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Pictured
clockwise top left: Docent at The Johnston House in Half Moon Bay; gardens
at Filoli estate; plein air painter at San Gregorio State Beach, locals who
like to surf and play at Half Moon Bay's Surfers Beach.
San Mateo County Vacation - Hidden in "Plane"
View
by Debbie Stock
San
Mateo County, CA―As the swashbuckling Johnny Depp cleans up at the box office
with "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End", a treasure that's been
overlooked is beautiful, wealthy San Mateo County. Somehow escaping the prowling
eyes of the pirates who burned, pillaged and stole along the California coast as
early as the 1600's, today its treasures remain slightly unnoticed, overshadowed
by San Jose and San Francisco that surround it.
Famous pirates or privateers who took what they wished with the blessings of
countries and kings performed their dastardly deeds south of San Mateo in
Santa Cruz and Monterey. And although those pirates may have hidden in the
protected coves along the San Mateo coast (close to a playground where a toy pirate
ship now sits), the bounty they missed offers modern explorers a wealth of gems―San Mateo County is filled with them.
The
treasure hunt begins with nearly 50 miles of beautiful beaches. Though the winds and waves of time have changed the shoreline a
bit, San Mateo County beaches continue to offer pristine views of the Pacific
Ocean and wildlife that thrives in the region. One of the closest land points to
whale migrations along the California coast isn't far from Año Nuevo State
Reserve, the largest mainland breeding colony for northern elephant seals. Among
its credits, the county's beaches are known for their wide-opens spaces,
spectacular vistas and ecological significance as one of the most important
remaining coastal wetlands in California.
Gems that are diverse and well worth
the visit include: Pillar Point Harbor, the gateway to the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary; Pescadero Marsh, a freshwater coastal
marsh providing a feeding and nesting place for more than 150 species of birds;
Francis State Beach, the habitat restoration area for the endangered Western
Snowy Plover shorebird; Big Basin Redwoods State Park, California’s oldest state park established in 1902; Portola Redwoods State Park
with a 300 foot redwood, among the tallest in the Santa Cruz Mountains; San
Gregorio State Beach which commemorates the passage
of Spanish Explorer Captain Gaspar de Portolá in October 1769;
and one
of the tallest historical lighthouses in the U.S. at Pigeon Point.
Had
pirates landed on these precious beaches, they would have noticed natural beauty
that's priceless. It takes a few days to really dig in and explore one of the
county's finest assets, its beaches, but in a single day you can take an
enjoyable drive to see many beach haunts that include two scenic lighthouses,
Pigeon Point and Point Montara, built to prevent shipwrecks. Today there are no
pirate ships, only cruise ships, freighters, sailboats and luxury yachts that
ply the waters near this sparsely populated stretch of coast that enjoys
huge expanses of sand, even though it sits not far from
major cities such as San Francisco where 1849 Gold Rush miners cashed in their
nuggets.
One
San Franciscan, William Bowers Bourn II, who owned Empire Mine in Grass Valley
(one of the longest producing and richest gold mines), moved in 1917 to his
sprawling, lavish Filoli estate in San Mateo County's Woodside community. Seen
in the 1980's TV series, Dynasty, and in movies such as Heaven Can
Wait and The Joy Luck Club, visitors can get a close and personal look at the exorbitant wealth
seen in
interior treatments that include gold leaf coatings on ceiling moldings in
17-foot high rooms. >
MORE San
Mateo County Vacation
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