There are a number of things to see along the coastal side of the peninsula. A nice day would be to take a 45 minute drive down Route 17 to Henry Cowell State Park. There some easy to navigate trails which will take you through second growth redwoods and along the San Lorenzo River. The park has a small nature center where you can learn about the parks ecosystem and wildlife. If it is warm, there are a number of spots where you can wade, and maybe even swim in the river to cool off. Once you are done have a picnic lunch in the park, or eat lunch in Santa Cruz.

Santa Cruz has a funky downtown complete with street musicians, a large variety of small stores, restaurants, Bookshop Santa Cruz which is a nice book store, and the Patagonia Santa Cruz Outlet.

Santa Cruz also has an old style boardwalk complete with amusement rides and game arcade, and some sandy beaches. Except in the late fall, the water is pretty cold, most people use wet suits. The surf is pretty gentle, make it an excellent place to learn to surf.

From Santa Cruz drive north up Route 1. There are numerous places you could consider stopping along the ocean. There are two state parks which bear particular attention. The first is Natural Bridges State Beach (old link) just north of Santa Cruz. This is a great place to stop Oct-Jan  for the butterflies. Other times of the year you can see the tidal pools, and the interesting geology. Ana Nuevo State Reserve is a bit further north which is a breeding area for elephant seals. Continue to head up the coast until you come to Half Moon Bay. You could check out the beach, walk around the small downtown, and/or have dinner. Or you could just pass through on Route 92 for the easiest route back to Mountain View.

Events / Activities in Santa Cruz

• Events Calendar | Downtown Santa Cruz
• Top 5 Events – Visit Santa Cruz County
• Events Calendar – Events at UC Santa Cruz
• harbor webcam
• urbanworks does a number of programs including a free sailing outing which is wheel chair accessible
• First week of December there is a boat parade

Restaurants

Fun / Good

• steamer lane supply – Food Trunkish by Ocean
• Restaurant | Pretty Good Advice | Soquel, CA
• El Palomar
• Copal | A Oaxacan Oasis in Santa Cruz
• Cafe Brasil 8-3pm
• Mozaic Santa Cruz Middle Eastern
• Bantam 1010 pizza
• Bad Animal | Books. Wine. Food. | Santa Cruz

Date Night Appropriate

• OSWALD  wed-sat
• Gabriella Cafe Tue-sat + Sunday brunch
• Alderwood Santa Cruz – PRICY!!
• Restaurant — Venus Spirits
• Riva Fish House | Seafood Restaurant in Santa Cruz, CA
• laili Mediterranean Afghan Cuisine
• Live Music Venue in Santa Cruz, CA | Chaminade Resort & Spa

Near the Harbor

• Harbor Cafe Thursday-Monday 9-2pm
• Seabreeze Cafe 8-2pm (Closed Wed) – Cash only
• Harborside Restaurant Menu | Aldo’s
• Evarista’s Comal9-4pm
• Seabright Deli – Deli, Salads, Sandwich Tue-Sun 11-4
• Betty Burgers
• Johnny’s Harborside | Restaurant and Bar tue-sun
• Crow’s Nest Santa Cruz

Favorite Retail

• Bookshop Santa Cruz
• Patagonia Santa Cruz Outlet
• REI Santa Cruz
• Rove Goods (bags)
• Sock and Shoe Store

Groceries

• Safeway
• Whole Foods
• Grocery Outlet
• Costco
• Trader Joes
• Staff of Life

Churches

• Santa Cruz Bible Church 440 Frederick St. Santa Cruz, Ca 95062 10am. A classic Bible church with a long history. Early post COVID they seemed to be really struggling. No idea how they are doing now.
• Vintage Faith Church 350 Mission Street Santa Cruz, CA 95060 9/11am. Planted by Santa Cruz Bible to reach students. In the early days of the emergent church was quite innovative.
• Twin Lakes Church, 2701 Cabrillo College Dr, Aptos, CA 95003. Largest church in the area with a lot of programs. Conservative culture.

Gyms

• Pacific Edge Climbing Gym. Have Yoga, Climbing, and some machines and weights for strength training. Has a 1 month trial membership
• Toadal Fitness Oriented for locals
• 24hour Fitness: part of the nationwide chain