Half Moon Bay

  To take our new car for a spin, we went on a long drive to Half Moon Bay last Sunday. Half Moon Bay is 45 minutes drive (roughly 35 miles) from Sunnyvale. After checking out the weather forecast, we decided to start in the afternoon to avoid the chilly breeze.    

The car was an absolute treat on the freeway. It zip, zap, zoomed at great speed with ease. CA-92 W is supposed to be the best part of the route since it is very scenic and windy. V was looking forward to check out how the car behaves on the turns. But it looked like everyone was going to the beach that day and the road was packed. At one point, we were going at 11 mph on a 45 mph stretch! 

After getting the wrong directions, being lost and finding our way back, we finally reached the Half Moon Bay State beach also known as the Francis beach at around 4 pm. It is a broad, sandy beach and is picturesque. Fishing, surfing, sunbathing, picnicking and barbecuing are popular activities here. There are campgrounds by the beach where one can camp in tents, trailers or recreational vehicles.

It was a beautiful day to be at the beach. The wind wasn't very chilly and the sun wasn't too harsh. We spent a couple of hours walking on the sand, watching the waves and clicking pictures. There is something very therapeutic about sitting on the beach, watching the waves and the seagulls. It felt very refreshing.

There is a small downtown close by where we got some lunch. But I think it would would have been nicer if we had carried a picnic lunch to have on the beach.

A visitor center and restroom facilities are available. I hear there is a horse riding trail too along the beach. We saw a few stables along the way which offer pony and horse riding. We headed home around sunset and the roads were pretty empty by then. It was a much nicer drive back home.