May 19, 2026
As we traveled from Pismo Beach to San Simeon State Campground, we made some amazing stops. We love the nimbleness of Sadie to allow for this kind of travel!
FIRST STOP – Morro Bay in hopes to see a sea otter or two.
We parked at the Morro Bay South Pier and walked to the sidewalk to the left of the pier entrance.
There were signs posted on the wood fence…
We must be in the right place!…SCORE!!!
OMG–There were FOUR sea otters hanging together in the center of a kelp bed. Otters often link together within a kelp bed or float on open water looking like a floating raft – which is what a group of otters is called.
Napping
I couldn’t believe how close we were to these guys! What a treat! I was afraid they’d be too far away to get a decent picture or video.
Luckily, they don’t sleep too long before one starts moving and grooming. Sea otters are always having to clean their fur to keep it free of debris, rub the fur to fluff it and get natural oils distributed through it, while also blowing air into the fur. This is all necessary to keep them warm and buoyant with the fur waterproofed.
Otter sommersaults…
We walked out onto the pier and got these four from a different angle, and we saw two or three otters out further in the open water of Morro Bay Harbor.
Check out that webbed foot…I can see how they power through the water!
This little one made me smile as it seemed to be fixed on “washing its hair”.
Eating? or Cleaning his foot? You decide…
We went back to Sadie and continued on around to Morro Rock.
Stop 2 – Morro Rock
Morro Rock from the South “T” Pier
Morro Rock stands 576 ft tall perched at the edge of the Pacific where it meets the mouth of Morro Bay Harbor.
Morro Rock is part of nine volcanic peaks that extend from San Luis Obispo to Morro Bay called Nine Sisters. They were formed from the plugs of long-extinct volcanoes. Morro Rock is the most visible of the nine peaks. Sometimes it is referred to as the “Gibraltar of the Pacific”. Morro Rock was declared a California Registered Historical Landmark and a State Landmark in 1968.
We drove Sadie over to the parking areas by Morro Rock.
This sign was pretty clever and 100% accurate!
The Pacific Ocean… where the undertow and surf are an issue.
This rock is home to nesting Peregrine Falcons! We didn’t see any, but a couple had their telescope fixed on one, but when they let another guy look, he said the bird was now gone. The couple had chairs and just sat down to wait.
Statue: “Those Who Wait” that faces the harbor.
MORE OTTERS!!
As we were leaving the parking area to head back towards the pier, I spotted a significant raft of sea otters! Barry gently stopped to let me jump out. There was a group of 7 otters followed by group of 10! This was so unbelievably cool. How exciting!
Shake it!
Interesting facts about otters:
1. Otters have retractable claws in their paws.
2. Otters power themselves via their big webbed feet.
3. Otters muscular tails are used to steer.
4. Otters have a pocket in the fur under each arm to hold their dinner and their favorite rock that they use often to crack open their dinner.
5. Otters keep sea urchins from overpopulating and thus destroying the vital kelp forest system.
6. Otters wash themselves constantly to survive! They lack blubber and must rely on their dense fur coats to trap air to stay warm in cold water. They will also vigorously blow into their fur.
7. “Barrel rolling”, somersaults, rubbing and licking every inch of their body keeps them debris-free and distributes natural oils to keep their fur waterproof.
8. Otter mom’s blow air into the pup’s fur to keep them warm and make them buoyant till they learn to do it themselves.
Sea otters are so dang cute!!! But they are wild animals. Never try to get close to pet one! They can bite with their sharp teeth, or claw you!
Saw these soft, pet-able ones the next day at the Hearst Castle gift shop. If they had one size smaller, I would have bought one as my dash buddy. 🙂
NEXT STOP: CAMBRIA
Cambria is the town my friend, Kandy Ivy fell in love with and almost moved to a few years ago. I could see immediately why she loved this town and the entire area!
Artistic Peace Pickets. “May Peace Prevail On Earth”
Evidently, there are more “Peace Pickets” around Cambria, created by the Coast Union High art students. This one was right on Main Street as we walked to and from Sadie. 🙂 The project was sponsored by the Rotary Club of Cambria. NICE!!
We went to Linn’s Easy-as-Pie Cafe where we thoroughly enjoyed their homemade chicken pot pie and a slice of olelallieberry outside on a quaint patio. It was so peaceful here.
Linn’s gourmet shop is just across the alley from the cafe. We went there to get a frozen chicken pot pie to take with us for another day…and of course we bought two already baked single serving pies. I chose the raspberry rhubarb, and Barry wanted another olelallieberry! I was about to get the California apricot till the lady suggested the raspberry rhubarb. Needless to say, we both really enjoyed our lunch!
Linn’s Restaurant is on the Main Street, but the cafe is up the side street and tucked back in an alley.
Linn’s Restaurant had more dessert choices than the Cafe, but we had a hard enough time deciding at their Cafe and Gourmet Shop! Ooh, do I see an olelallieberry cheesecake!?
We made our single serving pies last three days- which wasn’t easy to do. I really liked the raspberry rhubarb because it wasn’t super sweet! Now I wish we had also gotten the apricot since you don’t come across apricot pie very often. We will just have to come back another time to try the apricot and the coconut creme!
Cool building across the street from Linn’s Restaurant.
Not such a cool sign! OUCH!!
ONE MORE STOP: Moonstone Beach
What a great beach and with beautiful vistas. Gorgeous water views with beautiful crashing waves. It is known for beautiful sunsets.
There appeared to be a group of artists in the section we pulled into. There must have been at least 7 or 8 of them.
There is a boardwalk to hike/walk along the coastline–and it continues much farther than we first thought.
We definitely want to come back tomorrow afternoon when we can spend several hours here, walk the boardwalk, have dinner in Sadie, and watch the sunset.
FINAL DESTINATION – San Simeon State Campground
We were in site #75. We really like the privacy each campsite has from others.
I started by cleaning the windshield, but got carried away and wiped down all four sides and all the windows from being at the various beaches.
Tomorrow we have morning reservations at Hearst Castle for a tour. Looking forward to it!.