A dog-friendly road trip on the Pacific Coast Highway
Things to see and do between Santa Barbara and Monterey
The Pacific Coast Highway is one of the most well known and iconic roads in the US.
The highway predominantly follows the Californian Coast and offers a variety of spectacular views and sights. It should be on your 'must do' list as there is also so much to see and do along the way with your dog.
This summary includes the key sites we visited driving North between Santa Barbara and Monterey - but I am sure there are many others, so please leave a comment if you know of any good spots we missed.
THINGS TO SEE AND DO
Elephant Seals Rockery
Neither us, nor Beatle had ever seen one of these giants before - so it was quite the treat to be able to pull over and spend a bit of time watching them from the safety of the viewing area. They are noisy, smelly giant blobs - but we totally loved it!
As you approach the Rockery from the main road, there is plenty of signage so you have a lot of time to prepare to turn in, including a dedicated turning lane into a large parking area which made it a really easy stop.
Dogs are allowed to walk with you on leash to the viewing areas - and obviously for everyone's safety they must be leashed and under control. When you see the size / strength of the Elephant Seals you understand the reason why this important regulation is in place! You’ll easily spend a bit of time here watching them and as a bonus, it’s also free.
For more info about the Rockery and their pet policy click here
Noisy and smelly - so Beatle loved visiting the Rockery
Los Padres National Forest Picnic Ground - Willow Creek
Heading North from Morrow Bay you'll come across the Willow Creek Picnic Ground and this is a good stop to get a snap of the span bridge. You can stay up on the PCH, or drive down a small side road that leads to the beachfront where you can picnic or watch the surfers. The beach is dog-friendly (on lead) - and for good reason as there the swells can get quite high here. However there were some smaller pools of water closer to the bridge where the waves didn't reach and we saw a couple of dogs splashing around there.
Span bridge at Willow Creek
Big Creek Bridge
Continuing North from Willow Creek is the Big Creek Bridge, which is similar in style to Bixby Bridge (but without the same level of fame or crowds!). This is a good stop as from the South side of the bridge you'll get a good view of it, and the views out towards the ocean and cliffs are also pretty spectacular. As with other lookout points along the PCH, don't expect any safety rails, so if you let your bud out of the car make sure you have them leashed and under control as there are some uneven surfaces and huge drops.
Big Creek Bridge
Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park - lookout point
Even though we weren't travelling during the whale migration season, we decided to stop off here as the vista looked beautiful. There was a decent parking area, a cool whale mural embedded into the concrete and some shady spots to picnic. Beats had a good sniff around, read about the local whales and we got some pretty good photos along the coastline.
Learning more abut the local Whales…
Big Sur
For some reason I had it in my head that Big Sur was a small town, but it was literally just a few places to stay and eat. But that was totally fine, as the area is beautiful to drive through as you leave the coast and head inland through the forest and its huge trees.
We stopped for a lunch break at the Big Sur River Inn and Restaurant, which was like a giant, rustic cabin and had a huge, dog friendly patio out the back. On the day we visited, there was a nice breeze, good beer on tap and live music playing. There is also a small creek that runs through the back of the property and after lunch we took Beatle down for some fresh water and a quick paddle which she really enjoyed after a long, hot day of travelling. It wasn't the cheapest place to eat, but considering the location and all the 'extras' we thought it was well worth the stop.
Big Sur was the perfect spot for a paddle on a hot day
Bixby Bridge
World famous from films and TV shows, everyone wants to stop here for a pic. But because of this you really need to be careful when visiting…. When we visited it was by pure luck we got a good spot to park. As we looked around and admired the views we watched the road and saw lots of cars and bigger RV's slowing down and looking for a place to pullover quickly. Parking options are not clear as you approach and you'll likely be one of many cars clamouring for a parking spot. Here are our tips for visiting:
1. Look out out for vehicles if you need to cross the road as they are either zooming through or the drivers are distracted looking for parking.
2. There are no safety railings on the ocean side, so take your time and find secure places to stand as it would be easy to get distracted for the perfect pic and topple over the edge. We saw lots of people standing in silly places to get a pic for the gram.
3. Make sure you always have your dog on a short leash and/or they are secured in a way they can't pull you anywhere near the edge. There were also lots of friendly squirrels around the rocks, so be hyper vigilant if you have a dog that likes to chase…
Bixby Bridge - very cool, but busy!
IN SUMMARY
We only stopped at a few places along the coast and I know there are many more that look equally as great! We found that everywhere we stopped Beatle was able to join us to look around and we always made sure she was securely on lead - there are huge, rocky cliff drops and most lookout points have no safety railings.
We were driving North on this trip, but I can see the benefit in doing this drive from the other direction as you'll be driving on the coastal side of the road which can make it easier to pull over. Luckily there is good signage advising of upcoming attractions, lookouts etc so we usually had plenty of time to get organised. It also helps that many of the main attractions have their own turning lanes so you don't feel as much pressure from cars waiting behind you.
We drove this in July, and while we did try and leave early to beat the heat and traffic I still expected it would be much busier than it was. For the most part traffic was steady, people were driving with courtesy and Beatle got to stick her head out the window every now and then.
As this road was completely new to us, we downloaded maps before we went in case we lost mobile signal, made sure we had plenty of water and snacks, had a first aid kit in the car and gave ourselves plenty of time to get between stops. Because we didn't know the road at all, but expected it to be windy in parts, Beatle was also securely strapped into the backseat by her harness.