A Long Drive on Highway No.1 (Part Two)

Cachuma Lake 

   
   

Cachuma Lake banks

 


 We continued our journey passing through small towns which seemed very peaceful far away from noise and bustle of the overcrowded cities. On the way we happened to see a very big lake called Cachuma Lake (means "sign" spelled in Spanish as 'Aquitsum', the name of a Chumash village) located in the Santa Ynez Valley and is nearly twelve miles east of Solwang. It is an artificial lake built on the Santa Ynez river and covers an area of nearly 3,100 acres. This Lake Reservoir was created by the construction of Bradbury Dam by the U.S.Govt. in 1953. There are many camp sites here for enjoying boating trips, hiking and fishing. Los Padres National Forest came into our view with densely grown trees on huge slopes of Santa Ynez mountains. This forest covers 7890 sq. kms. in area and contains many mountains like Santa Lucia, La Panza Range and San Rafael Mountains etc. Many rivers in Southern and Central California originate from Los Padres National Forest such as Caramel,Salinas,Santa Ynez and Piru. In this forest many kinds of trees such as redwood, fir and pine trees are seen. This forest is adjacent to the Angeles National Forest which is in Los Angeles County in Southern California.

 Santa Barbara 

 Road  leading to Santa Barbara

    

 We travelled through Santa Barbara situated between the steep mountains of Santa Ynez and the Pacific ocean giving us a beautiful view on either side.Santa Barbara is a thriving city with many financial,industrial and educational institutions with many downtown beaches and restaurants.There are many museums like  Santa Barbara Museum of Art,Museum of Natural History,Maritime Museum and Santa Barbara Zoo.It has a mixed population of White,African,Mexican,Native American and Asian people.

    

   

Malibu  

 Malibu Town View

                                           



  Malibu is a beachfront city in northwestern Los Angeles County. This town well-known for its    scenic beaches is the home of many Hollywood movie stars. There are many beaches like Surf-rider  Beach, Zuma Beach, Malibu State Beach, Dan Blocker Beach etc. The beaches are relatively clean    with white sand dunes and pebbles. You will find many seaside restaurants on the road. But we did    not find any sea-creatures or shells near the seashore.

Porto Marina Beach

Porto Marina Sea shore

                           









  The setting sun sinking on the western horizon reflected red and orange hues on the moving ripples   of  Pacific. The sky gradually turned purple and dark later. we stayed at Hampton Inn at Oxnard just twenty-eight miles from Malibu.Oxnard seems to be a big city with a big trade activity with many     showrooms departmental stores and industries. Oxnard is also an agricultural center well-known for strawberry food products, cucumbers, beans and beet sugar.Next morning we proceeded to see the famous temple of Lord Venkateswara in the city of Calabasas at a distance of thirty five miles from Malibu.

                           

Lord Venkateswara's Temple, Calabasas

   

This temple on the hills of Malibu was built in the traditional Hindu style on an elevated platform by the   Hindu Temple Society of Southern California in 1981. In the temple precincts on the ground level, there are small temples for other Indian deities like Vinayaka, Murugan, Shiva, Hanuman, and Rama. The day, being Saturday(an auspicious day for the presiding Lord), there was a huge gathering. The elaborate rituals by the priests shielding the Lord with silk curtains made us wait for hours. There was a frantic rush of devotees as soon as the curtains were removed. We struggled hard to get a momentary glimpse of  the Lord decked in shining jewels and ornaments.We came out a little bit frustrated and much exhausted. God, though merciful, is curtained off by man made barriers by elaborate rituals. In the dining hall, food consecrated by being offered to the Lord was given in plates for a nominal price of three dollars each. This is a good practice since devotees feel a sense of satisfaction for having Lord's sacred Prasadam,and the temple  authorities will not incur much expenditure  for preparing food and other items in such large quantities.In this temple many ceremonies, festive programs and cultural programs are organised throughout  the year.

Memorial Hall on the hill

Golden Archway 

 
      

 In the afternoon we went to see the calm and peaceful retreat  Lake Shrine Temple located in Pacific  Palisades.On the way we watched the beautiful beaches of the Pacific bay like Malibu State Lagoon Beach, Sunset Beach, and Santa Monica Beach.This Ashram was founded by Paramhamsa Yogananda on 20th August,1950 on a ten acre land embellished with gardens and a lake.You can see pretty white marble statues of gods and goddesses and spiritual masters of all religions. Apt sayings and and quotations are given on the pedestals of those statues which are very meaningful and impressive.Perched on the top of the hill a memorial hall was built for practicing meditation and for listening to religious discourses.Many awareness and training programs are organised by the Self-Realization Fellowship Organization.The cool shade of trees, the colorful blooms and the floating spectacle of swans and storks on the placid waters of the lake with windmill Church nearby provide a very peaceful and congenial atmosphere for all visitors to sit and meditate at least for a few moments. Really a picturesque re-creation of a holy hermitage with natural ambiance and scenery.  

Next morning we began our return trip.An enchanting drive again through wooded valleys flanked by hills and sea coast on either side.It was a cloudy morning with alternate spells of rain and sunshine.Throughout  our ride we saw fields of strawberry,cherry and grapevine. The raw green grapes mingled with rosy clusters of ripe ones gave a checkered view of Nature's beauty.At some places fields of black soil with lush green vegetables like cauliflower, cabbage, and lettuce were seen.A large number of horses within enclosures were visible meant for ploughing fields or for sporting purpose.The Cachuma Lake with her vast expanse of water greeted us again. How we feel like staying there in such tranquil places fully suffused with beauties of Nature without any noisy disturbances! Yet routine life has to go on with practical responsibilities and obligations.We felt as if we were thrown out from the fantastic world of imagination into the dull world of reality when we entered the town.Yet the memories of our scenic drive will remain fresh like happy dreams in our hearts and as one of the most pleasant events in our lives. 

 (My hearty best wishes and blessings to my son Subash who drove us all along the way and provided all amenities during our long drive. His insistence to take us on this trip at any cost gave us this rare opportunity to enjoy and appreciate the charms of the American landscape. My daughter-in-law, Nikhila, urged us to travel in spite of her delicate health at that time. So once again I wish them all the best for their support and help.) 

           

                                                                                                                      Somaseshu Gutala
                                                                                                                        May 25th 2013

          

                           

A Long Drive on Highway No.1(Part One)

Santa Lucia Mountains

             Most of the people in U.S. relax themselves by enjoying the scenic drive along the Pacific Coastal region surrounded by beautiful hills, forest areas and mountain streams with many flora and fauna.You might have already guessed what I meant : it is the much admired and travel led California Highway No.1. All along the way you will find captivating sea beaches on one side and mountain slopes on the other side with dense  greenery,tall imposing trees and woods aglow with changing seasonal colors and multi-colored birds. Far  away from urban congestion and bustle one can feel a fresh invigorating experience with a sense of tranquility without foregoing modern facilities- I mean,wayside restaurants and shelters. We started our three day trip to Malibu from Sunnyvale to cover nearly a distance of three hundred miles.We stayed for the night at Buellton, a small town , as ours is a leisurely journey without any worldly day-to-day distractions.
             
            As we started toward south, cherry and strawberry gardens appeared adding co lour and charm ,
 to the busy roads so smooth and comfortable to travel by. Most of the villages we passed by, bore names connected with sea like Marina, Sea View, Sand city and Sea Side etc.On the way we passed by the pastoral river valley called Caramel River Valley surrounded by towering grey Santa Lucia mountains.This  valley is one of the finest areas of viniculture(cultivating vine gardens for making wine). The Caramel River flows through green plains flanked by dark cliffs of the Santa Lucia Mountains. Many state protected parks are here.Andrew Molera State Park is the largest State Park located near the Big Sur river with sandy beaches, oak trees and vast meadows.

Big Sur River

The Big Sur River is located near the scenic highway nearly 150 miles south of San Francisco and 300 miles from Los Angeles. It is flanked on one side by the majestic Santa Lucia Mountains and on the other side by the rocky Pacific coast. We halted at the Ripple-wood Resort, a restaurant with picturesque surroundings nestled in the valley surrounded by hills and greenery. It looked like a dwelling fit for Nature-lovers and artists.We passed  by Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park where hikers can walk eight miles and camp there. This park is spread over more than one thousand acres of forest comprising vast meadows and trees like redwood, maple,alder and oak trees. Small animals like deer, skunks, raccoons and grey squirrels are seen. The Big Sur River passes through the centre of the park surrounded by steep mountains. 

Los Padres National Forest

  

Andrew Molera State Park

Los Padres National Forest is another important place by which we passed.This forest is nearly 7890sq.kms in area and has many hills and is the place of origin for many rivers of Southern and central California.The Santa Barbara and Montery National Forest regions were merged in 1936 to form Los Padres National forest. On one side we saw the calm ripples of the Pacific with varying colors of blue, sea-green and silver-blue in the shimmering light of the warm sun.On the other side we saw high mountains with dense clumps of grass, brush- wood and tall trees with occasional sighting of birds and small wild creatures- two different fabulous charms  of Nature seen at one place. But at many places repair works were going on. So we had to travel at a speed less than thirty miles. At some places the roads were narrow with sharp curves and sharp turns.                                                            

Neptune Pool , Hearst  Castle

 We took diversion and went to see the famous Hearst Castle on the hill at Sam Simeon. A documentary film of about 45 minutes in duration was shown briefing the visitors about the life and achievements of William Randolph Hearst, who boldly undertook this Herculean task of building a huge mansion on a distant hill encompassing the features of a castle with precious artifacts and sculptures, spending millions of dollars and engaging a large number of workers and builders. Besides constructing this as a retreat, Mr.Hurst also created a favorable ambiance to preserve the surroundings in their pristine beauty and filled the woods with rare species of wild life enhancing the natural charm.
                                                                   

Hearst Castle

We were allowed to see only a few rooms in the castle which actually consists of 165 chambers Around the castle outside many marble sculptures and statues of Grecian and Roman art  were erected. The figures of nymphs, gods and goddesses in  graceful postures attract the attention of tourists very much.The audio-commentary given   while travelling by bus to and fro was quite impressive and informative.A visit to this castle makes us  realize how great people with a sense of dedication and  perseverance realize their dreams which seem to be too remote like stars at the beginning and how they finally                                                                                                touched them without going back.                                                                            .                                                                      

Santa Rosa Creek

After leaving the castle we passed through Cambria, a sea-side village six miles away south of Hearst Castle.   The village has many beautiful restaurants, art galleries and specialty shops. The blue sea on one side with small beaches and pine forests on the other side in the dim twilight, gave relief to our tired bodies. We passed by Santa Rosa Creek, a twenty-two mile long stream rising from the Hood Mountain.The river is flanked  by many rocky flats with dense vegetation and wild plants. We reached Buellton, a small town in Santa Ynez Valley County.We took our lodgings at Marriot, an  elegant restaurant with well-furnished rooms and facilities.Next morning we proceeded to Solvang (Danish word for sunny fields) , a small town near Santa Ynez.                                                                        

Danish houses at Solvang

  Windmill at Solvang

 This town is nearly ninety-two miles from Malibu and is considered as one of the most beautiful small towns in  the western U.S. This town with petty cottages, gift shops, restaurants, windmills and handicraft stalls gives us a pretty picture of a typical Danish town modeled in the style of displaying Danish culture and  tradition.This town was founded by the Danish immigrants in 1911. Many restaurants offer Danish cuisine with visitor friendly hosts. At Paule Pan Cake House we were served Danish pan cakes with sweet syrup. They looked like big Indian Dosas, but very soft melting in our mouths with creamy flavour. In this town there are three museums, many bakery shops, theatres and gift shops with many typical Danish items and artifacts  giving us a feel of their culture. The bust of Hans Christian Anderson., the famous Danish writer, is seen in the park. The replica of Copenhagen's round tower can be also seen there.

  (Replica of Copenhagen's Round Tower, Solvang )

                                                   ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++=
                                                                                                                         Somaseshu Gutala
                       15th May, 2013.