After getting up this morning, I researched places to go walking near me and found that there was a path along the Salinas River near the hotel. I got ready to go and was happy that my husband woke up and agreed to go walking with me. Unfortunately, the river was dried up and it wasn’t quite the pretty walk I was expecting but I was still glad to get out and about. We decided to extend our walking session by going to the downtown area to see what we could find. The area has so many cool restaurants and shops. We returned to the Oxford Suites hotel and partook of the complimentary breakfast selection of eggs, sausage, potatoes, pancakes, oatmeal, cereal, and pastries.

Our first stop on this day was Cambria, I had never heard of Cambria and had no expectations. I loved Cambria for the the beautiful ocean views and crisp temperature. Myra mentioned Moonstone Beach Bar and Grill overlooking the beach so we stopped there and enjoyed shrimp salad, clam chowder, fish and chips, calamari, and their famous seafood pasta.

After lunch we walked along the coast and took a photo using the tripod we packed for the first time. After lunch, we made our way up the coast and stopped to see the elephant seals.

According to what I read, the seals we saw were the adult females and the juveniles that were mounting. As we continued driving up the highway, we found fog and didn’t get clear views of the coastline but it was a beautiful drive nonetheless. Along the Big Sur drive, we stopped at Nepenthe for a quick rest and a bite.

And a restroom break. On days without fog, the view must be amazing from the restaurant. As we continued our drive up the coast, we stopped at Bixby Bridge for a photo op. One person in our car couldn’t wake up for the photo. Our next stop was in the beautiful town of Carmel-by-the-Sea. We visited the beach and walked around the town before our final stop of the day in Monterey. We checked in just in time to get a glass of wine at the manager’s reception with some wine, cheese, and crackers. After the pick me up, we drove along the coast at Pacific Grove and found the magic carpet of purple wildflowers.

After the late afternoon drive, we were ready for dinner. We walked to Charthouse for dinner hoping to get some sunset views but maybe because of the fog, we didn’t get it. This was the first place during this trip that we are staying in a hotel for more than one night. The Victorian Inn was a conveniently located place for restaurants and shopping. Living Hilo Style.