This Mother's Day weekend since we couldn't be with our mothers, we decided to spend some time with Mother Nature. We went camping with our friends Janey and Mark! We decided to venture to a new part of the Los Padres National Forest - the destination being a group of natural hot springs! The journey there was a little interesting....we drove along a road that sits atop the Santa Ynez mountains called Camino Cielo, which turned out to be a very bumpy ride. First, the potholes...then, the rugged dirt road for about an hour. Finally, we made it to our campsite, so glad to find Mark and Janey there! The best part about this area is that there were only a few other crazy people willing to make this drive, and we basically had it all to ourselves!!
We went on a 4-hour hike along the Santa Ynez River, which naturally involved a lot of water crossings. At first we tried avoiding the water, but by the end we took the fastest route and got over the idea of sopping wet shoes and socks!
Laura leaping across:
Janey jumping for joy:
Mark charging the river:
Matt, the long jumper:
Along the way, we saw 4 different endangered species AND a rattlesnake! It was all truly amazing to see, but when we encountered the rattlesnake and saw that Mark and Matt were willing to get a little too close for comfort, Janey and I quickly ran in the opposite direction.
After the hike, we searched for and finally found the remote Little Caliente hot springs, where we found two nude bathers! oops! They were thankfully just finishing up their soak, and that left the sulfur-smelling spring just for us! It was HOT and relaxing!
Then we walked to the Mono campground, where we found this really cool dam along the river. It felt sooo nice to cool off after a long day of hiking! Overall, an awesome weekend!
<--I've always admired this beautiful bridge that sits atop Big Creek, but never imagined that we'd get the chance to camp on and explore the untouched land that sits beneath (and above) it! What a great weekend it was! I felt so fortunate to be able to celebrate my 28th birthday at one of the most beautiful places on earth....Big Sur. Our friends Adrianne and Tom know the reserve manager of the Big Creek reserve right in the heart of Big Sur, so off we went for a fun getaway weekend. Click here for more info on the reserve: http://www.redshift.com/~bigcreek/ The looming clouds began to break as we approached the reserve, and I felt so thankful that we weren't hindered by a cloudy/chilly weekend forecast. I couldn't believe my good fortune as we pulled into the gated entrance to the reserve. After setting up camp (and realizing we left behind one of our tent poles---oops!) we headed off for a hike atop Whale Point. This sketchy but exhilarating climb took us along the side of the Big Creek canyon, and landed us with the most incredible views of the Big Sur coastline. Here are some shots from the hike: 
Along the way, we saw 4 different endangered species AND a rattlesnake! It was all truly amazing to see, but when we encountered the rattlesnake and saw that Mark and Matt were willing to get a little too close for comfort, Janey and I quickly ran in the opposite direction.
