J is for Julian, California

Julian, California is not a secret but it’s not as well known as some of the other California historical districts. Julian is very proud of its heritage and even offers a History Hunt Card to insure that historical sites are not missed.

Our love affair with Julian doesn’t have a lot to do with the history. We know Confederate soldiers settled it after the Civil War. The town was named for Mike Julian who eventually became the San Diego County Assessor. We actually go there for the apples pies and the camping.

There are many state and county campgrounds surrounding the area. You have your pick of semi-desert to forested areas. However, I do have to give a nod to the private campground, Pinecrest. As a vintage trailer aficionado, I have enjoyed touring this campground with close to 100 vintage trailers. I have three vintage trailers of my own. Although it is a private campground, they do rent some of the vintage trailers for a unique camping experience. It’s sort of a California version of the Shady Dell campground in Bixby, Arizona.

The other reasons to visit Julian are the pies and all things apple. I can make my own apple pies, but why? Several places specialize in apple goodies and I like them all.

If you are not sold on the history, the camping, or the apple pies, Julian also has some interesting shops, unique restaurants, and wine tasting.

Looking for a day trip that has something for everyone, try Julian. Save me a piece of pie.

I is for Indio, CA

Romance and Sex Life of the Date 

OK I said it, you know, the “S” word. 

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/irishfireside/3262015686/

 Actually, at Shields Date Garden, the sex life of the date is a proud heritage. In 1924, Floyd and Bess shields came to California and built a business to grow dates. Mr. Shields also lectured his customers about the date culture. The lecture became so popular he created a 15-minute film that plays today. I must say we were tickled with the film and learned more about dates than we thought possible.

Located on Hwy 111, just beyond Palm Springs, you will find this delightful place with not only the film but also a shop and restaurant.  BTW, in Cabazon, Hadley’s Fruit Orchard has been serving date shakes for as long as I remember. We learned they are made with the Shield’s crystals. They are quite tasty!

My photo

So, what else is in Indio?

The Coachella Valley History Museum is housed in a 1926 adobe called the Smiley-Tyler House. There is also the 1909 Indio Schoolhouse. There are several gardens and one that spotlights the oldest Cork Oak tree in the Coachella Valley. What I really like is the archives. It includes the history of Coachella Valley and is open to researchers. As a family history aficionado, that’s a great resource.

While I am not into golf, several of my family members are and they have discovered there are 6 golf courses. Yep 6, and that was after they made the rounds in Palm Springs.

I would call this the piece of resistance. We have talked about the Indio International Tamale Festival for the 20 years we have lived here and have yet to make it. This year, we are going. It will be held from December 7 through December 8, 2013 and is held in downtown. The Food Network has ranked this as one of the top 10 “All-American Food Festivals.”

On December 4, 1999, they won the Guinness World Record for the largest tamale. It was over 1 foot in diameter and 40 feet long. My husband swears he can eat that all by himself. Look for us there.

H is for Hot Air Balloons

There are wonderful Hot Air Balloon festivals all around the world. We have the Temecula Valley Balloon Festival, this year being held on May 31 – June 1, 2013, at Lake Skinner in the Temecula Valley Wine Country.

For those who are more adventurous, balloon tours are available almost everywhere. It’s kind of interesting that I will drive across America on my own but am afraid to get into a gondola. Nevertheless, I have the best of both worlds. I don’t need to go to the festival and I get my fill of the majesty of these balloons as they soar into the air.

Two companies launch across the street. Our area is rural and there is plenty of room for them to spread out their tarps and inflate the balloons. The whoosh of the burners captures my attention. As I wrote in a recent Squidoo page, I am going to stop taking pictures of them. I mean, how many do I really need. Somehow, I doubt that it will happen. With the next whoosh, I will be out again. Here are just a few of the pictures.

G is for Gilroy and G is for Garlic

As you approach the town, you will begin to understand the lure of the city. For anyone who loves garlic, this is the place to be. It simply smells good!

Gilroy is best known for its Garlic Festival. This year it is being held from July 26, 2013 to July 28, 2013. The festival celebrates garlic in all its glory and shares some unique uses. I am not fond of the ice cream but will trample anyone in my way to the garlic fries.

The festival is more than just the garlic. This year, the festival is celebrating its 35^th year with their 2013 Great Gilroy Garlic Festival Recipe Contest and Cook-off. The website has the recipes from the winners in 2012. They look absolutely yummy.

Kids are more than welcomed at the festival and they have gone out of their way to include them. They have crafts to spur the imagination and music just for them. There is music for the grown-ups too with three separate venues guaranteed to appeal to everyone.  

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/maveric2003/934043066/

Of course, there is the Gourmet Alley with many food choices and cooking sessions for those who want to learn. I haven’t had the pleasure of the demonstrations but it is on my to-do list.

So where is Gilroy? The festival is held at 7050 Miller Avenue, Gilroy, CA 95020. Gilroy is in the Central Valley, right off the US 101. It’s about a half hour north of Salinas. Salinas is not only known for being the “Salad Bowl of the World” but also the birthplace and childhood home of author, John Steinbeck. It’s about 4 hours north of Los Angeles and a little more than an hour south of San Francisco.

Oh, and if you miss the festival, don’t worry, there are plenty of shops that have garlic products. If you’re looking for an adventure, drive north another 4 hours to Corning, California and visit the Olive Pit to get some olives to go with your garlic. 

F is for Felton, CA

Our introduction to Felton, California came from an unusual request. It was the 50th anniversary of the founding of Henry Cowell State Park and they wanted vintage trailers from that period to show what it would have looked like when the park opened. Never being one to miss a chance to show off my 1959 Dalton travel trailer, we gathered some friends and made the trip. We arrived a day early and setup our camp. Henry Cowell is a beautiful state park and has its own stand of redwood trees.

The trailer the day before the vintage trailer display. The campsites are wonderful and secluded so you think that you have the forest all to yourself. 

Once camp was setup, we went to see this charming town. It is everything that one could ask for in a town that began in the late 1800’s. The major industry at that time was the railroads that put it on the map. Today, it caters to visitors with many places to eat and shop. It is also the home of the already mentioned Henry Cowell State Park and the equally interesting Roaring Camp Railroads.

We did not have an opportunity to ride the trains. A trailer show is a trailer show and we stay there to show off our trailers and to answer questions. However, every time the whistle blew, I wanted to run across the parking lot and hop a train. However, the state park staff did provide us dinner in the dining room of Roaring Camp so we got to see all the lucky people enjoying the train rides. Roaring Camp Railroads has two routes that visitors can take. One travels to Bear Mountain through redwood groves and the other takes visitors to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Both of them are on my list of things to do because I have a thing about trains.  

We moved our trailer to the display area. This is my 1959 Dalton. It is completely original except for the paint job. We were losing the graphics so we had it repainted following the original lines in the original Chevy Gold color.

     A few of the other trailers that shared the camp-out with us.

                              

Henry Cowell State Park is breathtaking. We were there for four days and it just wasn’t enough. The self-tour of the groves makes it easy for those of us with bad knees to enjoy the whole park at our leisure. Camping in the park takes you away from everyday stresses, as the forest seems to envelope you with the mystery of the past. I honestly can’t wait to go back and we are looking at next year for this adventure.

 A few more pictures to share. It is impossible to take a bad picture.

E is for Eureka, CA

Eureka, California is a smaller city in Northern California that packs a big punch. It has the perfect location. Surrounded by some of California’s most spectacular Redwood Forests, it sits on Humboldt Bay.

It was never really a destination as we made the yearly trips to Seattle to visit family. However, when we bought our teardrop trailer is Washington State; we decided to travel Hwy 1 on the way home. We still might not have stopped there but an accident closed Hwy 1 and we were stuck in Eureka for the night. We should have gotten out of the car a long time ago because the town itself is worth a visit.

It’s not as if we have never been there but it was not any more than a meal or a snack on a longer journey. We were pleasantly surprised by the food and shopping. There are fun shops to wander through and yes, I spent some money on trinkets.

What we really found interesting was the architecture. If you don’t take the time to stop, you don’t realize that Eureka is known for its historical district with wonderful home built in the early 1800’s. I love old homes so touring the town was a real treat. Check out The Eureka Historical Society. They have lots of information on the architecture.

Still, Eureka has taken on new meaning for me. I just completed The Family History Writing Challenge. My great grandfather left his family and headed for Northern California. He went there for the gold but ended up staying 30 plus years owning his own farm. He didn’t spend much time in Eureka but I know when I walk the town, I am walking in the footsteps he left so very long ago.

Eureka is also very close to Humboldt Redwoods State Park. This is a well-known destination and certainly worth a visit. It is 45 miles north of Eureka. However, if you go 20 miles southeast of Eureka, there is another state park that is less well known. Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park is small. The state park brochure says that it doesn’t get many visitors so you might have the grove all to yourself. What a treat that is.

Do make the time to see Eureka. Get out of the car and walk the town. Drive through the historical homes and take the time to enjoy all that Eureka has to offer.

D is for Description

This is going to sound presumptuous. Am I really going to try to describe California?

Picture what you know about California. Do you see the streets of Hollywood or the beautiful Yosemite Valley? Do you picture the alien landscape as you leave the Coachella Valley towards the Chiriaco Summit where the dirt colored hills do not support any life at all. Even in spring, there are no plants, weeds, or trees.

If you start the day in the Redwood Grove at Yosemite, you can end up at Mono Lake. The redwood grove is spectacular and the last time we took a friend to see it, the magnificent trees overwhelmed him. Then we headed for Mono Lake by way of Bodie, my favorite ghost town.  

Ending our day at Mono Lake was just the icing on the cake. If you have not been there, the Tufa is otherworldly and it’s fun to play with the ground flies.  It is hard to believe that all three places are within a day’s drive. 

California is a land of extremes. It is not only the landscape; it is just about everything else. 

California has some of the best surf beaches in the world. It also has some of the best places to ski. Mount Whitney is the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States and Death Valley is on the list as one of the hottest deserts on the planet.  

Everything is more expensive in California. We love it when we travel out of state; gas is so much cheaper. However, if you are looking for a selection of fruits and vegetables, we have everything. 

The freeway system in the Los Angeles area is extreme. As much as I would like to describe it, all I can say is that culture shock is inevitable. It seems like hundreds of freeways cross each other every few miles. You just need to know that if you get on the wrong freeway, another will cross it in a few miles to take you to your destination. 

Distance is measured in time and not miles. I can’t tell you how many miles it is from my house to San Diego but it's an hour and a half away. If I want to eat dinner at Anthony’s Fish Grotto on the San Diego wharf, I need to leave home around 3:00 pm. BTW, it’s my favorite restaurant in San Diego and be sure to ask for a window seat. 

My husband, grandson and I on Mother's Day at Anthony's Fish Grotto

California is a little hard to explain. I guess the best way to describe it is to say that if you are looking for a certain something, it will be here.