Half Moon Bay

Taking advantage of the lovely weather, we ventured across highway 92 to Half Moon Bay this weekend, and were rewarded with a stunning day at the beach...in January! At this time of year, the Half Moon Bay area is perhaps best known for the Mavericks Surf competition, which draws an international crowd of top tier surfers to its beaches each February. It was not hard to understand why - the surf was incredible even on a sunny and calm day. But do not be deceived, the currents are extremely strong and anything beyond dipping a toe in the rather chilly waters is not recommended.

Happily, there are a great many other ways to stay occupied: the large sandy beach offers a wonderful spot to play, read or wander; there are trails for walking and biking along the coast; we took advantage of the BBQ grills and enjoyed lunch overlooking the beach at Half Moon Bay State Beach, which also has a small Nature Centre to explore; and, of course, there is Half Moon Bay itself, with its charming old Main Street of shops and restaurants. On our drive in we stopped at one of the many produce stalls and picked up some local honey.

We ran out of time (and energy!) to check it out this trip, but about 5 miles north of Half Moon Bay is the community of Moss Beach. The Moss Beach Distillery provides a lovely spot to sit and watch the sunset (they even provide blankets and a fire pit for those hardy enough to sit on the patio!) www.mossbeachdistillery.com

Tip: If you don't have too much gear to lug, park on the road, walk to the Half Moon Bay State Beach and save yourself $10 for parking. Or even better, purchase a State Parks pass and save all year long!