Pat and I recently spent four days in Big Sur and Los Padres National Forest. It was so nice to get out of San Francisco and spend some time in nature camping in Big Sur!
Of course we took Maddie with us. We stopped in Seaside for a wee break for her. She loves running through the sand! We incidentally spotted two whales playing right off the beach. It’s my first time seeing whales in the wild. It was quite something to see them come out of the water – such massive and amazing creatures.
We also stopped at the Cannery Row Antique Mall in Monterey on the way down. Talk about absolute heaven! Definitely pricier than an outdoor flea market but so many beautiful pieces everywhere! Pat had to drag me away so we could get to Big Sur in time to find a campsite.
Our ‘last meal’ before hiking in to find a camping spot was this gorgeous salad with mixed greens, blue cheese and edamame.
We spent most of our nights camping in Los Padres National Forest. We love national forests for several reasons – camping is free on national forest land and usually the sites are much more scenic and peaceful than a campground that is full of RV’s and noisy travelers.
The only downside to camping in California is that there is poison oak everywhere. Make sure you know what it looks like before doing any hiking in northern California!
Maddie had an absolute blast. With so many bugs to chance and sticks to chew on she would alternate being completely tuckered out.
These gorgeous snaps are from our final campsite at Kirk Creek Campground. This place is a definite gem. It’s quiet, clean and right on the ocean. There is a path that you can walk down the cliffs to the ocean to a majestic rocky beach.
It was also a great place to catch the sunset. I’m just crazy about the lighting in these photos.
And a few more gratuitous doggie photos to wrap up the trip! 
Like this post on Big Sur? Here are a few more:
More camping in Big Sur + Camping Curry Recipe
A Weekend in Big Sur
Recipe for Camping Oatmeal
Big Sur & The Trust for Public Land
Ash-foodfashionparty says
September 2, 2013 at 2:07 pmLove Big Sur, haven’t been there in a while. Great pictures and have fun girl!!
Kelly says
September 6, 2013 at 8:24 amThanks! We had a blast!
Molly says
January 15, 2014 at 2:46 pmI’m a new reader and I am loving the site! I found a recipe on healthy aperture and then kept reading through all your adventures. What caught my eye is that I live in Madison so I love reading about a fellow Midwestern girl. I too grew up in a little city in southern WI. You’ve earned a new reader for that right there. Also, tell your husband that his pictures are beautiful. I absolutely love the picture in this post of Maddie and you in the grass with that gorgeous lighting. Cheers!
Kelly says
January 26, 2014 at 1:57 pmHey Molly! Thank you so much for the sweet note! We miss Madison but we’re having the best adventure in San Francisco. Thank you so much for following along.
Cherie Rose Martin says
February 20, 2017 at 1:40 amMy hubby and I love Big Sur. Thanks for this beautiful post. Your puppy is cute!!
Kelly Egan - A Side of Sweet says
February 21, 2017 at 4:01 pmThank you! We love Big Sur too, so it was fun to share!