Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park
| Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park | |
|---|---|
 A view of the park beach |
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| Location | Monterey County, California, USA |
| Nearest city | Monterey |
| Coordinates | 36°10′15″N 121°40′23″W / 36.17083°N 121.67306°WCoordinates: 36°10′15″N 121°40′23″W / 36.17083°N 121.67306°W |
| Area | 3,762.16 acres (15.2249 km2) |
| Established | 1962 |
| Governing body | California State Parks |
Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park is a state-protected park in Big Sur, located in Monterey County, California. The park is administered and maintained by California State Parks. It is located 37 miles (60 km) south of Carmel and covers over 3,000 acres (12 km2) of land. A main feature of the park is McWay Falls, which drops over a cliff 80 feet (24.4 m) into the Pacific Ocean, as well as the smaller McWay Creek Falls. Also, the park is home to 400 feet redwoods which are over 3,500 years old. [1] The park is named after Julia Pfeiffer Burns, a respected resident and rancher in the Big Sur region in the early 20th century, who lived in the area for much of her life until her death in 1928.
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[edit] Location and history
The park is located on land that was originally called the Saddle Rock Ranch, because of the rock formation that resembles a saddle in McWay Cove. Christopher McWay and his wife Rachel originally settled the area in the late 19th century. The land passed through several owners until former U.S. House Representative Lathrop Brown and his wife Helen acquired it in 1924. The Browns constructed an elaborate stone house in McWay Cove, one of the first electrified dwellings in Big Sur, powered by the McWay stream. They befriended Julia Pfeiffer-Burns, a local resident, and dedicated the property to her memory in their 1961 bequest to the State of California. The house was torn down as the Browns requested in their will, but some of the walls and fragments of stone staircases remain.[2]
[edit] Features
Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park has two environmental hike-in camping areas, named by Sunset Magazine as one of the "four best places to pitch a tent on the Pacific Coast"[3] Both sites have exceptional views of the Pacific Coast. The Julia Pfeiffer Burns Underwater Area is a popular location for scuba diving.
These campsites are usually booked weeks in advance and reservations must be made either online or by phone. [4]
In 2007 the Mano Seca group installed a bench at Campsite #2 that can be used to sit and peruse the Pacific below. Make sure that you also take the path through the junipers west of the bench to sit on the rocks above the coast below. Evening here can be sublime.
The Big Sur fire of the summer of 2008 burned the upper parts of the park, but fortunately were stopped at Highway 1 and did not affect the camping sites.
In early 2009, the many non-native acacia trees around the campsites were removed in order to restore vegetation native to the Big Sur Coast. Indigenous plants and trees were then planted, but understandably will take time to grow fully.
[edit] Marine Protected Areas
Big Creek State Marine Reserve and Big Creek State Marine Conservation Area are marine protected areas offshore from Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. Like underwater parks, these marine protected areas help conserve ocean wildlife and marine ecosystems.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Travel and Lesiure
- ^ Henson, Paul and Usner, Donald. The Natural History of Big Sur 1993, University of California Press; Berkeley, California; pp. 328-29
- ^ Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau: Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park
- ^ [1]
[edit] External links
- Julia Pfeiffer State Park - fusión de agua y tierra - Thewotme travelblog.
- Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park official website
- Information and things to do at Julia Pfeiffer Burns
- NOAA Information
- Trailspotting: Hiking Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park Hike description & photos
[edit] Further reading
Verduin, Pamela and Ulrich, Larry. Big Sur to Big Basin: California's Dramatic Central Coast 1998. Chronicle Books. ISBN 978-0811819664
