Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
A sweeping crescent of coarse white sand is home to one of Big Sur's most consistent surf
breaks.
Large green jade boulders and coarse gravel extend beyond the pounding surf in-
to deep water. Just offshore is 100-foot
Cave Rock,
whose jade inner walls are con-
tinuously smoothed and polished by breaking waves.
STONE OF HEAVEN
Ranging in size from pebbles to large stones, jade lies scattered throughout Jade
Cove, atop the sand, beneath overhangs, and just off the beach, accessible to both
beachcombers and divers. The USFS prohibits jade collection above the mean high
tide line.
Chinese consider jade the stone of heaven, and artisans have carved the gem
into tools and art objects for thousands of years. The type of jade found here is the
mineral nephrite. Pure nephrite is white, but impurities lend the local jade a range of
brilliant shades, from light turquoise to deep emerald green. Jade is strong and dur-
able, harder than some types of steel, and the most difficult gem to polish.
Jade Cove comprises a jumble of rocks known as the Franciscan complex,
formed millions of years ago when a massive tectonic plate was driven beneath the
continent. Colliding plates crushed the rocks, which were then sheared off by the
massive Sur-Nacimiento Fault and squeezed upward to form the rocky cove. Covered
by ocean sediments for millennia, jade formed as minerals in the sedimentary rock
(probably sandstone). Buried deep in the earth, these minerals were exposed to high
pressure at low temperatures, metamorphosing them into jade.
Head back past the parking lot a few feet north to a trail
junction
(0.5 mile, 40')
on the left that leads toward the beach. You'll soon reach a fork. The right branch
leads to an overlook, an excellent spot to watch for migrating gray whales. In spring,
mothers escort their calves close to shore for protection from such predators as great
white sharks and orcas. This is also an excellent spot to bird-watch. Boasting black
bodies and bright orange beaks, oystercatchers perch along the rocks, while plovers
scurry through the surf, and pelicans skim nearshore waves.
The left branch leads down to Sand Dollar Beach, the longest contiguous stretch
of sand along the Big Sur coast. At low tide, it's an ideal spot for a barefoot stroll, surf
casting, or surfing. Winter surge strips sand from the beach and replaces it with small
granite rubble.
Ragged Point
R
AGGED
P
OINT
lies midway between LA and San Francisco, where the vast Pacific
meets the towering Santa Lucia Range. Here, a private parcel welcomes tourists with
