It is now usually our summer weather in October to December. January, February and March is usually our rainy season. April and May, iffy. June gloom. July, August and September are usually cold weather, gloomy, foggy and temperatures are chilly for us. And nowadays, who knows.

Depending where you are on the Monterey Bay Peninsula, it can be sunny in Carmel, Pacific Grove or Monterey and cloudy in Marina and Seaside. Usually warmer and sunnier in Salinas, Gilroy, Morgan Hill but nowadays who knows.

Earlier this week, the temperatures were 88 and 77 for a couple of days. Now, it is 55 degrees and foggy. What happened to the sunny warm weather?

Big Little Lies

Monterey, Del Monte Beach, airport, aquarium, PG Lovers Point, CHOMP, Big Sur, Carmel Pebble beach, locations in Big Little Lies, Season 1 and 2

I live in Marina… Did not know that this place exists.

Sanctuary beach resort in Marina

The Sanctuary Beach Resort is an oceanfront Monterey Bay resort and hotel set on 19 acres of Pacific shoreline in Marina, California. A rare Monterey Bay hotel on the beach, The Sanctuary invites guests to fall asleep to the soothing surf from their private waterfront cottage.

Nestled between Monterey Bay and the protected Marina Dunes Preserve, The Sanctuary Beach Resort’s 60 contemporary cottage guestrooms and suites offer more than just uninterrupted, panoramic views from private decks or patios. Guests can enjoy upscale en-suite amenities, unwind by roaring gas fireplaces on breezy nights, or indulge at the Spa at Sanctuary Beach Resort.

Nearby wineries, the sights of Monterey and excursions onto Monterey Bay all await The Sanctuary Beach Resort guests, who can end their day with an oceanside sunset bonfire or at our nightly wine and cheese tasting.

The Sanctuary Beach Resort is a secluded getaway that provides unmatched access to California’s beautiful Central Coast region.

LAUGHTER AND TEARS by CeliaSue Hecht

Scenic Central California

Pet Friendly, too Carmel Carmel, the pet friendliest city in the USA… Where else can a pit bull eat lunch safely and comfortably next to family? Well, in Carmel, of course! And there is a fountain of woof and diggedy dog and even a doggie health food store. Pooch Paradise…

a year ago · CeliaSue

More of my Travel Writing articles from Asilomar Coastal Trails to SLO and beyond

Travels with Cici my Magical Dog

Cici and I Met in Vegas, ohmydog

Rescuing a Silly Annoying Dog

Cici and I traveled to 29 Palms and Joshua Tree and then Sequoia National Park and came back to Carson City, Nevada where we lived on a farm. The farm had chickens, cows, horses, llamas and sheep. After several months, we traveled to Ashland, Oregon and eventually found a new home in Gardnerville, NV.

Our adventures continued in 2008. We left Gardnerville, NV for greener pastures including Bullhead City, Green Valley, Sedona and Tucson, Arizona, and Jean and Primm, NV outlet malls and Laughlin and Mesquite, Nevada. The summer of 2008, we spent ruffing it camping and stayed in motels and yurts in Ashland, Crater Lake, Eugene, Florence, Klamath Falls, and Medford. The summer of 2009, we camped out and stayed mostly in Mendocino and Monterey. The summer of 2010 was spent at a horse ranch in Vacaville, Ca. We stayed at the Ritz Carleton, Hilton, Best Westerns, Luxury Spas, LaQuinta and Motel 6’s and all types of pet friendly hotels in between.

In California, some of the places we traveled to included Ahwanee, Bodega Bay, Calistoga, Cambria, Carmel, Crescent City, Eureka, Garberville, Guerneville, Half Moon Bay, Healdsburg, Huntington Beach, Idyllwild, Indio, Irvine, Jenner, Lake Oroville, Mendocino, Menlo Park, Monterey, Napa, Nevada City, Newport Beach, Orick, Pacific Grove, Palm Springs, Paso Robles, Philo, Rutherford, San Diego, Santa Rosa, Sebastopol and Sonora, CA… So many places to list!

Cici played with more than 600 dogs at dog parks, dog beaches and at homes… her favorites dogs were Golden Retrievers, Australian Shepherds and Labs and Labradoodles, ok, Jack Russells and Boxers, too, but she also had fun with Blue Heelers, Border Collies, Cairn Terriers, Dalmatians, Daschunds, German Shepherds, Golden Retrievers, Goldendoodles, Great Danes, Hound dogs, King Charles Spaniels, mutt mixes, Poodles, Queensland Heelers, Shiz Tsu’s, and more…

Cici visited deserts, redwood forests (Armstrong Woods, Avenue of the Giants and Jackson Forest), lakes, rivers, ocean beaches, stayed at an RV Park and listened to Elks mating in Orick, met and took a photo with Santa Claus, and so much more !

She thought she was the welcoming committee and official greeter at Borders book store, Best Buy, Home Depot, Lowe’s, pet friendly wineries such as Navarro’s and Toulouse in Anderson Valley, as well as many other venues.

From my Have Dog Blog Will Travel Blog that I wrote for 13-14 years with my Cici girl (who is in Doggie Heaven now for 2 years).

Dog Friendly Places to Stay in Carmel

Enjoying Carmel with your best friend

Canine travelers and their best friends love Carmel for a good reason. It is the epitome of a dog friendly place. Rated #1 dog friendly town in USA. Below are some of the most dog friendly places, events and activities you can enjoy during your stay. And what better time to visit Carmel then during the summer when the living is easy. Temperatures in Carmel year round are in the 50-70’s so if you wanna get away from the heat or the cold, Carmel is the place to take your pooch to paradise.

Fun facts about Carmel

http://www.carmelcalifornia.com/fun-facts-about-carmel.htm

Every year around Halloween, the city of Carmel has a dog friendly parade to celebrate the city’s birthday. This year’s bash is their 98th anniversary. The Carmel Chamber of Commerce hosts this event.

Carmel beach

Carmel Beach. Ocean Ave and Scenic Road. Carmel Beach is a doggie paradise and one of the few leash-free beaches in California. There are 120 parking spaces at the end of Ocean Avenue. It can be a very busy place and chaotic with lots of doggie pals to meet and play with. Spanning from Carmel Beach to Carmel River Beach, the Scenic Road path offers some of the area’s most incredible views of Carmel Point, Point Lobos State Reserve, Pebble Beach Golf Links, and Carmel’s famous Cypress trees and white-sand beach.

Hiking trail and park

Mission Trail Park

Rio Road and Ladera Drive, Carmel CA 93923

Hiking skill level: Easy

This is Carmel’s largest park at 35 acres, and features 5 miles of well maintained trails. The trails wind through canyons and hillsides with five different habitats. Mission Trail Park is a great place to take your dog walking and a wonderful place for bird watching.

There are five park entrances: Rio Road, 11th and Torres, Crespi Avenue and Mountain View Avenue, Martin Road, and 25800 Hatton Road, the location of Flanders Mansion and the Lester Rowntree Native Plant Garden.

Mission Trail Park has a forested canyon fed by a small stream, hillside meadows on the east, and views of Carmel Point and the Pacific to the west.

You can also hike with your dog at Garland Ranch Regional Park, just eight miles east on Carmel Valley Road. Waterfall Trail has lots of steps to get Fido good and tired or take Mesa Trail for a leisurely ramble. Dogs can be off leash if they are under voice control and there is plenty to sniff and explore.

Wine tasting

A Taste of Morgan wine tasting room is super dog friendly. It is located at Rio Road at Highway One in the Crossroads Shopping Center. 831.626.3700

Doggie shopping

Diggidy Dog at Carmel Plaza has all the doggies woofing and woofing, about all of the wonderful treats, dog food, toys, fashionwear and more. A place to pamper your spoiled fur brat. Be warned that there is a huge selection of delicious-treats strategically displayed at “K9-level” so keep your pup on a short leash or you’ll wind up wrestling things out of their mouth and then buying them.

Southwest Corner of Ocean Ave. and Mission St.

Carmel, CA 93921 (831) 625-1585

Don’t Miss

The Fountain of Woof is right across the street (sort of) from Diggidy Dog at Carmel Plaza. Besides all of the shops and places to eat at Carmel Plaza, there are two major shopping centers in Carmel, at the Crossroads and the Barnyard. Many of the shops are dog friendly including The Cheese Shop, Pet Food Express, and others.

Yappy hour

Doris Day’s Cypress Inn

Lincoln Street, Carmel, CA 93921

(831) 624-3871

www.cypress-inn.com

Yappy Hour at Terry’s Restaurant & Lounge from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. The event is open to the public, locals and visitors alike.

Scenic drive and dining out

Pebble Beach 17 mile drive

Carmel: The toll booth is on San Antonio Ave
$10 per car
walk your dog and dogs are allowed in cars

2700 17 mile drive, pb, ca

http://www.pebblebeach.com/

At the Inn at Spanish Bay at Pebble Beach, you and your pooch can stay on the patio firepit area outside, have a drink at the bar and eat some goodies

From 5:45 to 6:30 PM, as you watch the sun set, you can also listen to the bagpipers play

Pet friendly accommodations

Hofsas House

Between 3rd & 4th Ave
on San Carlos Street.
Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA 93921

Phone: (831) 624-2745

38 Bavarian style rooms, some with fireplaces, others with ocean views, a swimming pool, Jacuzzi, meeting rooms and yummy fresh continental breakfast. Dogs are welcome in some of the rooms, for a pet fee of $25 per night for one dog, $40 for two. Pet amenities include dog treats and frisbees. Close to all of the shops in Carmel village, in walking distance to everything.

happy tails to you, when we meet some day in Carmel…

simply, the best country inns in Carmel…

Vagabond’s House Inn is located at:
4th and Dolores
P.O. Box 2747
Carmel, California 93921 USA
Phone: 831.624.7738
Toll Free: 800.262.1262

http://www.vagabondshouseinn.com/room_twenty.html

A modern 2-room suite with a queen bed, couch, writing desk, and a fireplace. Plus, a refrigerator, coffee maker and dining table. The luxurious bathroom has a full shower and separate tub, plus Elemis bath amenities. Best of all, this is street level making it easy to take your dog in and outside.

Superb service, doggie amenities include a portable doggie bed, toy, treats, bowl and scarf… cici chewed up the squeaky toy within the first hour… she loves to take all of the stuffing out.

breakfast, eggs, yogurt, cereal, toast, coffee, tea, or hot chocolate, delivered to your door in the morning, plus tasty wine and cheese in the afternoon… there is also sherry in the room…

the weather was really hot, hot hot… and the room we stayed in was nice and cool, with icy water in the fridge… fluffy robes, very modern furniture, and QUIET… everywhere else in Carmel has been noisy… you could live here, it’s a real home away from home… internet works really well and so does the tv…

took cici for a long walk down Ocean Avenue, the major street in town, and one woman was watering her plants but would not give Cici any water. then another shop owner had a dish filled with dog treats outside, Cici grabbed as many treats as she could.

We walked into town to visit the Fountain of woof at Carmel Plaza, Cici drank a little bit and seemed to want to take a bath in the fountain… we also tried to visit Blue Dog art gallery but they were closed. And she just LOVED (Hot) Diggidy Dog, a fun pet store, Cici wanted to eat all of the treats they had in the store, which are quite a few. They also had doggie goggles, panties, costumes for Halloween, fresh baked goodies, freeze dried treats, and all kinds of doggie toys.

Only in Carmel is there a doggie health food store, Raw Connection for the beloved four legged furry creatures.

http://www.therawconnection.com/index.php

Svendsgaard’s Inn
Corner of 4th & San Carlos Street
Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA 93921

European ambience, 35 guest rooms and suites, half of them are pet friendly, some rooms have fireplaces and spa tubs, and kitchens. there is onsite parking which is important in Carmel. there is coffee, tea, hot chocolate and cookies available in the lobby in the afternoon and a nice cold breakfast delivered to your room by 8 am consisting of juice, cereal, bagel, coffee cake, and yogurt …

http://www.innsbythesea.com/svendsgaard/

Below is Peaches the pit bull registering with Paige (or getting treats from the fun barking treat jar the inn has in the lobby)…

Places to go in Monterey, Cannery Row, Carmel

LAUGHTER AND TEARS by CeliaSue Hecht

Carmel and Monterey