The hook
A bluff-top boardwalk where you hunt for moonstones, watch otters, and drop into tide pools, all in an easy mile and a half.
01Why it's worth it
Cambria's Moonstone Beach is the low-key antidote to the white-knuckle Big Sur cliffs to the north: a flat, wheelchair-friendly boardwalk along the bluffs, with a beach scattered with the polished agates and sea glass that give it the name. Rafts of otters float offshore, the tide pools below hold sea stars, urchins, and anemones, and it's rated one of the better spots on the whole West Coast to catch migrating whales from dry land. Nothing here is dramatic, and that's the appeal. After a day of gripping the wheel on Highway 1, it's a pleasant place to walk slowly and beachcomb.
02How to experience it
Walk the boardwalk end to end, drop to the tide pools at low tide, and comb the tideline for moonstones and sea glass. Bring binoculars for the otters and, in winter and spring, the whales. Leashed dogs are welcome on the boardwalk but not down on the sand.