Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
CHAPTER
nine
Andrew Molera State Park
T
HE LARGEST STATE PARK
on the Big Sur coast, Andrew Molera is also one of the few
places you can actually get your feet wet rather than just enjoying ocean viewpoints.
This is an excellent place for beachcombers, surfers, and anglers, as well as hikers, jog-
gers, bicyclists, and equestrians. Its 7.4 square miles boast more than 20 miles of trails,
offering hikers passage across driftwood-strewn beaches, beside rivers lined with red-
woods, and atop high ridges that overlook the Santa Lucia Range and broad Pacific.
The wild and scenic Big Sur River winds amid the park's mountains, meadows, and a
walk-in campground on its way down to the sea.
Diverse ecosystems shelter a broad range of plant and animal communities.
Birders know the park well. In 1992 the nonprofit Ventana Wilderness Society estab-
lished a research and education center and bird observatory here. The Big Sur Orni-
thology Lab has documented more than 380 migratory, resident, and transitory birds.
Researchers point to multiple factors, including biotic diversity, the mild climate, a
healthy lagoon and estuary, and a nearby lighthouse that may attract nocturnal mi-
grants.
DISCOVERY CENTER
Don't miss the Discovery Center in Big Sur, located at Andrew Molera State Park. At
the Discovery Center, you can see and interact with the exhibit Bringing the Condors
Home and learn about the recovery efforts to bring the condors back to the wild. En-
joy a picnic or sign up for tours with on-site biologists and naturalists. Best of all, the
Discovery Center is open to the public and free of charge.
But this park isn't just for the birds. Keep watch for sea otters, seals, and sea lions
amid the kelp beds and migrating gray whales just offshore. At dusk and dawn, deer
graze in the Creamery Meadow as steelhead rise to feed on insects in the Big Sur River.
Catch-and-release steelhead fishing is permitted from mid-November through Febru-
ary, while surf casting for rockfish and surfperch is permitted year-round. Fishing reg-
