Little Sur River

Naval Facility Point Sur was one of 30 secret sites worldwide that were built during the Cold War to detect Soviet submarines. In 1958, the U.S. Navy built a Naval Facility ½ mile south of Point Sur on the Big Sur coast to provide submarine surveillance using the classified SOund SUrveillance System (SOSUS). The public was told the station was engaged in oceanographic research. Long-range acoustic listening was first tested and partially developed at Point Sur light station with an associated SOFAR station. The facility was one of the stand-alone SOSUS stations around the world. NAVFAC Point Sur played a key role in identifying the location of the wrecked Soviet submarine Soviet submarine K-129, a portion of which was eventually raised in a significant intelligence coup. The NAVFAC was closed in 1984, when its operations were computerized and its data transmitted to another location. All but one building was donated to California State Parks in 2000, which used some of the buildings for housing for a period of time. The facility is now open to the public for tours on weekends.

Point Sur Lighthouse is a lightstation at Point Sur 24.6 miles (39.6 km) south of Monterey, California at the peak of the 361-foot (110 m) rock at the head of the point. It was established in 1889 and is part of Point Sur State Historic Park. The light house is 40 feet (12 m) tall and 270 feet (82 m) above sea level. As of 2016, and for the foreseeable future the light is still in operation as an essential aid to navigation.

Point Sur State Historic Park is a California State Park on the Big Sur coastline of Monterey County, California, United States, 19 miles (31 km) south of Rio Road in Carmel. The 1889 Point Sur Lighthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Bixby Bridge, also known as Bixby Creek Bridge, on the Big Sur coast of California, is one of the most photographed bridges in California due to its aesthetic design, "graceful architecture and magnificent setting". It is a reinforced concrete open-spandrel arch bridge. The bridge is 120 miles (190 km) south of San Francisco and 13 miles (21 km) south of Carmel in Monterey County on State Route 1. Before the opening of the bridge in 1932, residents of the Big Sur area were virtually cut off during winter due to blockages on the often impassable Old Coast Road, which led 11 miles (18 km) inland. The bridge was built under budget for $199,861 (equivalent to $3.73 million in 2024 dollars) and, at 360 feet (110 m), was the longest concrete arch span in the California State Highway System. When it was completed, it was the highest single-span arch bridge in the world, and it remains one of the tallest. The land north and south of the bridge was privately owned until 1988 and 2001. A logging company obtained approval to harvest redwood on the former Bixby Ranch to the north in 1986, and in 2000 a developer obtained approval to subdivide the former Brazil Ranch to the south. Local residents and conservationists fought their plans, and both pieces of land were eventually acquired by local and federal government agencies. A $20 million seismic retrofit was completed in 1996, although its 24-foot (7.3 m) width does not meet modern standards requiring bridges to be 32 feet (9.8 m) wide.

Big Sur () is a rugged and mountainous section of the Central Coast of the U.S. state of California, between Carmel Highlands and San Simeon, where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. It is frequently praised for its dramatic scenery. Big Sur has been called the "longest and most scenic stretch of undeveloped coastline in the contiguous United States", a sublime "national treasure that demands extraordinary procedures to protect it from development," and "one of the most beautiful coastlines anywhere in the world, an isolated stretch of road, mythic in reputation." The views, redwood forests, hiking, beaches, and other recreational opportunities have made Big Sur a popular destination for visitors from across the world. With 4.5 to 7 million visitors annually, it is among the top tourist destinations in the United States, comparable to Yosemite National Park, but with considerably fewer services, and less parking, roads, and related infrastructure. Big Sur Village is a collection of small roadside businesses and homes. The larger region known as Big Sur does not have specific boundaries but is generally considered to include the 71-mile (114 km) segment of California State Route 1 between Malpaso Creek near Carmel Highlands in the north and San Carpóforo Creek near San Simeon in the south, as well as the entire Santa Lucia range between these creeks. The interior region is mostly uninhabited, while the coast remains relatively isolated and sparsely populated, with between 1,800 and 2,000 year-round residents and relatively few visitor accommodations scattered among four small settlements. The region remained one of the most inaccessible areas of California and the entire United States until, after 18 years of construction, the Carmel–San Simeon Highway (now signed as part of State Route 1) was completed in 1937. Along with the ocean views, this winding, narrow road, often cut into the face of towering seaside cliffs, dominates the visitor's experience of Big Sur. The highway has been closed more than 55 times by landslides, and in May 2017, a 2,000,000-cubic-foot (57,000 m3) slide blocked the highway at Mud Creek, north of Salmon Creek near the San Luis Obispo County line, to just south of Gorda. The road was reopened on July 18, 2018. The region is protected by the Big Sur Local Coastal Plan, which preserves it as "open space, a small residential community, and agricultural ranching." Approved in 1986, the plan is one of the most restrictive local-use programs in the state, and is widely regarded as one of the most restrictive documents of its kind anywhere. The program protects viewsheds from the highway and many vantage points, and severely restricts the density of development. About 60% of the coastal region is owned by governmental or private agencies which do not allow any development. The majority of the interior region is part of Los Padres National Forest, Ventana Wilderness, Silver Peak Wilderness or Fort Hunter Liggett.

Bixby Creek is a west flowing stream in Monterey County the U.S. state of California. The stream is crossed by the Bixby Creek Bridge of California State Route 1 prior to entering the Pacific Ocean.

Rocky Creek Bridge is a 497.0 feet (151.5 m) long reinforced concrete open-spandrel arch bridge on the Big Sur coast of California, featuring a reinforced-concrete, open-spandrel, fixed, parabolic-arch, a decorative cantilevered walkway, and reinforced-concrete railings in an arched-window design. It is located in Monterey County, on State Route 1 (Cabrillo Highway) about 12 miles (19 km) south of the city of Carmel, and about a mile north of the more famous Bixby Creek Bridge. The bridge's main arch is 239 feet (73 m) long. Rocky Creek Bridge is one of seven similar bridges along State Route 1 known as the Big Sur Arches. It provides important crossings for the Carmel-San Simeon Highway, originally State Route 56 (now State Route 1). As its name implies, it spans Rocky Creek. A turnout with limited parking space exists to the northwest of the bridge, for tourist use. The ecology in the vicinity is noteworthy in that the marine waters at the mouth of Rocky Creek are a habitat for the endangered southern sea otter, E. l. nereis. Additionally, on a ridge above Rocky Creek is one of the few known habitats of Yadon's piperia, a North American rare and endangered species of orchid.

The Colorado Fire was a wildfire that burned near Big Sur, in Monterey County, California. The fire was first reported around 7:30 p.m. PST on January 21, 2022. As of February 3, 2022, the fire burned 687 acres (278 ha) and was 100% contained. The suspected cause of the fire is said to be from a formerly controlled fire escaping into wildland. It is named after the road it started near, Palo Colorado Canyon Road.

Rancho El Sur was a 8,949.06-acre (36.22 km2) Mexican land grant in present-day Monterey County, California, on the Big Sur coast given in 1834 by Governor José Figueroa to Juan Bautista Alvarado. The grant extended from the mouth of Little Sur River inland about 2.5 miles (4.0 km) over the coastal mountains and south along the coast past the mouth of the Big Sur River to Cooper's Point. In about 1892, the rancho land plus an additional 3,000 acres (1,200 ha) of resale homestead land was divided into two major parcels. The southern 4,800 acres (1,900 ha) became the Molera Ranch, later the foundation of Andrew Molera State Park. The northern 7,100 acres (2,900 ha) form the present-day El Sur Ranch.

The 1,043 acres (422 ha) Mitteldorf Preserve in Big Sur, California, is owned by to the Big Sur Land Trust. It is located between Joshua Creek Canyon Ecological Reserve to the south, Palo Corona Regional Park on the north, and Santa Lucia Preserve to the east. It is only accessible through the Santa Lucia Preserve, a private, gated, community of about 300 homes on 20,000 acres (8,100 ha) in Carmel Valley, California. Arthur Mitteldorf, an inventor and former president and chief executive of Spex Industries and his wife Harriet searched for property containing a pristine stand of Redwood trees and donated the funds to purchase the property to the trust in 1990. Mitteldorf conserves the largest Redwood trees in Monterey County. It also protects madrone, oak woodland, coastal chaparral, and grassland habitats. Williams Canyon Road through the preserve provides emergency access first responders. The road is an essential road for the California Department of Forestry Palo Corona Fuels Reduction Project. The trust began developing infrastructure for a nature camp and research program when the Soberanes Fire destroyed the barn and burned much of the habitat. Public access is allowed by reservation only.

The 1,534 acres (621 ha) Mill Creek Redwood Preserve is located in Big Sur, California, 6.8 miles (10.9 km) from Highway 1 on Palo Colorado Road. The park is owned by the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District. To alleviate resistance by residents of Palo Colorado Canyon who were concerned about the impact of traffic on the narrow, one-lane road, access was limited to six visitors per day who must obtain a permit in advance from the district. The preserve was pieced together from several large properties between 1988 and 2000 at a cost of $2 million. When open, it is only accessible via trail from the road. The preserve was severely damaged by the Soberanes fire and is closed indefinitely.

The Big Sur River is a 15.7-mile-long (25.3 km) river on the Central Coast of California. The river drains a portion of the Big Sur area, a thinly settled region of the Central California coast where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. The upper river and watershed lies within the Ventana Wilderness and encompasses the headwaters downstream to the area known as the Gorge. The lower river flows roughly northwest through Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park, the Big Sur village, several private camp grounds and Andrew Molera State Park where it flows through a lagoon and sandbar into the Pacific Ocean at the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Major Tributaries of the river include, in order: Redwood Creek, Lion Creek, Logwood Creek, Terrace Creek, Ventana Creek, Post Creek, Pfeiffer-Redwood Creek, Juan Higuera Creek, and Pheneger Creek. Most of the river's 60-square-mile (160 km2) watershed is in the Ventana Wilderness of the Los Padres National Forest. Precipitation increases with altitude at Big Sur, and the higher elevations can receive over 50 inches (1,300 mm) per year, about 10 inches (250 mm) more than lower areas. The average yearly runoff on the river is 65,000 acre-feet (80,000,000 m3). It is the largest river by volume on the Big Sur coast. Water is diverted to a small group of homeowners, and the state claims that wells owned by the El Sur Ranch are diverting underflow from the river. There are no dams or reservoirs.