World’s Most Scenic Toll Road

Why buy the milk when the cow is free? The Monterey Peninsula is so outrageously scenic and so pet-friendly that you certainly don’t have to pay to feast your eyes on nature’s wonders or find a strand of sand where you and Rover can leave footprints. Yet it’s well worth the $9 entry fee to wander into privileged world of Pebble Beach, a private resort community home to three famous golf courses and the almost-as-famous 17 Mile Drive, which easily qualifies as the world’s most scenic toll road. Turquoise water, pounding surf, windswept cypress trees and glimpses of stately mansions combine to take your breath away, and there are many places to stop, gawk and walk with Rover. Tops among them, perhaps, are Point Joe, subject of many a painting sold in Carmel art galleries; and Spanish Bay, where a boardwalk skirts the dunes above a long, flat beach. Pack a picnic, pick a clear day and take your time; this is an experience to be savored.  (Photo courtesy Col and Tasha)