Carmel-by-the-Sea Warnings and Dangers

The sign says it all. There is a very strong undertow here. Anyone venturing into the water should be aware of this.

Even if your children are only wading in the water, it's best to hold their hands and keep them close to shore. Big waves have been known to smack people into deep water.

This beach, on Highway 1 south of Carmel–by-the-Sea and near Pt. Lobos State Reserve, is part of Carmel River State Beach and takes its name from the Carmelite Monastery across the highway.

It is know locally as "Mortuary Beach", due to the very high death rate. HEED THE SIGNS!!! It's even worse than they depict.

Though beautiful, the currents are very strong. An experienced diver is in danger there, so a casual beachgoer has virtually NO CHANCE of survival if caught in a rip-tide. The ocean side of the beach goes very steeply straight down to the bottom of the Monterey Marine Canyon, 9600 feet (2900 meters).

While you're there, take the time to visit the monastery. Actually, it's a nunnery for an order of cloistered nuns. The grounds are open to the public, and the chapel is also, when the sisters aren't in there. The chapel was built of Carmel stone, a local form of sandstone seen on many buildings in the area. An architectural note- most buildings using the material do so in a rustic or casual form, while the chapel is very formal, with regularly-sized blocks and tight mortar joints.

Please do NOT feed the animals in the parks. They become dependent on handouts, and in time forget how to hunt and forage on their own. Some even pass their bad habit on to their offspring. I know they're cute. I know it's tempting. But it's bad for them.

Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus, the catchy title of the 1992 bestseller by John Gray, succinctly expresses an ancient dilemma. What--if anything--do men's and women's brains do differently?

The general statement that men and women respond and behave differently under the same circumstances is true; For example, from the crib, male babies tend to be more aggressive and females more passive. As adults, in spatial operations, men have the edge in such skills as negotiating a maze, reading a map, and quickly discriminating between right and left. Men also perform better than women when asked to visualize an object and imagine rotating it. On the other hand, women tend to perform better than men when asked to look at objects of different shapes, sizes, and colors, and then to group them in some order.

This still doesn't explain why Relinde turns the map all around when I'm asking for the road to travel, while I like the map at one point so I can better visualize our position. Help!

Carmel is nestled between the world famous Pebble Beach Golf Course to the north and the spectaculor Big Sur Coast by the south. By carefully guarding the natural beauty of the area, Carmel has created an European style retreat away from all the headaches of everyday life.

Carmel's rural setting and leisurely pace help you relax and it's small elegant inns, restaurants, art galleries and shops make sure of a nice stay. It's fun to straw through the narrow streets and do some window shopping. But to be honest...it's quite expensive!

The shores at Carmel by the Sea are protected and if the law is violated the fines are steep.The sign pictured here says it all “ This is part of the Carmel Bay Ecological Reserve. No Invertebrates may be taken, possessed, destroyed or disturbed”

The turbulent surf is so strong that a huge sand bar builds up during the dry season, effectively blocking off the Carmel River. Tapping into the fresh water supply upstream has magnified this problem to the point where winter run off frequently doesn't push through the sand bar. Fortunately, Clint Eastwood purchased and donated as open space a huge area of wetlands adjacent to the old Mission, land originally scheduled for a major development project. Eventually, Carmel will restore the ecosystem entirely no doubt.

Meanwhile, tourists love to walk along the sandbar viewing the wetlands and the beach, all of which is part of the Carmel River State Park, an area adjacent to Big Sur. The danger of climbing into the water along here, however, is even greater than the city beach at the foot of Ocean Street. The heavy cross currents and undertoe are so dangerous only a fool would climb into the water here. Nevertheless, fools do and drown on a regular basis. The low water temperatures speed the process.

Looking back on this day, I should have planned it differently. From San Francisco to San Simeon is a long drive and there is far too much to see along the way. Monterey, Carmel and the spectacular views from highway 1 deserved some more time.

links to Carmel and area
http://www.carmelcalifornia.com/
http://www.carmel-california.com/
http://www.carmelcalifornia.org/
http://www.carmel-by-the-sea.com/