From San Simeon, we drove as far north along the Pacific Coast Highway as we could, given the current road conditions. The Central Coast is incredibly beautiful.
The best thing for us that day, however, were the elephant seals. There is a breeding ground just north of San Simeon, at Piedras Blancas.
Elephant seals are seriously noisy critters when they’re not resting. This beach contained mostly mothers and pups; the mother seals can weigh up to 1,800 pounds while the pups can weigh 300 pounds at weaning. During the beach season, the elephant seals molt. They also flip sand up over their bodies to cool down and protect themselves from the sun. Here is a video of some elephant seals flipping and galumphing (yes, that is the word for how they move):
Next: Golf.