Carmel-by-the-Sea

We were up in the Monterey area for my birthday two weekends ago. It was the most wonderful way to ring in my 29th year. We had no specific plans or agenda other than to start in Carmel and work our way up the coast to Monterey. As it turned out, we never got out of Carmel! It was meant to be a little stop in our day and ended up being the day :) Isn't it the best when that happens though?

We began the day at Carmel City Beach and with its white sand, vibrant blue water and views of Pebble Beach, it may be one of the best beaches we've ever been to! Aaron took my camera and snapped a few shots of me and the kids playing. I love these images and how he perfectly captured my two little ones.

Next, we drove around and saw signs for Mission Ranch. It sounded interesting and seeing that we didn't have an agenda, we decided to check it out. We drove in and were met with the most incredible view of a grassy open field (complete with sheep!) and a view of the ocean in the distance. Not a bad detour :)

That "view of the ocean in the distance" intrigued us so we drove up the road to check it out and we found ourselves at Carmel River Beach. Another stunning piece of the coast that we were happy to stumble upon. It was quiet and tranquil, with a beautiful lagoon on one side and the ocean on the other. The booming waves were incredible and I could have watched them crash on the shore all day.

Just up the road was the Carmel Mission so of course we had to make a stop :)

And would you believe that wasn't the end of our day? Our next and final stop was Point Lobos State Reserve and it was the cherry on top of an already perfect birthday. It deserves a post just for itself... coming soon!