March 23, 2015

We are at Moss Landing, CA, just north of Monterrey on Highway 1.  This is a tiny seaside community catering to all the boats harbored here (600 boat slips).  There are two rivers that join before they hit the ocean, creating lots of room for boats.  As a result, there are many restaurants within walking distance of the harbor.  Our RV park is tucked in behind one of the dock areas.  It’s an Express KOA, which in this case means no playground, cabins, or tent areas.  We do have full hookups (electricity, water and sewer) and are across from the laundry, which was convenient, as it was time for that chore.

Our back window view is not great:

The park is well kept and the sites are wide, making it relatively easy to park.  But we did have about a half dozen people checking out our parking technique.  It’s also about 2 blocks from the beach.  And a walk through a gate put me in the dock area where I watched a sea otter entertain two observers on the bridge near by.  And as I’m writing this, I’m listening to the sea otters bark.  At least that’s what I assume they are.

We spent Saturday and Sunday doing chores and watching the NCAA.  Today, we headed back down Highway 1 to the restaurant where we had lunch last week.  Highway 1 between San Simeon and Monterrey is not an ideal road to pull a trailer on, so we did the southern portion from San Simeon last Thursday and did the northern portion today.

On the way down to the restaurant, we stopped a few times for photos.

 Note the arch in the cliff at the bottom and the house at the top.

Bixby Creek Bridge

At the restaurant, we enjoyed the view and the food.  On the way back to the truck we spotted this black headed blue jay, known as Stellar’s Jay.

Then we started on our adventure.  There is a 12 mile section of the old coast road along here that’s supposed to have stunning views and old redwoods.  Steve wanted to take it and since we have a 4 wheel drive truck, we did.

The views were fine, but we were a long way from the ocean, so not spectacular. This is cattle country and we were driving through the El Sur Ranch on the old right of way.  There were cattle grazing in open areas.  We also saw fields of California poppies.

And then we found the redwoods.  Tall trees that started in the ravines below us and reached the sky well over our heads.

We drove through a number of groves and were following a stream when we came to a narrow point in the road.  I got out to take a picture of Steve driving between the trees.

There were signs that some drivers had gotten too close at some point. 

After about an hour and a half (remember this was a 12 mile drive) of riding over washboard roads and gulches dug by the latest rain, we spotted the Bixby Creek Bridge, which is where the old coast road joins the current Highway 1.  Our adventure was ending.

Highway 1 was completed in 1937.  I hope the old coast road was maintained better in its day, but even so, I can’t imagine driving livestock or other products over that road.

After that, I needed a break, so we stopped at the next restaurant and had dessert.  As we were leaving, our waiter offered to take our picture and told us where to stand.  He has a good eye.

We extend our sympathies to our Midwest friends who got more snow last night.  I’m sure spring will come soon!

Deb

Thursday, March 20, 2015

We are camped at San Simeon State Park, near Hearst Castle.  My darling husband managed to get me sea views (at a distance) and mountain views for my birthday.

 Sea view

Mountain view. 

We spent the last two days exploring the southern two thirds of Highway One.  We started by stopping at the Elephant Seals Viewing area, where hundreds of elephant seals give birth and live for part of their lives.  Since this is the season seal pups are growing and beginning to learn to swim, there were lots of seals.

The rest of the trip was just one terrific vista after another.  I’ll let the pictures tell the story.

Lunch time view.  Had the best tuna salad ever.

Rock slide tunnel

 Willow Beach, one of the rocky beaches. 

Birds at Willow Beach.

 Those dots on the peninsula are horses.  There was a horse and cattle farm there.

 Sandy beach.

And the last shot is the zebra at Hearst Ranch.  William Randolph Hearst had a private zoo.  Most of the animals ended up in other California zoos, but zebras and a breed of goat still exist on the ranch.  The zebra graze with the cattle and one of the guides said they think they are cattle.  This group was grazing within a mile of our campsite.

It’s beautiful drive.  If you ever get the chance to take it, do.

Deb

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Happy St. Patty’s Day!  We are still camped El Chorro Regional Park near Morro Bay, California.  Today was errand day – post office, lunch, groceries and diesel in San Luis Obispo.  San Luis Obispo is the home of California Polytechnic State University, usually referred to as Cal Poly.

Yesterday, we visited Hearst Castle, built by William Randolph Hearst who built a publishing empire, which still exists today.  The Castle itself was turned over to the state as a museum after his death. 

When Hearst’s mother died in 1919, he inherited this land, which he always loved.  He had grown up on the cattle ranch here, with lots of trips around the rest of the world.  His father had made his fortune in mining ores and invested in California real estate – cattle ranches.  He owned 100’s of square miles in this area and the Hearst family still raises cattle here. The family home was at the foot of the hill, but their favorite camping site was here where Hearst Castle is.  (Hearst always called it the Ranch.)  Shortly after his mother’s death, he started building.

Did he go to a local contractor and ask for a small cabin?  No, he hired Julia Morgan, one of the first women architects and a contemporary of Frank Lloyd Wright.  Hearst Castle is the result.

Julia Morgan built many buildings in San Francisco after the 1906 earthquake and earthquake resistance was a priority for both Hearst and Morgan.  The buildings are built of heavily reinforced concrete and withstood a 6.5 earthquake in 2003.  No structural damage was found.  Several pots broke but have been repaired.  Both tour guides mentioned how little damage was done.

Julia Morgan must have been quite a lady.   She worked with Hearst for 28 years building, tearing out and rebuilding the castle.  And finished over 700 other projects.  The castle is still unfinished.  Check the tower on the far right in the picture above.  The finish layer on the outside hasn’t been done.  In 1947, Hearst’s doctors ordered him to move to Los Angeles for medical care. Although Hearst lived another 4 years, work stopped shortly after his move.  One of the conditions of the gift to the state was that it remain as Hearst left it.

Hearst had fun here.  He invited many people to visit and wanted to make sure they had fun.  Horseback riding, hiking, checking out his private zoo, tennis, pool, snooker, cards and board games were all available.  As were two swimming pools – the outdoor pool, which is undergoing repairs:

And the indoor pool (my favorite):

Hearst was an avid collector.  There are over 20,000 museum quality objects in the house and that was about a tenth of his collection.  The objects include not only statues and pottery, but books, rugs, walls, ceilings, tapestry, paintings, mosaics, anything you might see in a museum.

The guide said that they no longer take people through the front door because it opens on a roman mosaic floor.  Apparently they hadn’t realized it’s age until some work was done on it a few years ago.  This is the front door.

But while the castle was filled with priceless antiques, Hearst wanted it to be a casual place.  Here’s the table set for lunch (sorry the picture is out of focus), but you can see the ketchup and mustard on the table with the paper napkins.  The guide said the glasses and silverware were commonly available in any store, although you still had to worry about picking up the wrong fork.

But what made this place so special were the views.  To the west of course is the ocean.

And to the east, the hills of the ranch, which extends as far as you can see.

And yes, that’s a lemon.  Here at the castle, spring was in full force and the smell was heavenly.

Some of the bedrooms had views in both directions, but Hearst’s room had the sea view.

It’s a lovely place and well worth the visit.

Deb