Beautiful Food, Travel & Design
Our quick getaway to Santa Cruz and Big Sur with a stay at Chaminade Resort & Spa in Santa Cruz. An amazing trip but definitely too short!
A few weeks ago, Pat and I had the chance to spend a couple of days in Santa Cruz. My father was visiting for the week and we thought it would be fun to get out of San Francisco to show him one of our favorite places in California – Big Sur…. Read More »
Even though I love living in a big city, easy access to natural areas is a huge factor in our choice to live in San Francisco. Big Sur is about two hours outside of San Francisco and it’s one of our favorite places in the whole world.
We had the chance to go to Big Sur a few weeks ago and let me tell you, Fall in Big Sur is a magical thing. The summer tourist traffic has slowed, but the weather is still amazing. Plus, the nights are a bit cooler making camping super pleasant. It was the perfect thing to put work aside and just enjoy nature…. Read More »
This is the final post from our weekend trip to Big Sur. I just want to share with you some things that we enjoy when we’re visiting Big Sur in this mini travel guide! Check out Part 1 (Weekend in Big Sur) and Part 2 (Camping in Big Sur)!
Our focus in Big Sur is always the coast. As two formerly land-locked Wisconsinites, both Pat and I are constantly in awe of and appreciative of the ocean. Can you believe how blue that water is!? Every view was like this vibrant, colorful painting and I absolutely couldn’t get enough. I just wanted to dive right in and float away. Of course, in reality the water is freezing, just like it is for us in San Francisco. Dipping my toes in took any remaining desire for swimming away immediately…. Read More »
This is the second post from our weekend trip to Big Sur. Check out Part 1 (Weekend in Big Sur)!
There are a ton of places to camp in Big Sur, but many of them fill up far in advance, especially during the summer. Pat and I avoid this by camping on national forest land in Los Padres National Forest, south of Big Sur. Did you know that it’s legal to camp almost anywhere on national forest land, even it’s unmarked? The rules are
that you must camp at least one mile from designated campgrounds, at least 100 feet from streams, and at least 150 feet from roads…. Read More »
I finished a week of night shifts, which conveniently meant I was post-call on a Friday, leaving me with an almost three day weekend! The luxury!
Pat and I decided to sneak away to one of our favorite spots for a weekend in Big Sur. It’s becoming a regular escape from the city for us. Just 2.5 hours south of San Francisco on Highway 1, I think it’s one of the most beautiful places in the world.
… Read More »
Figuring out what to eat while camping often takes advance planning and requires a special trip to the grocery store. Because we don’t always have a lot of time leading up to our vacations, Pat and I have created this camping oatmeal recipe made from things you probably have around the house to take with us while camping or hiking. I’m going to share a rough recipe for it as a guide, but really it is a “scoop of this” and a “spoonful of that” and not based on strict measurements!
This recipe is great because it’s healthy, balanced, portable and non-perishable. It’s basically the perfect camping recipes! You can also make it gluten-free if you buy gluten-free oatmeal. … Read More »