Named after Big Sur’s first European settlers who arrived in 1869, this is Big Sur's largest state park, where hiking trails loop through stately redwood groves. The most popular hike – to 60ft-high Pfeiffer Falls , a delicate cascade hidden in the forest, which usually runs from December to May – is a 2-mile round-trip. Built in the 1930s by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), rustic Big Sur Lodge stands near the park entrance, about 13 miles south of Bixby Bridge.
