Morro Bay to San Simeon

 




Town of Morro Bay

The town of Morro Bay became our home for several days while we waited out strong winds and high seas.  We soon became familiar with the layout of the town while visiting the parks, shops, and grocery stores; we even took in a movie at the local theatre.  We also participated in a social at the Yacht Club where we met a couple who had been in the Baja Ha Ha group that sailed to Mexico. 








Morro Bay

A Competitive Sail Race

Sailboat races sponsored by the Yacht Club were held the following day.  I took several photos to share among the club members.  Race participants seemed quite adept at maneuvering their "day sailers" through the marked course within the bay.  

Morro Bay Yacht Club "Day Sailers"

Finally our time to depart had come and we left Morro Bay the following afternoon around 1pm, heading down the narrow channel.  As we came around the final bend, we saw a huge dredge coming toward us.  The dredge had just crossed the bar and we needed to pass between this large vessel and a green buoy marking the bar channel.  We passed within a few yards of the dredge, and then we faced steep waves washing in over the bar.  Bar conditions were reported to have swells of up to 6 feet, but they turned out to be 9-foot swells!  

Meeting a Dredge at the Bar

Passing the Dredge

As we headed further out to sea, the swells diminished, ranging between 5 to 7 feet and remained so for the duration of our four-hour trip to San Simeon Bay.  Weather reports predicted that conditions would continue to improve so we spent only one night at San Simeon with plans to leave early the following morning.  As we entered San Simeon Bay, we could see Hearst Castle high on a hill, a majestic site above this pretty cove.  It brought back memories of our previous visit to the Castle several years ago by car.  

San Simeon Bay

Hearst Castle above San Simeon Bay

San Simeon interestingly is located on what was once the Rancho Piedra Blanca Mexican land grant given in 1840 to Jose de Jesus Pico.  In 1865, Pico sold part of the rancho to George Hearst, the father of the famous newspaper magnate, William Randolph Hearst.  Early pioneers of the area were Portuguese whalers under the command of Captain Joseph Clark, who came to San Simeon Point in 1864 to homestead land that had been declared to be public.  In 1869 Captain Clark partnered with George Hearst to build a wharf so sailing ships could load and unload goods; the wharf was later abandoned due to severe wave action.  George Hearst built another wharf in 1878 further inside the bay and the community followed the move.  Sebastian’s General Store, originally located near the old wharf, was put on skids and dragged by oxen to its present location near the new wharf.  In 1953 the Hearst Corporation donated the Hearst Memorial Beach, including the old Hearst Pier to San Luis Obispo County, and the Castle property was donated to the State of California in 1957.

Public Pier at San Simeon

Historic Photo 1890's - Sebastian Store (center), Hearst Warehouse (right center)