Coast of Cali

Tuesday morning, we woke up, rented bicycles, and took a luxurious ride along the coast right outside our campground. 2 hours and 2 sore butts later, we headed back to the campground to research the Winchester Mystery House which is in San Jose, only an hour away. We decided to go for it and take the tour, and witnessed some of the strangest structural designs (or lack thereof), and most confusing layout of Sarah Winchester's home and final resting place.

Next, we headed back south toward the Big Sur, where we had reservations for a 1am night bathing in the natural hot springs at Esalen Institute. Along the way, we encountered narrow, winding, mountain-side roads that had us both on the edge of our seats, despite the amazing views. As it got later and darker outside, thick fog began rolling in and completely obscured everything beyond a 20-foot visibility range, making the drive not only daunting, but dangerous and creepy as well. We stopped at a roadside seafood restaurant and marina in Monterey Bay with hopes that the fog might subside while we ate. Upon exiting our vehicle, we heard some rather obnoxious sounds that resembled a mix between a fog horn, an elephant, and a very rude and flatulent boy... On further investigation, we discovered there was a small army of elephant seals lounging on the pier below the restaurant. Who would've known?

We continued on, in the fog, to the Esalen Institute, and encountered even more winding, narrow, cliff-edge roads that seemed even more frightening in the dark and fog, but thanks to Heather's expert driving skills we made it there in 1 piece and 2 hours early... So we napped in the jeep until the guide came to get our group to walk down to the hot springs. Although the stonework was gorgeous and many efforts (and expenses) had been made to make this experience as comfortable as possible on the cold, windy coast, we soon realized that there were almost no efforts made to create any semblance of privacy in the facility. We also quickly realized that the majority of other bathers had taken the "clothing optional" policy very seriously...

Despite a few awkward moments, we climbed into the hot tub (in our bathing suits), and relaxation followed naturally. Unfortunately, we had forgotten that the high sulfur levels in the water would tarnish our silver jewelry, but no damage was done that couldn't be fixed by a little jewelry cleaner/polish... Once our 2 hours were up, we hiked back up the side of the mountain to the jeep and drove the 2 hours back to our campsite, to arrive at 5:30am.

This morning, we awoke at 11 (1 hour before checkout), packed up, showered away the remnants of our sulfur bath, and enjoyed lunch and fresh salad from the campground garden. Next stop: San Francisco and the Great Redwood Forest!