Our Trip to Cambria

What set out as a fun getaway to see some friends with a little detour to visit the Hearst Castle turned into one of the most relaxing stay-cations of our lives. For those who don’t remember what a stay-cation is, it’s a vacation within your own town, state, or country. Opting for area day trips instead of long distance or overseas travel. My husband and I were invited to beautiful Arroyo Grande, about four hours north of Orange County, CA, to visit our friends who have recently built a home there. Seeking to visit and get away from the city and bustle of a go-go-go lifestyle in Southern California, we thought we’d have a good time, enjoy a new place, and return home. What we found was true peace and quiet, the most friendly towns we’ve ever encountered, and food and wine to savor for years to come ~ on the palette of our minds and in our hearts.

Our road trip began by loading up our two dogs, Buster ~ the Boxer, and Homer ~ the Chihauhau-mix-rescue-puppy, workout gear, a few clothes, and snacks and heading to Cambria. The drive was an easy one and along the way we stopped by Morro Bay to say “hello” for my Dad who cherishes this as one of his favorite places on earth. I don’t know why he loves that “Rock” so much, but he does and my hubby knew that passing it by would not be a wise way to begin our getaway. We paused just long enough to enjoy the rock, the sea otters swimming in the Bay, and call my father to share the experience.

Next stop, Cambria. Arriving at Cambria Pines Lodge was a real treat. Truly a lodge nestled in the forest of Cambria. Once we unpacked, we ventured out with our dogs and discovered stairs taking you down the hillside to the village. Not just any stairs. Anyone who has ever climbed up or down the stairs in Santa Monica would know that it’s quite a climb. The stairs from the Lodge to the village make the Santa Monica stairs look like those at a kids amusement park. Quite the climb but well worth it. Once at the bottom, you have plenty of time to rest by strolling along Cambria’s version of restaurant row complete with charming local shops featuring local art, jewelry, clothing and even a culinary store. Once back on the hilltop, a path leads you around the Lodge grounds where you’ll find the Lodge organic culinary garden which the restaurant uses for its salads and vegetables, a garden path for walking or sitting, an outdoor patio, a pool, and onsite day spa as well as a bar which features nightly entertainment. After that climb, room service delivered a delicious meal of Skewered Pork Loin and Vegetables and a Caesar Salad and we kindly decided to spare the other guests of our vocal skills by staying in instead of heading to the bar for karaoke night.

Our next day took us to the beautiful and expansive Hearst Castle but not before handing over our precious dogs to Jill, the dog sitter. Buster and Homer were very excited to spend the day with Jill and we were very excited to have found someone so caring to look after them for a few hours. The Castle brought expansive views of San Simeon coastline and I was super excited to get a private tour of the Hearst kitchen which unveiled one of the original pressure cookers of its time. Looking vastly different than my mom’s pressure cooker, Hearst’s pressure cooker looked more like something off of a submarine! And the wine cellar was not the cellar of a true wine connoisseur but more of a protector of his wine, complete with a safe door to which Hearst held the only combination and key. Alas the wine cellar was still one of our favorite finds at Hearst Castle but not nearly as glimmering as the indoor 24-carat gold gilded pool.