Day 22, Sunday March 23rd: Moving up US1 and visiting the Santa Barbara Mission

Sunday we left San Clemente beach about 07:30 and set out to pickup US1 in Huntington Beach. It was about 65F and foggy. 

Active Oil Well in Long Beach

Long Beach is just north of Huntington Beach and we were surprised to see how industrial it is, there are active oil wells in the middle of town. I think we saw more working oil wells on the California coast than in Texas.....maybe not, but there were many.

We also could see an oil platform just off the coast. 

Port of Las Angeles

North of Long Beach is the Port of Las Angeles, which is another huge industrial complex.

Las Angeles Airport

On the Northern side of LA, US1 goes by LAX.

Eventually when we got North of LA the coast became more what we were expecting for US1, it was still foggy, but still very scenic.

South of Malibu

Then just south of Malibu we came upon the section where the Pacific Palisades Fires burned for a month, covering 23K acres and destroying 15K structures, including 10K homes and killing 31 people. 

We did not realize it reached the coastal homes, but there is nothing but foundations for several miles leading into Malibu, it looks like they were bombed out, very sad. We also saw no construction activity to rebuild, not sure why, it has been over a year.

US1

North of Malibu US1 returns to its scenic beauty. It was still a bit foggy but improving.

Channel Islands NP

It was approaching lunch time so we pulled into the Channel Islands National Park in Ventura.  We were really just looking to park near the ocean for lunch and get a California state map, since we have yet to get one and have been using our large atlas which lacks fine detail.  We got neither, the Visitor Center has no parking for anything but cars, so we just parked on the street and had lunch. 

If you want to visit the park, it requires a reservation with one of the boat tour companies and takes all day. 

I thought it interesting that the marina was run by Safe Harbor, the same company that has been buying up the large marinas on Lake Champlain at home. 

The 21 Missions in CA

After lunch we made our way to Santa Barbara to stop at the Old Mission Santa Barbara. Founded in 1786 by the Franciscans the mission was the 10th and is known as the "Queen of Missions" due to it's beauty and location overlooking the city and the ocean.  There were 21 of these missions along the coast of California, each about 30 miles apart which was considered a one day horseback ride. 

Mission Church

The mission Church is beautiful.

In addition to the Garden and Church the mission is home to a historic Cemetery and Mausoleum where many of the friars and important people are buried. 

As you leave he Mission, there are pictures on the wall of important people who have visited the mission, including Micky Mantle and Queen Elizabeth II.

Van Trapp family visiting the mission

They also had a picture of the Van Trapp family visiting around 1952. The Trapp family settled in Vermont and established the Trapp Family Lodge which is a cross country ski destination. 

Old Mission Santa Barbara

The day had brightened and the views of the Mission from the outside were very pretty. 

CA-154

Saturday we booked a Harvest Host to spend Sunday night, a Plant Shop and Beerery called Birchwood Nipomo, in Nipomo, CA.  

From the Mission to the HH we traveled CA-154 or the San Marcos Pass Road, it goes over the Santa Ynez Mountains and skirts Lake Cachuma, it is a beautiful drive. 

Birchwood Nipomo

We arrived at Birchwood Nipomo a bit after 16:00 and were cheerfully greeted by our host. 

They had craft beers on tap and there was a pizza place, PiWhole, across the street.  We ordered pizza and sat in their garden and had dinner. June even picked up a nice lemon that fell off one of their trees.

Beertiful

The place was a mix of a nursery and beer garden, they went together quite well. 

Birchwood Nipomo

The center piece of the garden was a spectacular tree that provided nice shade. 

The camping location is removed from the Beerery making it very private. In our opinion, this is way better than being packed in a campground. 

We would definitely recommend Birchwood Nipomo. 

Sunday's Progress

Friday we covered about 50 miles of US1, Sunday we covered another 200 or so miles. We are taking our time and are planning a few diversions along the way, like Yosemite National Park. People ask us when we will be at a particular location and we just don't know how to answer, but once we are past Yosemite, we will probably have a better idea. Maybe?

Tuesday we will continue to Hearst Castle which is only a bit over an hour, but we plan to meet June's nephew, Michael, for dinner. It has been a few years since we last saw him.