I hope everyone had a great holiday season and a wonderful New Year. I know it is a sacrilege, but I spent the time off to spend with family and decided that I wouldn't even pick up a camera during the holidays. I took more photos in 2011 that I have ever had in one year and just decided too take a short break. Now that we are entering a new year, I feel recharged and ready to go. Today's photo is the famed Lone Cypress on the Monterey Peninsula's Seventeen Mile Dive. The Lone Cypress, also known as the Monterey Cypress, has sat on its rocky perch for over 250 years with supporting cable around it to keep it from falling. It is one of the most famous trees in the world and has become the official symbol of Pebble Beach.
Seventeen Mile Drive is one of my favorite drives and I always look forward to it. I remember how excited I was the first time I was to visit the Monterey Peninsula in 1982. Little did I realize that the week I was supposed to visit, the U.S Open was held there and the drive would be closed. I was crushed but have more than made up for it since then as I visit whenever I travel to San Francisco.