California Road Trip, 2019 - Day 2

Hearst Castle

Chad and Ashley wanted me to plan this trip without much input from them, so they didn’t really know about all the fun things in store for them today. Like getting to visit the site where John Denver crashed his plane and died nearly 22 years ago, leaving a big, Rocky-Mountain-High-shaped hole in all our hearts. Bright and early this morning, we drove to Pacific Grove where we spent time beach combing, watching sea otters play in the surf, and talking about John Denver of course. In 1996, Chad and I saw John Denver in  concert, and a year later he was gone. Right into the ocean that we were now playing in. So, while Ashley collected sea shells, Chad picked up every piece of garbage he found and would say, “here’s part of John Denver’s plane,” and then toss it at me. Then he walked across the street to a golf course and interrupted a group of golfers to ask for an extra pencil so he could get a rubbing of the memorial.

The crash site and memorial

I love my husband

While Chad and Ashley explored the beach, I sat on a rock by the water and let the sun and waves medicate my soul for a while. Once everyone was ready to move on, we drove to Carmel-by-the-Sea and spent time enjoying the white sand and turquoise waters of Carmel Beach. We watched dozens of dogs play in the waves, and the sand was so soft it felt like powdered sugar under our feet. We didn’t want to leave, but we had to move on. Chad and I agreed to return here and buy a house in a few years. I found a quaint cottage 2 blocks from the beach that's just right for the 2 of us. It's for sale, and at just $4,000,000, we would be foolish not to buy it. We just need to start a GoFundMe to help raise $3,700,000 and then we're golden.

Beautiful Carmel Beach

As we made our way south on Highway 1, I began to tense up when we approached Bixby Creek Bridge, one of the tallest concrete bridges in the world. As I researched our trip, I learned about this bridge and have been nervous about crossing it ever since. One of the many joys I’ve experienced as I get older is a new-found fear of heights. I really tried to prepare for this bridge crossing, but apparently my self-directed pep talks didn’t work because as we came upon the bridge, I realized I was pressing my back into the car seat with all my might, and I discovered I was holding my breath. Lucky for me, we stopped at the pull out just before the bridge so we could get out and stand on a precipice over the ocean for a fun little photo shoot. Chad and Ashley climbed straight down the hill towards a ledge so they could get a better shot and, at the same time, give me a heart attack.

I watched them from a safe distance, scolding the two of them whenever they walked too close to the edge of the cliff. Which was often. When they trudged back up the hill, Chad stumbled backwards, waving his arms windmill-style, and yelled, “WOAH!” Then he laughed. I was so mad that I threatened to actually throw him off the bridge and then I may have cried a little bit. Obviously, we made it across the bridge safely and eventually I was able to breathe again.

We stopped to use the restroom in Big Sur and ended up eating a fabulous lunch on the patio at Lucia Lodge with breathtaking views of the ocean. As we made our way further south, the view was dazzling, and, at one point, Ashley pointed out, “it looks like a Windows wallpaper” just as we passed rolling green hills which were dotted with cattle.

The next stop on my itinerary was Elephant Seal Rookery. A few months each year, elephant seals come to this beach to breed because this area provides them safety from their #1 predator, the great white shark. After we pulled off the highway, I jumped out of the car before Chad had even parked and left my family in the dust as I ran to the viewing platform. As male elephant seals get older, their noses grow and resemble elephant trunks and they’re super ugly. But the younger seals still have sweet squishy faces, and it was all I could do to not jump onto the beach and snuggle every single one of them.

Ashley finally grew tired of watching them and decided it was time to go, so we drove another 5 minutes to Hearst Castle for a tour. A hundred years ago, newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst began building his estate. It’s since been donated to California and is open to the public for tours. We chose the Grand Room tour today which allowed us to see a handful of the rooms in Casa Grande, the 68,500 square foot home on the property. Casa Grande boasts 38 bedrooms, 30 fireplaces, and 42 bathrooms. Hearst entertained famous stars like Cary Grant, Charlie Chaplin and Joan Crawford at his estate, as well as political figures like Winston Churchill and Calvin Coolidge. 

The Assembly Room

The Refectory. The tables seats 22

The Neptune Pool

The Roman Pool

By the end of the tour we were exhausted, so we drove to San Louis Obispo and checked into our room at the Madonna Inn. Known as the kitschiest hotel in the world, the Madonna Inn has been calling my name for years. We're staying in room 125: Holland Dutch. It's super low-key compared to some of the other themed rooms. We didn’t splurge because we aren’t spending much time here, but the tackiness of our room did not disappoint. 

Look at this perfect sign

The Gold Rush Steak House

As soon as we entered our room, Ashley put on the fluffy pink bathrobe that’s one of the hotel’s signature amenities and climbed into bed, too tired to join us for dinner. Chad and I walked over to the hotel’s Silverbar Lounge and got a coveted table. Swathed in a light pink tablecloth with hot pink napkins, our table-for-two sat next to the dance floor where a band was setting up to play a wedding reception. We ate perfectly cooked steaks, listened to big band music, and watched people dance. Afterwards, we wandered around the hotel and then made our way back to our room. Ashley was sound asleep and Chad crashed shortly after. I’m sitting on our leather couch, watching Friends, and listening to our rowdy neighbors return from the wedding reception.

And for those of you keeping track with us, we saw 32 Teslas today.

-Rachel