Cone Peak – Santa Lucia Mountains

This one of my favorite places in the world. The hike starts from the Ocean at Limekiln State Park on California Highway 1, 54 miles South of Carmel-by-the_Sea. The top of Cone Peak is 5,155 feet. From the ocean to the top of Cone Peak and back is about eleven miles.

This photo was taken about half way to the top of Cone Peak. You can see a primitive trail running along the ridge heading toward the ocean. There are four sections of the trail that are quite steep.

In The photo below, you can see one of the steeper sections where the trail seems to disappear into the hillside.