Central Coast Outdoors

Virginia and John are top notch! Planning, attention to detail and customer service were all outstanding. During our trip we tore the side of our bike tire. Thanks to their instruction, we were able to patch it ourselves and get to our destination. The next morning, they showed up at our hotel with a new tire. I would use them again and highly recommend them to others.

The name pretty much says it all. If youre into outdoor fun… come here

The right words to describe our experience with Central Coast Outdoors are difficult to find. Memorable is an understatement. Spectacular is a better adjective to use. The sunset kayak tour with Craig through the Morro Bay estuary was the highlight of our entire trip. We left the dock well-​prepared with our life vests on, warm blankets on our laps, and a waterproof bag provided by CCO to hold our extra jackets and other personal items. Craig gave us a mixture of historical facts and local information about the surrounding community’s work to preserve the area. We enjoyed kayaking alongside harbor seals and listening to herons and other birds in the rookery. After paddling for some time, Craig led us towards some dunes where we hiked for a bit and set up a small picnic of wine, beer, and hors d’oeuvres. We got a wonderful view of the sunset with Morro Rock in the horizon. Seeing that fiery orange and purple sunset light up the sky made this particular sunset magnificent to watch. This is an ideal trip for anyone with some kayaking experience and who finds joy in being adventurous — paddling back while the daylight fades and getting a little wet and muddy is all part of the fun.

Scouters. Let John and his crew show your scouts Morro Bay from a kayak. John and his crew know the area and are excited to share their knowledge about the wildlife and geology of the area. John made the trip safe and comfortable for all. All 40 of us had a fantastic time and plan on going back
In my opinion central cost outdoors is a 6 star organization

I took my children on a short vacation during their spring break. We decided to book a Big Sur eco-​tour. John and Craig were our guides, and they were simply outstanding. My kids and I learned so much about the central coast and Big Sur. They showed us historical landmarks and revealed various footnotes of the region. I was amazed by the breadth of their knowledge. When John and Craig were explaining various events and the ecology of the area other folks tended to be mesmerized and followed our tour. hat became somewhat of a nuisance, but I was extremely pleased with the day long tour. Additionally, the gourmet lunch they provided was great.
This trip was the highlight of our trip, and my kids and I are looking forward to booking another trip with them again. I would suggest booking with them during the off-​season, as you won’t have to compete with other people at these locations, who are trying to vie for the perfect picutresque vista.

Had a truly great experience. John (guide/​owner) was awesome; he really struck the right balance between talking about interesting history to the area and identifying plants and staying in the background to let my wife and me enjoy the beauty of big sur on our own. We did the all day tour which consisted of four relatively easy hikes at different locations and a nicely prepared picnic lunch under the redwoods. Highly recommend doing this on your first day in the the area because John will give you a taste of a few different places allowing you to decide where to spend the rest of your time in big sur.

Can we give 20 stars? Can’t say enough good stuff about our experience with Central Coast Outdoors. My husband and I did a 4 day self guided trip from SLO to Malibu last spring and it was the most amazing experience ever. Really hoping to do another trip in 2015. John was so wonderful to us, extremely knowledgeable about the terrain and really helpful. I was a little apprehensive at first because neither of us had taken on such a trip before and John was there to answer my questions honestly and helped us set realistic expectations for the time we had. We did a 4 day trip. It went by way too fast. We opted to stay at Air B&B’s along the way. When I booked our accommodations I did not take into account the elevation. Woops! John pointed out that the last destination of our trip in Malibu was off a dangerous mountain road and offered to drive us up to our b&b. So glad he did! We ended up walking down the mountain the following day and noticed several cars in the valley that had driven off the road. Probably good we didn’t attempt the bike that! As far as gear was concerned we felt the panniers were quite sufficient. John took time to fit us to our bikes. When we met up in SLO to go over all the details John took the time to make sure we felt comfortable and honesty this was the best customer service we have ever experienced by a small business. The pricing seemed totally fair. *A bit of advice for newbies… If you’re making good time in the first 12 miles of your trip don’t get cocky and spend 4 hours exploring a town with 30 more miles to go. Driving in the dark on a country highway, while it may be exciting is also quite scary! Bring clip on bike lights! Can’t wait for our next trip!

John took good care of our private group! We had a lot if little ones in the group and they were very accommodating. I was worried because we had more kids than adults and they made it work. Thanks for an awesome experience! Kids as well as adults had a blast! Will be back in the future for sure!

Morro Bay Sunset Paddle was amazing — it was peaceful and relaxing. Karen our guide was knowledgeable and fun! It’s amazing to see how the bay changes with the tides. Highly recommend this for all levels, especially first-​timers.

Loved our Kayak Trip with Greg! I bought a gift cert at an auction in benefit for the Mammoth Mountain community and couldn’t have been happier to be introduced to a great company while helping a great cause.
Thank you Central Coast Outdoors!
Jessica

These guys are terrific. We did a Big Sur hiking tour with John, one of the company owners, and he couldn’t have been cooler, more knowledgeable or more accommodating. My wife and I actually weren’t feeling all that well that day, but John made it work anyway. Great gourmet lunch. And he made it possible for us to see a sea otter, a dolphin, and a breathtaking stroke of good fortune with a collection of 15 California Condors (yes, 15) circling overhead at once. This company is the real deal. Do a tour with ‘em. You won’t be disappointed.

Had a great bike ride and wine tasting tour. Cindi was our guide and she was super freaking rad. She’s very knowledgeable, professional and was just fun to be around. I absolutely will be giving them more of my business and referrals!

We had a great kayak tour of Morro Bay in May! The guides were friendly and very knowledgeable. It was a great workout and a beautiful view throughout our tour. I would highly recommend using this company for your excursions while visiting the Central Coast.

We did the 21-​mile bike ride along PCH, and had a great experience with Central Coast Outdoors. Our guide, Rose, was wonderful, and always was looking out for us throughout the entire time of the excursion. I can’t rave enough about the picnic at the end of our ride… a really great setting with even better food!
I will definitely use CCO again, and have already referred them to a friend who’ll be in the area next week.

Awesome trip with Central Coast Outdoors and Morgan in particular. We trekked up to Morro Bay from LA for one night only… a surprise kayak and dinner-​on-​the-​dunes bday present for my boyfriend. It was perfect. The water was glassy, the sunset unbelievable, the dunes all to ourselves, the food amazing, and the guide was great company. What more could you ask for!

I cannot recommend this company enough! They are super nice, well-​informed, just the right amount of hands-​on and hands-​off during an excursion, and simply wonderful to have guide you along water or land.
Here’s an example. My boyfriend and I did Dinner on the Dunes last month for Valentine’s Day. This particular trip can be up to six people, but it turns out it was just my boy and me that day. Our guide John met us at the dock and got us ready for the kayaking, including offering us heavier jackets – it gets chilly at sundown – and giving us a basic reminder lesson on kayaking. (For those who are beginners like me fear not: the kayaking was really easy, and it wasn’t very strenuous either, since we don’t go very far and the kayaking is broken up by dinner.) So, he fitted the kayaks to our height, helped us in them, and off we went.
IT WAS AMAZING. Beyond amazing, really.
We saw a sea otter! Several seals popped their heads out behind our kayaks. Brown and huge white pelicans circled around us. We saw a bunch of different types of birds, blue herons, geese you can only see in that particular area, all sorts of creatures… and John knew everything about all of them. He didn’t even mind the countless questions we barraged him with between our moments of staring, awe-​struck, at the scenery.
From there, we paddled toward the dunes. Awesome sea otter aside, this might have been the highlight of the trip. While John stayed on the bay shore to make us dinner, my bf and I explored the deserted dunes, feeling like we were on our very own island. We walked all the way to the ocean shore of the dunes, and it was gorgeous and lovely and just spectacular as the was getting lower and the sky more beautiful.
Then…my boyfriend proposed to me. Yep, right there. He didn’t even have the ring with him! The moment was so wonderful and overwhelming that he just couldn’t let the it slip by.
That’s how fantastic this excursion is.
Anyway, when we got back to the bay shore – obviously giddy and happy with the engagement – dinner was ready. It seemed like magic — John had pulled a grill, table, cups, plates, food, utensils and everything else for our dinner out of his kayak and was cooking away! The dinner itself was really delicious. We had two types of gourmet sausages grilled right there, a delicious salad with feta cheese, bread, hummus, a couscous type side dish that was really good, plus bread and brownies for dessert. (By the way, I think that description of the food is accurate, but I was a little shocked and dreamy under the circumstances. It was definitely really yummy, though!) There was ample wine, a white and a red, both tasty, and John even pulled out little cans of champagne, which I’d never seen before, but which were actually good, to celebrate our engagement. He brought them for Valentine’s Day celebrations, but lucky for us they worked to toast our new life together.
We ate and drank and watched the sunset, and it was divine.
Once the sun set we got back into the kayaks for a fairly swift paddle back to the docks. I had been a little nervous about kayaking after dark, but it was totally wonderful… the town and harbor lights were enough to see by, and John was a completely capable guide.
To sum up: obviously having gotten engaged on this trip makes it special to me. But I will say, I truly believe that part of the reason we got engaged that particular day was because the trip itself is so special.
Do it. Seriously.

My husband and I did the ecotour with Paul this past December. We toured the Big Sur area with many small hikes and lovely drives along the PCH.
We found this tour on the Treebones website. Since we were staying at Treebones, we figured the tour would be good way to see more than normally could — and give us lots of information along the way. Boy were we right! First of all, I have to say that our guide, Paul, was PERFECT. As a local and retired fire fighter, he knew the flora, fauna, and geological make up of the area and explained it all in a very clear and informative way. He also had such a nice demeanor that being on this tour with him for about seven hours was a pleasure. My husband noticed that he never had one bad thing to say about anything or anyone — it was a real delight to be led by such a professional. Paul also made an excellent lunch. Glass of wine with salad and a turkey sandwich were perfect nestled under the redwoods and next to a creek. At the end of the tour, Paul recommended some other hikes and places to see on our trip.
I highly recommend this company and especially our guide. It was well worth the money and we learned so much — plus we had amazing pictures because, of course, our guide is also a photographer.

I planned a sunset kayak & sand dune dinner trip with CCO for my wife’s birthday last week. I wanted to do something that was unique rather than the standard dinner, movie or whatever. My wife and I had a blast driving up from LA and just paddling around, watching the wildlife and running around on the sand dunes. Did I mention we were the only ones on the beach?!
John was our guide and was incredibly knowledgeable and fun to interact with. CCO’s sunset kayak/​dinner trip was more than worth the price and the drive for us. This is a must do for those looking for an intimate and original outdoor trip.

We had a fantastic time on the trip.
Our guide, Karen, warned us that the weather was gruesome and gave us the option of canceling and getting a full refund, or rescheduling for another day. We were glad they gave us those options, but we were only in Morro Bay for one night and didn’t want to miss out, so we went ahead. Over the course of our trip, the weather got dramatically better, and we saw a beautiful sunset over the dunes and paddled back to the dock among a number of bat rays that were coming out to feed.
We learned a lot from our guide, both about kayaking and about the wildlife in Morro Bay, and we really felt we saw some special things. We would definitely book with this company again.

If you are considering doing a tour through Central Coast Outdoors– stop deliberating and just do it. You will not be sorry, and more importantly, you are likely to having an amazing and memorable experience.
My fiancé and I went on the dinner on the dunes kayak tour, and it is something we will never forget. Our tour guide was a biologist, and he knew all the answers to my relentless questions about the birds and wildlife. At one point, we paddled into a feeding frenzy– when the sea lions chase a school of fish into a tight ball and everyone starts feeding on the fish including the birds. There we were with pelicans and cormorants diving into the water only a yard or two from us. We even had a sea lion pop his head out of the water a few yards away.
As if that weren’t enough for one tour, we paddled over to the dunes, and got to explore while our guide made us dinner. While on the dunes, we pretty much had them all to ourselves. The sun was setting, so it was a great view. I have to commend CCO on how friendly they were in catering to our dietary restrictions– we’re vegetarian and gluten free. They were completely understanding and accommodating, so don’t let a food allergy hold you back from calling them.
After we finished dinner (which included locally grown wine), we paddled back to the dock in the dark, which was yet another enchanting experience.
The only bad thing about the tour was that it had to come to an end, but I have a feeling we’ll be back for another tour sometime soon.