Pfeiffer Unfolds the Sea
This pano was captured on 10/18/2020, 6:28:37 PM, on a remarkable -.6’ low tide. Normally the ocean swell fills the keyhole to the top of the cave. The rocks seen as exposed, draped with seaweed, are completely submerged under the waves. The fauna exposed here, during the bizarre tide was just magical. This perspective was fashioned from 21 shots, stitched together in Photoshop. Keyhole Rock at Pfeiffer Beach, in the Big Sur area, is definitely off the beaten path, but well worth the drive. Just south of Big Sur Station on Highway 1, it is on an unsigned Sycamore Canyon Road which winds its way down to the shore. The two-mile long road is paved, twisty and narrow, but a worthy exploration. The road is named for the Western Sycamores that grow along the road, and near the beach. Because it is so narrow, pedestrians and recreational vehicles are not permitted on the road. Also, the Forest Service has a superior road easement, and there are only five spots along the road where two vehicles can pass each other. Visitor traffic along the road is seven to ten times that of local traffic, testament to its isolation. Early native American Esselen tribes lived in Big Sur as early as 3500 BC. The Pfeiffer family built the first modern home in Sycamore Canyon in the winter of 1869. Micheal and Barbara Laquet Pfeiffer were on their way south of Big Sur, when the winter rains forced them to stop for the season in Sycamore Canyon. They liked the area so much, they decided against moving south again the following spring. Their eight children married and lived in the area for several generations. Their son John and his wife Zulema Florence Swetnam built a cabin near the north bank of the Big Sur River in 1884. The family established the Pfeiffer Ranch Resort, near the homestead, in 1910. Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park is also named after John, who donated the initial 700 acres to the state of California in 1933. The rocks, infamous purple sand, intoxicating aura, and its mana undeniably define the Big Sur Coast.
