2019-05-14 Clement Salvadori's Central Kali Road Rec's

First, the obvious – Route 1 through Big Sur. 100 miles of road that likely shouldn't have even been built. Lots of pull offs all the way up and back. Stop and have lunch at Nepenthe, the Little River Inn, or a casual bite at Fernwood, or keep going and stop in Carmel or Monterey. The famous Bixby Bridge is north of Big Sur.

When you're heading north from Cambria towards Big Sur you pass Hearst Castle. Keep an eye out for zebras! Yes, there's a herd of zebras left over from the days when it was owned by William Randolph Hearst who had his own private zoo on the property. They're not the only exotic animals roaming the area, but they are the most visible.

North of Gorda in Big Sur is Nacimiento-Fergusson Road, a twisty narrow road up the side of the mountain that will take you through Camp Roberts as you head toward Route 101. Make sure all your documents are in order as you go through the military base.
https://www.dangerou....sson-road.html

From Cambria, we have Santa Rosa Creek Road. That's off of Main street in the East Village. On Santa Rosa Creek road is Linn's Pie Shop. Stop in, grab an Olallieberry pie. You'll be glad you did. It's grown right there. Santa Rosa Creek road connects with 46 near the top of the pass. If you cross 46 you enter Old Creek Road, another popular road that takes you from the 46 down to Route 1 in Cayucos. If you head south on Route 1, take South Bay Blvd until you see Turri road on your left. That's a fun couple of miles through ranch land that connects with Los Osos Valley Road. Taking a left on LOVR takes you into San Luis Obispo (SLO). If you take LOVR all the way into SLO, past Costco and the like, you end up at Higuera St. Take a left, then your first right. This becomes Buckley road and takes you behind the airport and connects with Rt 227. Turn rt on 227 and enjoy a delightful winding road that takes you into Arroyo Grande (AG). There's a couple of smaller roads off of 227, that essentially parallel it that are also fun.

Also out that way is Port San Luis. The road down to it is a nice ride to the ocean, and the port is tiny and very picturesque. There's a hot springs place called Sycamore Springs that's a real kick! Paso Robles also has a Hot Springs place (PASO HOT SPRINGS NAME)

Back on 46, if you go east towards Paso Robles, there's a nice ride on your left called Vineyard drive. As the name implies, you'll wind through many vineyards. Take it to the end, take a right onto Adelaide road, which at its end takes you to Paso Robles. Peachy Canyon Road off of Vineyard is another fun little adventure through vineyards and ranches that eventually drops you into the center of Paso.

At the top of 46, pull off at the top of the pass and enjoy the panorama of the ocean. You can see Morro Rock in Morro Bay Harbor from there.

There's a wonderful organic farm on Adelaide called Mount Olive. Nice spot for a bite and to look at the animals.

East of Paso are a number of roads that criss cross through ranches and vineyards. 41 is the main route through that area. On 41, there's Creston Road that will take you to Creston. The Loading Chute is a very popular spot for lunch out there. In that area is also one of the crown jewel roads of the area, Route 229. 229 meets up with 58. Turning east on 58 takes you along a twisty road up through some canyons that's a more fun way east than 46 or 41, the main East/West roads here.

A trip out to Parkfield is a very nice trip. It's a very small town, population 18 or so, that has a great spot for lunch. It's claim to fame is the San Andreas Fault and a bridge that crosses the fault that has apparently been rebuilt often. You actually ride through the Temblor mountain range to get there. Temblor, get it?

Things of interest in the area:

In Cambria – the town is small and full of locally owned shops and restaurants. We have some very good restaurants in town, chief among them are Madeline's (dinner only), Sow's Ear (Dinner), and Robin's (Lunch and Dinner – try the salmon bisque). The West End Bar and Grill is your sports pub headquarters. The Main Street Grill is a great BBQ place. Las Cambritas, a good mexican restaurant, also has live music Thursday evenings as well as a live band on the back patio every Sunday from 1 – 4. You'll meet a large percentage of the locals at Cambritas on Sunday afternoons on the deck. Another favorite spot is Linn's, open for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner with a great bakery and delicious food.

On Moonstone Beach Drive, the Moonstone Beach Bar and Grill has lunch and dinner and brunch on weekends with a great view of the ocean with indoor and patio dining. The Sea Chest is well known for it's seafood. Dinner only. Cash or check only. No reservations. People start lining up for dinner at about 4:30. The restaurant opens at 5:30. 

Don't miss the Elephant seals North of town on Route 1. It's well marked and staffed by very knowledgable docents in distinctive blue jackets. You'll have missed birthing season, but there's always some animals on the beach. 

Hearst Castle is worth the time. A very unique place. At the end of your tour, of which there are usually 3 or 4 different ones, you can wander the grounds on your own.

Again, lots of interesting and unique shops and art galleries in Cambria. I'll put in a plug for our shop, called the Ball & Skein. If you or someone you know is a yarn-a-holic, it's mecca with over a ton of yarn in stock.

We have some exceptional pottery places as well as art galleries. The Working Artist Studio is wonderful. Chat with Patrick Dennis there. Riccardo's art studio is the A frame down the street. He's a gifted artist and a bit eccentric, but work that far surpasses what one sees in small towns such as ours. The Vault Gallery in the East Village is another must see if you're an art lover.

While we don't have a movie theatre, we do have a Film Festival, but that's in February. 2019 is year 2 of the Festival and it's really a lot of fun! We also have a very good community theatre. It's dark that weekend, but the next weekend, May 24 and 25, we're doing a weekend of 1 act plays as a readers theatre. I say we, as I'm directing one and acting in the others. The Cambria Center for the Arts, where the theatre is, also has a gallery that is always open on weekends and features art by many local artists.

For local history, check out the Cambria Historical Society. The building is across from Robin's Restaurant in the East Village.

South of Cambria is the town of Harmony, Population 18. Great Ice Cream and a glass blowing studio.

Further South on the 1 is Morro Bay. Their signature element is “The Rock”. In the harbor you can see families of otters from the Embarcadero. Don't try to climb the rock. You'll get to meet the local LEOs. They're serious about keeping people off the rock.

I hate to recommend wineries as we're on two wheels, but we are the third largest wine region in the US! In Cambria some of our favorites are Moonstone Cellars (stop by Friday at 4 and meet many locals!), Cutruzzola, and Stolo. Fermentations is a great tasting room that has a variety of unusual wines, as well as port, bubbles, and beers!

We also have a local brewery called 927 beer. It's very small, but well liked. 927 is Cambria's original telephone exchange. Until a few years ago, everyone's land line started with 927 so we would only say our last 4 digits. Ah, the simple life. 

In Paso Robles is Firestone Walker, a very good brewery. One of their beers was recently named one of the best in the world! Firestone Walker has a very nice Brew Pub and a very nice selection of beers. Highly recommended. Paso is also the center of our local wine industry. There are vineyards and wineries everywhere, as you'll see by the signs. Riding through the vineyards and ranches is an enjoyable experience.

San Luis Obispo county, what we call SLO (Slow), is laid back, friendly, with a certain amount of funk to it. While SLO is still a growing town, we're still a rural area. The whole county is only 250,000 people. Our economy is divided almost equally between agriculture and tourism. While wine grapes gets all the press, we also grow lots of strawberry, avocado, and other delights.

While you're here, enjoy our SLO life. Chat with the locals. By and large you'll find us a pleasant and friendly group. Cambria attracts a wide variety of interesting people from all over. You never know who you'll end up chatting with. So many of us found our way here through happenstance and simply stayed. It's not a place you move to build an empire, it's a place you go to build a life. I hope you enjoy your time here, and I hope you spend more than the weekend and get a chance to experience our little town. 

By the way, It's San Luis (lewis) Obispo. Never San Louie. We say San Luis, or slow.