Dave and I have been in Pismo Beach for a week. Today we decided to take a drive north up Highway 1 along the coast. We went by the exit for Hearst Castle, but didn't visit this time since we had been there before. The road is a long way from the castle, but I was able to get a decent, if somewhat blurry, shot from afar.
Hearst Castle
We didn't know exactly where the Elephant Seal Viewing Area was located, but as we drove a few miles north of San Simeon and Hearst Castle, we saw that it was clearly marked along Highway 1 and that there were lots of cars and people there.
This time of the year, elephant seals come here to mate and birth their young. They don't bark like sea lions, but they make all kinds of other noises, mostly sounding (to me) like a bunch of cattle.
Elephant seals on the beach--no, they're not dead.
The one on the bottom left is loudly complaining!
This is a happy family (I think).
Most of the elephant seals were playing dead on the sand, but I caught these two frolicking in the water.
Besides seeing the elephant seals on the beach, the view of the Pacific Ocean's rocky coastline was spectacular here.
North of the elephant seal viewing area a working lighthouse was visible. Of course we had to drive a few more miles up the coast to visit it. 
Piedras Blancas Lighthouse
The lighthouse wasn't open today, but can be viewed on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Do not, however, go to the lighthouse for the tour. It's a guided tour that meets at 9:45 am at a motel one and a half miles north of the lighthouse.
Viewing the huge elephant seals was the highlight of our day trip today. The male seals grow to 5000 pounds and the females reach 1500 pounds. The adult males arrive in early December after a journey from Alaska. The pregnant females also begin arriving in December and each one selects a comfortable location to give birth. Eventually each male will have as many as 40 females in his harem.
The first pups are usually born around December 20 and births continue through January. By March, the next mating season, which begins about a month after the births, is over and the adult seals head out to the ocean leaving the weaned pups to teach themselves how to swim.
