Page 96 - 2017 Travel Guide to California

ROWS OF LETTUCE in the Salinas Valley, the
“salad bowl” of the USA, below; a transient orca
swims through Monterey Bay, right.
SPECIAL
»
EVENTS 2017
AT&T PEBBLE BEACH NATIONAL PRO-AM Feb. 6-12, Pebble Beach attpbgolf.com
JAZZ BASH BY THE BAY March 3-5, Monterey jazzbashmonterey.com
PEBBLE BEACH FOOD & WINE April 20-23, Pebble Beach pbfw.com
STEINBECK FESTIVAL May 5-7, Salinas steinbeck.org
CARMEL ART FESTIVAL May 19-21, Carmel carmelartfestival.org
CARMEL BACH FESTIVAL July 15-29, Carmel bachfestival.org
FEAST OF LANTERNS July 26-30, Pacific Grove feast-of-lanterns.org
GILROY GARLIC FESTIVAL July 28-30, Gilroy gilroygarlicfestival.com
PEBBLE BEACH CONCOURS D’ELEGANCE Aug. 20, Pebble Beach pebblebeachconcours.net
CAPITOLA BEGONIA FESTIVAL Sept. 1-4, Capitola begoniafestival.com
MONTEREY JAZZ FESTIVAL Sept. 15-17, Monterey montereyjazzfestival.org
BUTTERFLY PARADE Oct. 7, Pacific Grove seemonterey.com/regions/pacific-grove
FIRST NIGHT MONTEREY Dec. 31, Monterey firstnightmonterey.org
94 2017 T R AV E L G U I D E TO C A L I F O R N I A
fishing center to a bustling street with
shops and ocean-view restaurants. Stein-
beck’s hometown, Salinas, is a
working-class agricultural city, known as
the “Salad Bowl of the World.” Carmel, a
freethinker’s retreat born as an artist vil-
lage, is home to stylish shops, exquisite
dining and top-notch art.
The Great Outdoors
While well-known urban areas dot this
region, there’s more than enough wide-
open space for fans of the outdoors. Take a
whale watching boat tour in Monterey Bay,
where you can spot migrating gray, hump-
back and blue whales. Seventeen-Mile
Drive in Pebble Beach winds through forest
and along the Pacific coastline as it skirts
exclusive golf courses and resorts. South of
Carmel, Point Lobos State Natural Reserve
has long been considered the “crown
jewel” of the California State Park system.
The eerie-looking monoliths of Pinnacles
National Park beckon to rock climbers and
hikers interested in the added benefits of the
explosion of colorful spring wildflowers and
soaring California condors in the park.
In Big Sur, where rocky cliffs drop into the
Pacific Ocean and cypress trees twist in the
coastal wind, nature lovers can walk along
the beach or hike deep into redwood forests,
both places where waterfalls spring to life.
DAVID LITMAN/SHUTTERSTOCK; CHASE DEKKER/SHUTTERSTOCK