Big Sur is about 3 1/2 hours by car from San Francisco, half an hour from Monterey and 7 hours from Los Angeles. No planes. No boats. No way but U.S. Highway 1. For bikers, the road is a winding, steep challenge, but so is life. Amen. It is about a zillion miles from reality, and it is smack dab in the middle of it. (This is not a Zen statement.)
The lodgings are few, so make reservations in advance or plan to camp out. The camping facilities at state and private parks are plentiful. If you want to sleep in your camper, dress down like a Dead Head and wash up in the Big Sur River under the sparkling sunshine. Go right ahead; this is Big Sur. There is grocery store grub, cheap eats and elegant, world-class, organically proper yuppie provisions.
For more information, contact the Big Sur Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 87, Big Sur, Calif. 93920.
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Suggested reading: ”Big Sur and the Oranges of Hieronymous Bosch,” by Henry Miller (New Directions, $12.95); ”The Literary World of San Francisco and Its Environs,” by Don Herron (City Lights, $11.95); ”Big Sur,” by Jack Kerouac (Viking Penguin, $10). The book store at Nepenthe has a good collection of Big Sur literature.