Visiting Morro Bay

Great places to eat, abundant wild life, gorgeous ocean views

Morro Bay is about halfway between San Francisco and Los Angeles. It is most known for The Rock, visible from miles away. Still, there is much more to Morro Bay with the abundant wildlife, great food, spectacular views, and friendly people. You will surely be pleased with your visit to Morro Bay.

One of Morro Bay's most popular tourist areas is along the Embarcadero, where you will find many shops and places to eat. One of the unique shops you cannot miss is the Shell Shop; they have some of the coolest seashells that I have ever seen, and even if you are not into seashells, it's a fun place to explore.

There are also many places along the Embarcadero to eat. A few favorites are Tognazzini Dockside is a local favorite as well - Giovanni's Fish Market, where you may have difficulty picking something from all the great items they have on the menu. Still, without a doubt, I got to have the fish and chips. I've traveled to Morro Bay because of Giovanni's fish and chips, they are that good, and the other is the Hofbrau of Morro Bay. They are famous for their French Dip sandwiches.

Along the Embarcadero, just about every cross street ends at the bay. There will be access views of the bay from each of those dead-end streets. Make sure to check them all out while walking around the area.

One of the things you will quickly notice is all of the boats moored out in the bay. Morro Bay has a large community that lives in many of those boats.

It's easy to tell if the tide is heading out or coming in by watching the boats' direction. If the tide is low and is heading out, you might want to check out the tide pools over at Los Osos State Park.

Head south down the Embarcadero just past all the shops if you should be there at sunset. With all those boats in the foreground and the sun setting in the background "weather permitting," you will see a gorgeous sunset.

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There are a few boat harbors in the area. If you head north on the Embarcadero past all the little shops, you will come across one of the boat harbors where some of the bigger fishing vessels dock. It is one of the most accessible areas to view the resident Sea Otters. The Otters at the harbor area are where the pups are tended to by their mothers. You can easily see them right from the parking lot next to the Great American Sea Food restaurant.

Another place to see the furry critters is at The Rock' on the bayside, where many Otters hang out. Watch as they wrap them selfs up in the kelp. After checking out, these little guys out walk over to the other side of the big parking lot, where there is a lovely beach area, and you'll be able to watch the surfers catching some waves.

If you like to hike and explore, you are in luck; for one of the best views of Morro Bay, head over to the Black Hills. Head south down Main St until you get to the Golf Course, take the first left, then head into the Golf Course. Keep left as the road splits. You will be blessed with a great view of the area, even from the parking lot. Still, you will want to take the easy hike up to the top, where you will see Morro Bay from almost every direction.

For some other excellent views and fun areas to explore check out Los Osos State Park with a nice beach area where you can go down and check out the water, but the best parts of Los Osos State Park are all of the trails throughout the region, one of the trails travels along the coastal cliffs with great views of the ocean, sea birds and other wildlife.

The trail is wide and easy to walk, and there are signs posted along the trail describing the wildlife in the area.

If you keep going along the trail, you will come across some steps that take you down to another beach area where you will be able to see the tide pools at low tide.

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If you are in Morro Bay for a few days, there are many other cool towns nearby to check out, like Cayucos and Cambria. Also, keep your eye out for the old shipwreck off of Ocean St in Cayucos on your way down.

Hearst Castle is another must-visit while in the area. I would see the Castle in the distance while driving along Highway 1. Still, I didn't think the Castle would interest me, art on the walls, vases, and whatever else was in this Castle. But, one day, I did stop and found out I was wrong about Hearst Castle, this place is so fascinating.

There are several tours you can take, and the tour guides are very knowledgeable. After you pick the tour you want to see, they will take you up to the Castle on a bus. Even the narrated bus ride is excellent. Listen as the narrator takes you on the journey up the winding road to the Castle. During the tour they go into great detail about the items in the Castle. The tour guides also go into great detail about all the famous people that stayed in the Castle. The guides make the experience come alive.

You tour one section of the inside of the Castle. So far I've taken the Grand Rooms Tour and the Upstairs Suites Tour, most say the Grand Room Tour is the best tour out of all of them. However, I found that both Castle tours that I took on separate occasions were fantastic.

After the tour you can self explore anywhere on the outside grounds with no guide, the views from the outside are remarkable, you can stay as long as you want until they close.

In late October - February, you can view the Elephant Seals. The Elephant Seal Viewing area is five miles north of Hearst Castle. Elephant Seals come to shore after sometimes traveling thousands of miles; they come to this spot to mate, have babies, then head back out to sea.

On your way to Hearst Castle or the Elephant Seals viewing area, keep your eye out for the wild Zebra's. You can usually see the wild Zebra just before you get to the Castle entry on the non-ocean side of Highway 1.

Morro Bay and the surrounding city's are a great place to visit and will make a great stop as you travel down Highway 1