We drove up to the Monterey area on California State Route 1. It’s arguably some of the most beautiful coastline in the world. Click to enlarge.
Mission Santa Inés
On our way out of Buellton this morning, we drove through Solvang, California, which is a Danish-American enclave in the Santa Ynez Valley. Just outside of Solvang, we stopped at Mission Santa Inés, one of the original El Camino Real missions. The mission has had a face lift or two, but still retains it’s original early nineteenth century charm.
Santa Inés was the site where a Spanish soldier assaulted a Chumash Indian which led to an uprising that secularized the missions in the area. Most of the Indians returned to their tribal sites in the hills, although a few stayed on.
From Wikipedia:
The original bell structure (erected in 1817) collapsed in 1911 and was reconstructed out of reinforced concrete in 1948. The campanile has been compared by architectural historian Rexford Newcomb to the one that originally abutted the façade of Mission San Gabriel Arcángel.
Tonight, we’re camping at Morro Bay, just a quarter mile from the famous rock. Tomorrow, Big Sur and the Monterey Peninsula.
We’re Off!
We picked up our travel trailer this afternoon and are now camped in Buellton, California. I took this photo of the coastline approaching Gaviota, not far from the Ronald Reagan Ranch. Tomorrow, we will be touring Santa Ynez Valley before heading up to San Luis Obispo and Morro Bay.
One Year Ago
Last July 21st, Damsel took this picture near Moab, Utah. We were on our summer vacation and the petrol was pricey. Thank goodness that we’re in better shape for our upcoming trailer-towing excursion as we drive up the California Coastline – real soon now . . .
To Infinity and Beyond
Well, we’re not exactly Buzz Lightyear, but with our new Garmin nüvi GPS navigation system, we will be able to find our way around during some upcoming excursions. We will be going on our summer vacation soon, so we decided to get this system installed so we can both figure out how to use it.
Now that our retirement goal is in sight, we plan to be on the go a lot more when we do retire. But, that being said, we still have a couple of adventures left before we retire. One is the summer vacation coming up soon and the other is the GUN BLOGGER RENDEZVOUS in September. We don’t plan on getting lost for that one, for sure.
Speaking of GBR-IV, are you registered yet?
Orange Echeveria Flowers
I’ve been trying out the new camera today (we didn’t do our usual Sunday shoot). I took a close-up of several flowers in the patio garden. This was the favorite one today.
Click on the image to enlarge.
I’m not sure of the exact name for this variety of echeveria, but the color and texture are very eye-appealing. We bought this echeveria at a succulent sale at the Botanic Garden and the label on the side of the pot says ‘ranunculus.’ I can assure you that this is not a ranunculus.
New Camera Equipment
My old camera, a Canon EOS XTi, had the habit of dropping some of the picture files during downloading. We’re not sure why, but it was a minor nuisance. So, we decided to let the old camera be the standby unit and upgraded to the next-generation EOS, the Canon EOS Rebel XSi.
The camera kit consisted of:
- Rebel XSi Body (Black)
- Eyecup
- Wide Strap
- Video Cable
- USB Interface Cable
- Battery Pack
- Battery Charger
The image shows the new camera with the protective amour installed. Click to enlarge.