Carmel Capers

The Weaver and I recently returned from a delightful week spent in and around Carmel-by-the-Sea on the California coast. A welcome respite from the long Minnesota winter (and a horrendous ice storm), we hiked and explored various locations up and down Highway 1, and spent some quality time just hanging out on the beaches.

Fabulous food, quaint shops and glorious sunsets were only part of the quirky charm of Carmel-by-the-Sea. At The Corkscrew, in the Carmel Valley, we even ate a pizza made with Meyer lemons and arugula. Our home base was a  hand-built studio (entrance shown at right) where I got a real sense of the history of the Carmel Highlands and some vibes of its its noted residents: Dick and Mimi Fariña, Edward and Brett Weston, Ansel Adams, Joan Baez (who visited the studio with Bob Dylan, and who had also baby-sat our host!) and many more.

Below are some photographic highlights of our adventures there (click on images to embiggen.)

Point Lobos:

Point Lobos with the Carmelite Monastery in the background:

The Clinton/Walker house, Carmel, Frank Lloyd Wright, architect:

Garrapata State Park:

Carmel Beach:

Carmel Beach:

To cap off the trip, we stopped in at DJ Cousin Mary’s place in the Los Trancos Woods near Palo Alto. Mary has been featured many times on FITK over the last 12 years and we have met before—in San Francisco and Reykjavík—but this was our first sighting of her in her “nest”. We had a great chat about music, literature, Iceland, and I got a peek of her fabulous archive of Surf Music recordings!

Thanks again, Mary, for your hospitality and your continued support. Needless to say, you and Ken are welcome anytime to Flippist World Headquarters.

Mary’s natural habitat