We decided to take a day to drive down to Big Sur. The scenery on the way was breathtaking!  Henry Miller, an American writer who has a library named after him in Big Sur, said that this place was “the face of the earth as the Creator intended it to look.”

The Bixby Creek Bridge, also known as Bixby Bridge, is one of the most photgraphed bridges in California “due to its aesthetic design, graceful architecture and magnificent setting” (Joe Lourenco, California’s Famous Views on Flicker).

Wildflowers filled the hillsides and a military outpost was seen along the drive.

Having been warned by the tourist information bureau in Monterey not to travel past the town of Big Sur (because of the road closure about forty miles south) we stopped just a little past the entrance to the Julia Pfeiffer State Park where we could see the winding road continue along the sheer cliffs (and no guardrails). We now understand why travel brochures recommend taking the drive north instead of south!