Today’s episode of California’s Golden Parks is one I very nearly overlooked, and although it seems to be a bit of an undertaking to visit the Eugene O’Neill State Historic Site, Huell has me convinced that it’s worth the effort. I wasn’t even really sure where Danville was located, and learning it’s in Contra Costa County was a surprise to […]
This episode of California’s Golden Parks, originally aired in January 2005, sees Huell visiting Pio Pico State Historic Park in Whittier. The house was built in 1850, after Pio Pico’s time as governor of Mexican California had come to an end and around the time California became the 31st state. At its largest, Pio Pico’s ranch was 8,894 acres; nowadays […]
Today the chances are high that I’m somewhere in the outdoors, soaking up some natural beauty and avoiding anything to do with current events. And after watching this episode of California’s Golden Parks — originally aired in January 2006 — I would just love to be on Catalina Island exploring this beautiful and unique botanical garden. I’ve been a botanical […]
Another beautiful day in Southern California and another state beach I have never had the pleasure of seeing in person. This episode of California’s Golden Parks, originally aired in February 2006, features Carpinteria State Beach is just twelve miles south of Santa Barbara and is a great family destination that offers a mile of beach for swimming, surfing, fishing, tidepool […]
I’ve lived in Northern California all my life, so maybe it’s no surprise that I never really knew about the “world-famous” surf at Trestles in the San Onofre State Beach — although I do remember traveling along Interstate 5 and seeing the cooling towers of the nearby San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant (shut down since 2013). Still, Huell’s enthusiasm is […]
The early history of California is filled with not only Spanish missions and gold discoveries (not to mention the indigenous peoples) but huge tracts of land operated as cattle ranches by the Californios. Here in Northern California, the neighborhood I’m sitting in was once part of the vast San Juan Rancho land grant; and down in Southern California it’s just […]
This is another one of those episodes I had passed over several times until the topic was suddenly brought to my attention by Facebook a few days ago. Huell actually visited the Madrona Marsh Preserve a couple of different times for separate shows aired in 1995 and in 2003. Today I’m featuring the latter, California’s Golden Parks, which highlights the progress of this very special natural area and the opening of the Visitors Center; but to compare the change since the mid 1990s, you can check out the earlier episode of Visiting. Vernal pools are such an important and precious resource, and the fact that the city of Torrance chose to set this land aside — right across the street from a huge shopping mall — is just amazing. Much of the credit goes to the Friends of the Madrona Marsh, local citizens who donate their time and energy to keeping non-native plants from taking over. And that Facebook item I mentioned? It was a short episode of Pat Pattison’s Best of California, providing a right-up-to-date look at Madrona Marsh today! Rescued from future development and a history of oil drilling, the 42-acre Madrona Marsh Nature Preserve in Torrance is one of the last remaining vernal marshes in Southern California. The non-profit, volunteer organization Friends of the Madrona Marsh fought vigorously throughout the ’70s and ’80s to save this delicate natural habitat. Although Huell’s visit shows us a great success […]
After 2 weeks away from home (plus one week to recover!), I guess it’s time to jump back into my regularly scheduled blog posts. I’m starting out this Wednesday with an episode of California’s Golden Parks which originally aired May 10, 2006, featuring a place we passed by on our way home. The town of Kelso lies a bit north […]
When I think of Southern California, the sprawling urban centers around Los Angeles and San Diego usually spring to mind. Of course, there’s a wide variety of landscapes found in the southern half of the state — including some very beautiful parks and natural areas, like the one in today’s episode. Originally aired in 2003 as part of both Visiting […]