“. . . They had skies of pure azure and walls of fog moving in and out of the canyons with invisible feet, hills in winter of emerald green and in summer mountain upon mountain of pure gold. They had even more, for there was ever the unfathomable silence of the forest, the blazing immensity of the Pacific, days drenched with sun and nights spangled with stars. . .”
― Henry Miller, Big Sur and the Oranges of Hieronymus Bosch

The area around Salinas has been both fertile from an agriculture point of view but also from a literary standpoint, being the birthplace of John Steinbeck, and nearby Big Sur has been a big focal point for many writers, artists, and poets associated with the Beat Generation like Henry Miller and Jack Kerouac.

Here are a few pictures from a road trip down Highway 1 to that area, visiting the Monterey Aquarium, Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, Pfeiffer Beach, and finally Pinnacles National Park.