San Francisco - Alison Bing [222]
Mill Rose Inn ( 650-726-8750, 800-900-7673; www.millroseinn.com; 615 Mill St, Half Moon Bay; r $175-360; ) The Mill Rose is overdone with too much frilly fabric, but has some cushy touches and the town’s most eye-popping gardens. Full breakfast.
Old Thyme Inn ( 650-726-1616, 800-720-4277; www.oldthymeinn.com; 779 Main St, Half Moon Bay; r $155-325; ) This 1898 inn has cheerful B&B rooms, some with Jacuzzis and fireplaces. Full breakfast.
Point Montara Lighthouse ( 650-728-7177; www.norcalhostels.org/montara; Hwy 1 & 16th St, Montara; dm/r from $22/65; ) The hostel is adjacent to a grand lighthouse, and has a living room, kitchen facilities and an outdoor hot tub. Guests run the gamut from international backpackers to local families. Book ahead in summer.
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HALF MOON BAY TO SANTA CRUZ
From Half Moon Bay it takes about 20 minutes to reach San Gregorio State Beach, a driftwood-strewn beauty of a beach with a long, sandy strand. Note: the north end is private, charges a fee and is for gay and nude bathers. Families: stick to the state beach, where kids can build forts from branches washed down the little stream that meets the sand. For a flashback to the Old West, turn inland on Rte 84, and go 1 mile to the San Gregorio General Store ( 650-726-0565) on Stage Rd – watch carefully or you’ll miss it. It’s a classic old emporium catering to local farmers and ranchers, who drink booze at the counter. They’ll stare when you walk in, but endure their glances to peruse cowboy hats, flannel shirts, crockery, woodstoves, odd books and sewing notions. It’s also the local post office. The best reason to come is for local bluegrass and folk; call ahead for the schedule. (For food, head to Pescadero, below.)
South of the general store, the stately Pigeon Point Lighthouse rises 115ft – the tallest lighthouse on the Pacific coast. At the time of writing, the tower had closed to visitors because of damage sustained during a major storm in 2001, but you can wander the base and plunk down at the fantastic viewing deck to whale-watch, from March through May. Down below there’s a little beach with small tidepools; in springtime gorgeous wildflowers bloom. The former lighthouse-keeper’s quarters are a popular hostel (above).
Nearby Año Nuevo State Reserve ( 650-879-0227; www.parks.ca.gov; parking $10) is the breeding ground of hundreds of elephant seals that took over abandoned Año Nuevo Island; you can view them as they fight for dominance and submission, from December to March. Reservations are essential for the 2.5-hour, 3-mile guided walking tour ($7). The walk across the vast plateau passes through gorgeous grasslands with peerless views and zero highway noise. At trail’s end, you emerge at a little beach, where from April to August you’ll find yourself within spitting distance of belly-to-belly seals molting (shedding skin and hair) on the sand – thrilling. (Keep your distance.) Crowds come in winter, but we love it here in June and July, when the trail is lined with ollalieberries (similar to blackberries) and you can gorge yourself till you purple your hands and tongue. Arrive by 3pm to gather the necessary trail permit.
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DETOUR: PESCADERO
The old farming village of Pescadero (www.pescaderovillage.com) is the perfect destination for a day trip from SF. Three miles east of Hwy 1, it’s a tiny hamlet abutting mountainous parks and forest preserves, and it’s only about an hour’s drive from the city. The wind whooshes through open fields, picket fences line little gardens beside whitewashed houses, and the local church’s tall steeple pokes at the fog. Locals gather at the general store and an aging hippie sometimes lays out his cache of curios in front of his trailer home. But the best reason to come is Duarte’s Tavern ( 650-879-0464; www.duartestavern.com; 202 Stage Rd; dishes $16-23; 7am-9pm), a country-style diner in the heart of town, serving classic Americana blue-plate home cooking. The same family has run the place