I recently took a day trip to Natural Bridges State Park in Santa Cruz with my son, Jackson, who was visiting from Reno. It was a beautiful day and we explored some excellent tide pools at Natural Bridges State Park in Santa Cruz – it was nice to get out and get some fresh air for a day after being cooped up for so many months.
I had never been there before so I was excited to explore a new area. I loved the natural bridge and tide pools. And in November, this is where the monarch butterflies come and nest. We packed a picnic with my homemade sourdough bread, and, of course, Jackson (who just turned 25) was enjoying his beer…I drove!
There was a side cove on the other side of the bridge that we had to walk through the tide to get to. High tide was coming in quickly so the beach was getting smaller and smaller, but it had some cool rock formations (pictured below). I would have preferred to hang out there, but Jackson was fine on the crowded beach.
At the end of the day, we chose to take a leisurely drive up Highway 1 back through San Francisco. We stopped and got some vegan soup and strawberry shortcake, at Swanton Berry Stand – there was even an honor till system. I just loved the drive as the fog started to roll in off the ocean. There were so many cars parked along the side of the road to explore the various beaches and a large number of kite surfers at Waddle Beach – a sight to be seen. As road trips are becoming the norm for vacations in this year, you might consider exploring our own backyard.