The first time we visited Big Sur was because of my boyfriend’s extremely rare spur-of-the-moment road trip idea. We did not know we would not have cell signal in Big Sur and we had no idea where we wanted to stop. There were barely any signs in the area, which did not help. We ended up at the only place with a visible sign along Highway 1 South - Andrew Molera State Park.
You can park in the parking lot for $10 or you can park on the shoulder of Highway 1 for free. When we were there, no one was manning the parking booth; so the parking fee is collected based on an honor system. We did not have problems finding parking since we went around sunset.
Andrew Molera is an undeveloped state park. There were no signs informing you of the various trails or what direction you should head or what animals/plants you expect to see. We followed the only people we saw around and ended up on the Bobcat Trail (yes, there was actually a sign for that). We saw vegetations and nothing else, so we decided to turn around and go back towards the entrance.
We then followed another group of people across a temporary footbridge that led to the beach. The temporary footbridge is only available June to October, so if you want to access the beach outside that period of time, you would have to wade across the Big Sur River.
The walk to the beach was about 20 minutes and the trail was flat. There were only a few people around, so we had a relatively private and relaxing time on the beach. There are a lot of debris, rocks, and wood on the sand, so it can be hard to find a place to sit.
Pictures taken September 2018.