might be cut down, it was fenced off and the rock on which is stands reinforced with mortar and more rock. Here I am taking a portrait with a friend visiting from Ghana. I also recommend stopping by Birdrock, among other places, but these 17 mile drive stops are basically for motorists. Don't step into the water, it's cold and dangerous, Don't pick the flowers or feed the animals, they are part of a fragile ecosystem, and don't fish, hunt, or leave trash behind. This landscape is pure sightseeing, with a few short walks along the beach and rocks.

This is a large gated community. Fortunately for me, I have a rich uncle who owns a home inside the gate, and so I never pay. It can help to know a person inside, as the guards have a list of residents, but it's ok to pay the toll as the drive is totally worth the expense. The drive winds through Pine forests, several species of which are only found here, along a ridge and down through meadows where deer and fox are easy to spot, and finally the drive will open up along the rocky coastline and white sand beach coves for which the area is named. I like to take a walk along the beach where a variety of bunch grasses and tiny native flowers grow among the sandy spaces. The waves crash on the rocks and create foam in the tide pools. The golf courses are legendary, of course, but the original attraction was natural beauty. My grandparents honeymooned here by horse carriage in 1916, and my parents did the same by motor car in the early 1950's.

As the drive winds south toward Carmel, the cyprus groves reach down to the shore among the rocks. The crooked Cyprus have lifespan limit, and so these trees are very old. They are also rare and not found anywhere else. The tall slender pine trees have numerous disease and insect problems, and are definetly limited in lifespan, but they are also unique to this ecosystem. As one winds past the seaside mansions, the price of which is typically in the tens of millions of dollars, landscape shots like this one are available at the turn outs. California law requires that all land below the high tide mark is public access, but don't trespass in an effort to find the shore.