Huge waves crashing on rocks along Asilomar State Beach, California, USA

Making waves. Feel the spray in Monterey

Marvel at the ocean’s raw power in Monterey County, in the US state of California. Here on Asilomar State Beach, a mile-long coastline trail offers many views of seas crashing on jagged shores. Below the frothy surface swim lots of ocean organisms protected by the massive Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. Asilomar, whose name is derived from a Spanish phrase meaning refuge by the sea, is not so much a typical beach as a series of small coves and rocky spots. Behind us, a rich dune habitat supporting its own delicate flora and fauna can be explored from a boardwalk trail.