Calla Lily Valley
Happy National Nature Photography Day! In celebrating the beauty of nature photography, today I’m taking you with me to enjoy the beautiful Calla Lily Valley at the northern end of Big Sur in California. All of the wonderful nature images on today’s post were taken by my super talented husband (@suddenlysee), so if you enjoy these pictures make sure to go check out his work here and give him some love. 😉
Nate and I had planned a trip to Hawaii a few weeks ago for our anniversary this year…but when that didn’t pan out due to COVID-19 and all our flights and hotels were canceled, we decided to celebrate closer to home. We took one of our favorite drives to enjoy a long weekend road trip from Morro Bay up to Monterey.
Location
Calla Lily Valley is located at the southern edge of Garrapata State Park and it’s easily accessible from Highway 1 (aka Cabrillo Highway). There’s a small dirt turn out near mile marker 63 and gate 19 for Garrapata State Park. Vehicles can park on the side of the road here and you can start this short hike by following the path beginning near the guide wire fence. Take the north fork down to the stairs and continue to follow the trail. At first glance it may feel like you’re simply walking towards overgrown shrubs (on my first visit here I was sure I’d taken a wrong turn!), but suddenly the valley opens up and you’re greeted to Doud Creek, the beautiful Calla Lilies, and Garrapata State Beach in the distance.
Terrain
This hike is only 1/2 a mile round trip, but the terrain can be shifting and unsteady (especially after a recent rain). The path is both rocky and muddy…it’s also intermixed with poison ivy, poison oak and stinging nettle (which can leave you with a burning rash), so the hike is best made with a good pair of hiking shoes and long pants. Garrapata translates from Spanish into “tick”, and the area is known to have plenty of these parasites, which is just one more reason to stay well covered and wear long sleeves when venturing into this valley.
So why make the journey? The bluff top views are magnificent and the sound of babbling water as Doud Creek flows to the ocean is sweet and soothing–but the main attraction comes after a good rain in the Spring. From early February to late April, this valley comes alive with hundreds of native California wildflowers, including the stars of the show, the Calla Lilies, which lead a path all the way down to the sandy beach.
Best Time to Visit
Spring is the perfect time to visit if you want to see the lilies and wildflowers in full bloom, though the valley is amazingly beautiful anytime you go. This year I made my visit a bit outside of the traditional Calla Lily season after a late storm the first weekend of June. The valley wasn’t in what I would consider in it’s fullest bloom, but it was still sprawling with these lovely flowers…so even off-season, this is a great spot to visit. Just be aware that after the Spring rains the poisonous plants will be growing. During my most recent visit, there were areas I couldn’t safely access because the poison oak was so densely tall and thick.
Any time of day, this location is beautiful…but golden hour just before sunset is extra special here. Due to the unique topography, the setting sun during Springtime casts magnificent rays all through the valley.
Interesting fact: These Calla Lillies are not actually lilies, but flowering perennial bulbs. The word Calla comes from the Greek word for beautiful.
Know before you go:
• Before your visit I encourage you to learn even more and this area and how to keep it beautiful with The Big Sur Pledge.
• Parking is available along dirt pullouts at Gates 18 & 19. The trail leading down from gate 18 (north of Doud Creek) is shorter in length, but more overgrown.
• Wading and swimming in the ocean here at Garrapata State Beach, while tempting, can be dangerous due to rogue waves, rip tides, and wet slippery rocks.
• The closest restrooms (inaccessible) are located near Soberanes Point between gates 8 & 9 as well 10 & 11.
• Please stay on the trail. Ticks, poison oak and nettle plant are pervasive all around this area, and the beautiful wildflowers and lilies can be easily trampled and destroyed.
• Please be considerate of the Leave no Trace Principles to help keep this place wild and beautiful.
In Summary & Behind the Blog Video
Thanks for joining me in beautiful Calla Lily Valley today, and I’m excited to share more of my favorite Big Sur spots in the coming weeks. For more information about this valley, see my Behind the Blog video below. Until next week I hope you find adventure and encouragement wherever you go!
If you enjoyed this post, you might also like:
Some of the links on this website are affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. This helps in offsetting the cost of running this site so we can continue to provide you with free content to help you plan your next adventure.
