Gems Of The California Coast

As we make our way north, Morro Bay was our next stop, a seaside town known for its distinctive Gibraltar-like rock in the harbor. We enjoyed the Farmer’s Market and Natural History Museum, including a guided walk explaining Morro Bay’s estuary and its environs.

Nearby but inland is San Luis Obispo (you can tell we’ve been spoiled by having the ocean at our fingertips lately), a vibrant college town known for its Spanish Mission. In the late 1700’s the twenty-one fortress-like California missions protected the holdings of the Spanish empire and spread Catholicism. San Luis Obispo is also home to two kitschy conversation pieces. Bubblegum Alley is a narrow passageway downtown, covered bottom-to –top in multi-colored gum, some in shapes or forming words. Kinda disgusting and kinda weird. Not to be outdone for tacky, the Madonna Inn offers one hundred and nine themed-rooms (Cave Man Chamber, Safari Room, for example), a cheesy, elaborate pink dining room, and a stone waterfall that’s a men’s urinal! Yes, I (Patty) went inside to see it myself.

On previous trips to the West Coast, we’ve driven by Hearst Castle in San Simeon, but never stopped to check it out. This time we decided to go for it, although the admission price of $24.00 per person seemed steep and we expected it to feel like a rip-off. ….Wrong….We were hugely impressed and fascinated. The “ranch,” only one of William Randolph Hearst’s many vacation homes, is set on 250,000 acres, with the opulent mansion and compound of guest houses built on a hill overlooking the ocean. The design is eclectic, with influences from many European countries and Egypt, including some astounding rare antiques (furniture, tapestries, cathedral ceilings and doors, paintings), along with a slew of antique-inspired copies. The two pools look like something out of Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. Asked why Hearst used such a mixture of styles, our tour guide explained that “he did whatever he wanted!” The house was designed for lavish entertaining, as Hearst enjoyed good company. You wouldn’t be invited back if you were a dull conversationalist! Our guide brought the scene to life by having us imagine sipping cocktails with Carole Lombard, then sitting next to President Coolidge at dinner, and finally, viewing the latest Hollywood production in the plush movie theatre.

Just north of Hearst Castle is a beach where elephant seals congregate during the mating and birthing season. These creatures look like giant slugs, weighing 3000-4000 pounds, each with a bulbous, dangling “proboscis” (how often can one throw that word around?). We watched the mammals flick sand onto themselves (don’t know why they do that) and were further entertained when the males challenged each other, rearing up and making a weird, hollow bellow. The males fight by slamming into each other’s chests and then slashing at the enemy’s calloused neck with their teeth.

By far, the highlight of this week was Big Sur, the 90-mile stretch of coastline between Hearst Castle and Carmel. This drive is justifiably famous for its stupendous views of the Santa Lucia Mountains on one side and the Pacific on the other. All along the way steep cliffs meet the roaring ocean below, waves crashing dramatically against the dark rocks that punctuate the seascape, surf rolling into shore in a mesmerizing rhythm. The views are breath-taking at every turn of narrow, serpentine Route 1. It’s amazing that this much gorgeous territory remains unspoiled by housing developments and malls, thanks largely to the foresight of the National Forest and Park systems. At one point in the drive, we thought we saw a dolphin or whale frolicking in the water and pulled over to watch. After sitting for several minutes, we realized it was just a distant rock that was intermittently splashed and covered by the water, making us feel a little foolish. Oh well, it was still a beautiful spot to sit and look.

As I write this, Mia is parked at a campground in a grove of Redwood trees. Redwoods only grow in the foggy, temperate climate found between southern Oregon and Big Sur. Today is sunny, although that wasn’t apparent during breakfast because the giant trees were blocking the light! We spent an afternoon window-shopping in nearby Carmel, the charming and ultra-expensive town where Clint Eastwood was once mayor. On another afternoon we hiked in Andrew Molera State Park. The path took us along a narrow, rushing river that emptied into the ocean, then up a cliff to a perch overlooking both the ocean and the green, treeless mountains, which reminded me of Ireland.