Description:
A coast lover's coffee-table book, Big Sur to Big Basin is both stirringly beautiful and exceptionally informative. In a book about Big Sur you'd expect to find sun-splashed sea stacks and astonishing redwoods, but here photographer Larry Ulrich surprises and inspires with mission bells, cherry blossoms, storybook houses, forest streams, bucolic grazers, and prickly fields from the artichoke center of the world (Castroville, that is). Long-time California resident Pamela Verduin Cain has done a thorough job of finding and recounting stories that give the photos interest beyond the visual. There are Pebble Beach golf legends, secret nature hikes, famous authors' and artists' haunts, and palate-tempting descriptions of choice restaurants along the way. The book is divided into six sections: Big Sur, Carmel, Pebble Beach, Pacific Grove, Monterey, and Santa Cruz. A hand-illustrated map highlights 25 points of interest (such as the Steinbeck House, Point Lobos State Reserve, and Monterey Bay Aquarium) to help travelers actually find some of the stunning spots captured here. In the meantime, pour yourself a glass of California Chardonnay, relax in your easiest chair, and take a panoramic journey through these dreamy pages. --Kathryn True
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