Re: Trail conditions on a couple of proposed routes

Luigi, the Santa Lucia Trail is in very poor condition. A friend who hiked along it a couple of weeks ago found lots of brush and was in some difficulty staying on the trail itself. I am not sure what you refer to regarding Bluff Camp. The only Bluff Camp I know is near Los Padres Dam on the Carmel River. If you mean Last Chance Camp on the Santa Lucia Trail, it is probably a reasonable destination if you are prepared for very rough trails. Coming from Arroyo Seco, the trail is often in the river.
Your route from Indians up the Arroyo Seco trail to the Coast Ridge Trail and Cook Springs is relatively clear after Stevenson Wilderness Crews cleared much of the brush three weeks ago, but the Coast Ridge Trail from the top of Arroyo Seco Trail to the Rodeo Flats junction is heavily overgrown. The rest of the way to Lost Valley down the Connector is clear. It is brushy above Fish Camp on the way to the top of the ridge above the crossing of the Arroyo Seco River near Escondido Camp.
On either of these routes you can be held up if rain falls, because these streams and rivers rise very rapidly.
The loop out of Indians is the one I would choose, personally, because I know groups have been through it all recently with loppers and saws.
Good luck.