Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/862896
LOVERS POINT AND HORSEBACK RIDING PHOTOS COURTESY OF SEEMONTEREY.COM; "THE PERSISTENCE OF MEMORY" PHOTO BY SCOTT CAMPBELL PHOTOGRAPHY; LOBBY, VINEYARD OAK SUITE AND HANKY PANKY COCKTAIL PHOTOS COURTESY OF CARMEL VALLEY RANCH T R A V E L & R E C R E A T I O N i t i n e r a r y EAST OF EDEN It's the mother of all backdrops for HBO's Big Little Lies, the landscape of many a Steinbeck story, a surrealist setting for artist Salvador Dalí and, now, the environs for your next escape. Yes, Monterey County, Calif., lends itself to the creative eye, but it's also a sanctuary for travelers on a quest to enrich their minds and bodies. Follow our three-day route—your journey starts now. –Kristen Schott DAY 1 Gorgeous vistas beckon you outdoors upon arrival, and a stroll along the Monterey Bay Coastal Recreation Trail in Pacifi c Grove (seemonterey. com) does the trick. is 1-mile segment of the path runs between Lovers Point and the aquarium on Cannery Row and is rich with natural wonders—frothy waves, blues from sky to sea, seals on the shore. Refuel with the seafood salad at Schooners Coastal Kitchen & Bar (Monterey Plaza Hotel, 400 Cannery Row, 831.372.2628, schoonersmonterey.com); then explore the Dali17 exhibit (admission $20, Museum of Monterey, 5 Custom House Plaza, 831.372.2608, dali17. com). With 580 works, it's the largest private Salvador Dalí collection in the United States—fi tting, as Monterey was the only place in the country that the surrealist lived and painted. On display: a rare original lithograph of " e Persistence of Memory," from the Changes in Great Masterpieces suite. (Look closely at the landscape; museum coordinator Hilary Roberts suggests it's reminiscent of the Monterey coast.) Your last stop: the 500-acre Carmel Valley Ranch (1 Old Ranch Road, 831.625.9500, carmelvalleyranch.com). e main lodge is perched atop a road that winds by the golf course, fi tness complex, garden and vineyard. Check in to a Vineyard suite (from $655 per night) and refresh with a soak in your balcony tub before texting the shuttle to take you to the lodge for a late-afternoon elixir at the bar (try this month's Hanky Panky cocktail). A fi nal pour: a custom, behind-the-grapes experience amid the vines—a tour with vintner Peter Figge, or a paired dinner with sommelier Mark Buzan (advanced reservations required, price upon request). DAY 2 National Steinbeck Center in Salinas (admission $13, 1 Main St., 831.775.4721, steinbeck.org) is required reading: Steinbeck was born here in 1902, and works like Tortilla Flat draw on the region. (Don't miss the Steinbeck Festival May 5-7.) en, head to Salinas River State Beach for a horseback ride with the Monterey Bay Equestrian Center (from $80, 119 Monterey Dunes Way, Castroville, 831.663.5712, montereybayequestrian.com). Located about 20 minutes from Salinas, the beach is a local secret and aff ords supreme solitude, with the steady gait of your horse (Torino is tops) beneath you and the splash of the sea all around. Rides are reservation-only and tailored to your needs to ensure comfort 1 4 2 6 5 3 1. Lovers Point in Pacifi c Grove 2. Salvador Dalí's "The Persistence of Memory" from the Changes in Great Masterpieces suite (1974, lithograph), 24 inches by 27 inches, at the Dali17 exhibit 3. Carmel Valley Ranch's lobby at the main lodge 4. The Vineyard Oak suite's private balcony 5. The mojito- inspired Hanky Panky cocktail 6. Horseback riding along the Salinas River State Beach 9 6 V E G A S S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 7 | M O D E R N L U X U R Y . C O M