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Light Hike: One of the most historic places on the Central Coast is rarely seen by the public. Perched high upon windswept bluffs, the Point San Luis Lighthouse is the only remaining Victorian-style lighthouse on the West Coast. And you can't simply drive up to it in your car. Free docent-led hikes to the lighthouse (3.5 miles round-trip) leave every Saturday at 9 a.m. You'll join up to 40 hikers on the hilly, sea-side Pecho Coast Trail, where views stretch from Avila to Vandenburg. This isn't speed-hiking: The docents are encyclopedias of knowledge, stopping to talk about the region's flora, historical points of interest, and tales of local lore. $5 gets you a tour inside the lighthouse, staged to look as it did 100 years ago.

Bag a Morro: For summit views of the Central Coast, hike 4.5 miles (round-trip) to the highest of nine morros (a chain of ancient volcanoes) in San Luis Obispo. Bishop Peak is right across from Cal Poly's campus and is a SLOcal favorite.

Reservations for the Point San Luis Lighthouse hike should be made at least two weeks prior to the hike. However, you can show up Saturday at 9 a.m. without a reservation and see if they'll accommodate (for directions visit the reservations page). Trolleys and van tours head up to the lighthouse on the first and third Saturday of each month, so expect a busier scene on those days. No dogs.

Directions to Bishop Peak: From downtown San Luis Obispo, head north on Santa Rosa St. (Highway 1). Turn left onto Highland Dr. and drive about 1 mile to the end of the road where the trail starts. Dog-friendly!