Carmel-by-the-Sea is one of the most enchanting little towns in the country; the city and beach are best explored by foot. Quaint boutiques in this slow-paced, quiet little city feature expensive merchandise, so many people just window shop. The sea breezes carry the scent of pines lining the streets that lead down the hill to the beach. Carmel Beach is stunning; this white sandy, crescent-shaped beach is framed by headlands on either side and backed by large dunes topped with wind-sculpted cypress tress. Photo-graphers and artists have long come here to catch the sun rays reflected off the sand and water, and the beach is a great place to enjoy a sunset over the water. Carmel River State Park is another popular walking beach that is about a mile long. All of these beaches are made for walking; the waters here are too cold and treacherous for swimming. Other walking opportunities include the Scenic Road that parallels the ocean. There are also great walking trails that take you to two other gorgeous beaches - Gibson and China Grove.

Nearby Monterey is known for its world-class golf courses and, more recently, a wonderful aquarium. Pebble Beach offers a great golf course, but not much of a beach unless you like rocks and kelp seaweed. The most interesting thing to see is the barking and diving seals on the small offshore islands. The Monterey Bay Aquarium features a three-story kelp forest in a glass tank that contains sea inhabitants from the great underwater jungle in the nearby Pacific Ocean. Divers love to explore Monterey Bay and harvest the abundant abalone. Unfortunately, great white sharks also frequent these cold waters. The frequency of shark attacks has increased in recent years due to the growing populations of their favorite prey, such as seals and sea lions, and because of the increased number of divers. Humans are not normally a target of sharks, but people swimming and diving in these shark-infested waters can be mistaken for sea mammals, resulting in these fearsome attacks. While many people worry about shark attacks on sandy beaches, this fear is generally unfounded as most attacks on swimmers and surfers occur farther offshore in much deeper waters. When shark prey are in the water, you should get out. Murky ocean water is also less conducive to swimming, and you are more subject to shark attack because of the misidentification of species; sharks may think you are a fat, juicy seal.

[BACK]