Andrew Molera State Park and McWay Falls in Big Sur
- meems
- Nov 18, 2016
- 3 min read
Back in May, my boyfriend and I left extremely early, drove 3 hours to Big Sur, and hiked 9 miles in the Andrew Molera State Park. This hike probably sits in one of my top few favorite hikes. It is a tough, beautiful, and adventurous coastal hike. Back in May, I hadn't start blogging my hikes so it's lacking some details!
A lot of general information can be found about this state park here.
On your drive to Big Sur, you will encounter a lot of beauty on Highway 1. When you pass the Bixby Bridge, stop for a photo. The views are just stunning.
Hiking in any of the state parks costs $10 to park for the entire day. The awesome thing is that once you pay one time at any state park, it is good for the other state parks for that same day. If you put Andrew Molera State Park in your Google Maps, it will take you directly to the parking entrance which will be on the right. When you are ready to hike, you will walk towards the sign pictured below. The trail takes you to the ocean before going through the loop.
We hiked the Creamery Meadow Trail, stopped at the beach, took the Bluffs Trail, then the Panorama Trail, stopped at the lookout to have lunch, came back on the Ridge Trail, and finished back at the Creamery Meadow Trail.
When you start your hike, you will come across a river. Jen O. posted a picture on Yelp of the plank bridge that is there for people to cross. Wen it is Steelhead Trout Migration season, this bridge is removed. At the time that we went, there was no bridge so we took off our shoes, and walked in the cold water to get across. It was so cold but added some fun to our journey. So come prepared to possibly trek in water!
After hiking for a while, there was a split that had no signs. You will be tempted to veer left but then second guess yourself because the trail looks like it's for horses or something. Keep left and go on this trail because you will approach the beach shortly. We went back and tried to go the other way and after a while, went back on the correct trail. You will eventually hit the beach! The picture below does NO justice.
The picture below doesn't show it well but it's purple sand!!
After beaching it for a little while, we started our hike on the Bluffs Trail. This hike is along the coast and magnificent. Well paved and just beautiful.
Throughout the hike, we stopped to take pictures.
When you start getting near the end of Bluffs Trail and on the Panorama Trail, you go through mountains of switchbacks and the trail becomes a bit less paved. You will hear rattle snakes so be careful. This part of the hike was rough! You are going uphill until you reach the lookout "bench". We never saw a bench but knew we reached the rest area/lookout.
Pictured below is me super ecstatic that we are almost at the top by the lookout so we could get some rest. It was tough!!
After we reached the top, ate lunch, and rested, we headed back on the Ridge Trail. Extremely easy going back the 4.5 miles. Some downhill but follows a maintained path. We were so excited to cross back over in the river because our feet were tired and we wanted to feel the cool water.
**When we were almost back on the Ridge Trail, I CAME ACROSS A MOUNTAIN LION. Yes. A moutain lion. My boyfriend didn't see it because he was behind me a bit but I did, I jumped back, and kept quiet. It didn't look phased and it just went about it's way into the trees away from me. I was freaking out and my boyfriend was bummed that he didn't get to see it. They are around these parks so be cautious!
After our hike was done, we drove down a bit further and went to see McWay Falls. This is a popular attraction spot. McWay Falls is just the most stunning, pure, and untouched beauty. There isn't a way for you to hike down to the falls. People come, park, and hike to the lookout area. Simply majestic.
Post hike thoughts:
I love love love Big Sur and all the natural beauty it offers. I can't wait to come back and hike here again. The hike we went on was very straight forward and I never felt lost or confused besides that one point early on. When you throw in a beach, a good hike, perfect weather, and such beauty, it's impossible to not have a good time. I'm so glad that we chose to do this hike and I can't wait to come back again.
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