Since we are only driving 3 hours today, we took our time getting on the road this morning. We were in the car around noon and on our way to Monterey, thankful to leave the heat behind! On our way we passed a fire on some farmland right off the 5 freeway. Our route took us over the Pacheco pass which is a nice easy drive through the hills over to the 101. Our campground is apart of the Naval Postgraduate School MWR facilities and literally was in the middle of a golf course! That was pretty weird.
We made it in ok and were all set up and ready to cook dinner way before dark which is always a plus! The campground is very small, and there were a lot of kids running around which made it quite difficult for Kyle to back the trailer into our spot. The kids weren’t about to stop their play time for us that was for sure. But Kyle got us backed in and all level even with the brats in his way. Patient man he is!
We had an issue with the hose spigot that was at our site. We hooked our fresh water hose to it and it was leaking really bad. So we went to take the fresh water hose off to try and seal it up with some teflon tape and we couldn’t get it off! It was stuck. We tried all the tools we had with us and nothing could get the hose off. A neighbor saw that we were struggling and came over with some of his tools and eventually we got the darn thing off! But all that trouble was for nothing, wrapped the spigot up with the strongest teflon tape we had and it still sprayed all over the place. So we just turned it off until we needed water to wash dishes.
Another issue with our site, well with the whole campground really, is they don’t allow fires! Even our propane fire pit wasn’t allowed. I was so bummed out, sitting outside around the fire cooking S’mores is half the fun! We spend a lot of time inside the PUP instead. No reason to sit out in the cold without a fire keeping you warm.
The campground wasn’t much to look at but we did have a little sliver of ocean we could see through the trees. We laid in bed and watched the sun go down from our bunk.
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On our second day in Monterey we headed to town to explore a bit, with a quick stop at the Visitors Center. I picked up a bunch of brochures and found one about the 17 Mile Drive, so we headed in that direction. We didn’t know that we had to pay to do the drive, lucky we scrounged up enough cash and were on our way. The drive was very beautiful. We had an app that went along with the drive telling us points of interest and little bits of history as we drove.
It was overcast when we stared the drive but once we made it down to the beach the sun was out! The beach was a perfect place to stop and eat our sandwiches we got from Ike’s in town. Toby enjoyed himself exploring the sand, we didn’t go all the way down to the water because we didn’t want wet dog in the car for the rest of the drive.
The sun stayed out for a little while which made the drive along the beach so pretty! But soon the clouds rolled in and made it chilly out. We stopped a few more times at some look out points, saw some deer, the expensive Pebble Beach golf course and the famous Lone Cypress Tree.
The most photographed tree roughly 250 years old! You can no longer hike down to it but there are plenty of look out points to snap a photo. We finished up the drive and headed back to the campground because it was getting late, and Toby was getting hungry! Since we ate lunch so late we weren’t really hungry ourselves for dinner. We ended up flipping through the brochures I picked up earlier and found a place in town we could share some small plates and a drink later that night. We ended up at the Alvarado Street Brewery which had some weird beers but delicious food!
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Thats one happy dog! We went down to Carmel today and took Toby to Carmel Beach at the end of Ocean Ave. It was a very cold and gloomy day but that didn’t stop this pup from running around and getting his toes in the water!
Since the weather wasn’t the best, the beach was pretty empty. Which was perfect for Toby. He had lots of room to run around and play. He didn’t go swimming (thankfully) it was pretty cold. But we all got our feet wet while looking for fun shells and driftwood.
After the beach we looked around for a pet friendly place to eat lunch at and the options were endless! Carmel is so dog friendly it is amazing. We literally parked the car on some random street, got out and instantly found the perfect spot. Even better it was Italian! Kyle and I were the only ones outside so we enjoyed ourselves and took our time with lunch. They had wine from the Campania region in Italy, our favorite. The owner came out a few times to play with Toby and even gave him a chunk of prosciutto and a bowl of ice. Spoiled dog for sure! We walked around Ocean Ave a little bit after with Toby, the town was so cute I told Kyle that I would have
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Kyle decided he wanted to go golfing today while I went shopping back in Carmel. I drove out there and after about 20 minutes came back and asked Kyle to drop me off instead. There was a street fair going on and it was literally impossible to find parking. I enjoyed myself going in all the shops and picking out unique gifts for everyone. Kyle had fun golfing and came to pick me up after he was done. We wanted to go over to Cannery Row tonight to check that out. It was pretty touristy, but we did find a fun candy shop to explore. There was this wine bar too that overlooked the bay, it was the perfect little spot to share a glass with some crab dip (not as good as Maryland's but still delicious). It was called A Taste of Monterey - Wine Market & Bistro. After walking around a bit we ended up at the Cannery Row Brewing Company. It was more of a sports pub than a brewery they didn’t actually make their own beer.
Since tonight is our last night we cleaned up a little and got ready for tomorrow. We played some games to end the trip off nicely, Toby even decided to join us!
The campground wasn’t much to look at but we did have a little sliver of ocean we could see through the trees. We laid in bed and watched the sun go down from our bunk.
_______________
On our second day in Monterey we headed to town to explore a bit, with a quick stop at the Visitors Center. I picked up a bunch of brochures and found one about the 17 Mile Drive, so we headed in that direction. We didn’t know that we had to pay to do the drive, lucky we scrounged up enough cash and were on our way. The drive was very beautiful. We had an app that went along with the drive telling us points of interest and little bits of history as we drove.
It was overcast when we stared the drive but once we made it down to the beach the sun was out! The beach was a perfect place to stop and eat our sandwiches we got from Ike’s in town. Toby enjoyed himself exploring the sand, we didn’t go all the way down to the water because we didn’t want wet dog in the car for the rest of the drive.
The sun stayed out for a little while which made the drive along the beach so pretty! But soon the clouds rolled in and made it chilly out. We stopped a few more times at some look out points, saw some deer, the expensive Pebble Beach golf course and the famous Lone Cypress Tree.
The most photographed tree roughly 250 years old! You can no longer hike down to it but there are plenty of look out points to snap a photo. We finished up the drive and headed back to the campground because it was getting late, and Toby was getting hungry! Since we ate lunch so late we weren’t really hungry ourselves for dinner. We ended up flipping through the brochures I picked up earlier and found a place in town we could share some small plates and a drink later that night. We ended up at the Alvarado Street Brewery which had some weird beers but delicious food!
_______________
Thats one happy dog! We went down to Carmel today and took Toby to Carmel Beach at the end of Ocean Ave. It was a very cold and gloomy day but that didn’t stop this pup from running around and getting his toes in the water!
Since the weather wasn’t the best, the beach was pretty empty. Which was perfect for Toby. He had lots of room to run around and play. He didn’t go swimming (thankfully) it was pretty cold. But we all got our feet wet while looking for fun shells and driftwood.
After the beach we looked around for a pet friendly place to eat lunch at and the options were endless! Carmel is so dog friendly it is amazing. We literally parked the car on some random street, got out and instantly found the perfect spot. Even better it was Italian! Kyle and I were the only ones outside so we enjoyed ourselves and took our time with lunch. They had wine from the Campania region in Italy, our favorite. The owner came out a few times to play with Toby and even gave him a chunk of prosciutto and a bowl of ice. Spoiled dog for sure! We walked around Ocean Ave a little bit after with Toby, the town was so cute I told Kyle that I would have
_______________
Kyle decided he wanted to go golfing today while I went shopping back in Carmel. I drove out there and after about 20 minutes came back and asked Kyle to drop me off instead. There was a street fair going on and it was literally impossible to find parking. I enjoyed myself going in all the shops and picking out unique gifts for everyone. Kyle had fun golfing and came to pick me up after he was done. We wanted to go over to Cannery Row tonight to check that out. It was pretty touristy, but we did find a fun candy shop to explore. There was this wine bar too that overlooked the bay, it was the perfect little spot to share a glass with some crab dip (not as good as Maryland's but still delicious). It was called A Taste of Monterey - Wine Market & Bistro. After walking around a bit we ended up at the Cannery Row Brewing Company. It was more of a sports pub than a brewery they didn’t actually make their own beer.
Trip Details
Campground: Monterey Pines RV Campground Higuera Ln, Monterey, CA 93940Site: 24 [Back in, 20 & 30 amp electric, Full Hookups]
Dates: May 16th - May 20th, 2018
Overview: Monterey Pines is a Military only campground since it is attached to the Navy Postgraduate School in Monterey. This campground is literally in the middle of a golf course. They even warn you to park at your own risk. Luckily we never had an issue with golf balls hitting us, and even if they did we are staying in a tent trailer so I think the damage would be minimal. Honestly I wouldn't camp here again. It is a good campground if you want to stay somewhere cheap that is literally in the middle of Monterey, you can't beat the location. Especially if the fairgrounds are doing an event you want to go to. The fairgrounds are within waking distance and also have their own RV park. But Monterey Pines wasn't much of a campground. A lot of people who were there are living there because they/their spouse goes to school at the Navy Postgraduate School across the street. The sites are crammed in next to each other and are kinda awkward due to the lay of the land. You get a gravel pad to park your trailer on with grass around it. Our site was back-in but they had 3 pull through sites as well. We had full hook ups, 20 & 30 AMPS. The water spigot leaked like crazy, even after trying to seal it with teflon tape. The bathrooms were clean and free hot showers. They also had a coin laundry facility which we didn't use. The big downside is they don't allow fires, not even propane fire pits. Each campsite had a picnic table on a concrete pad and a BBQ, ours was completely rusted with a big hole in it though. They allow dogs on a leash but don't allow them to be in a play pen or loose off leash. They don't have a camp store but you are so close to down it didn't matter. There was plenty of shade, but you don't really need it because its overcast a lot there. The campground has WIFI and a huge list of rules and regulations they go over with you when you check in. You need to check in at the pro shop for the golf course. The campground/golf course is gated and they give you a gate code if you need to get in after hours. Check in and out is 12:00 PM.
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