Monday, May 14, 2012

May 8-9, 2012. Glass Beach in Fort Bragg, California.

We arrived in Fort Bragg, California,
for the night.
I finally got my sunset over the Pacific Ocean.
Just barely.

I had run the quarter mile from the hotel
to the beach to try to get the sunset.
The wind was howling
and it was cold as a witch's titty,
but Rosie soldiered on.

At one point,
I looked around to find the non-existent Mr. Hawthorne.
He was supposed to have my back.
Naturally, he'd turned back due to the harsh weather conditions.
Meow.




The next morning,
I ventured up to the hotel lobby
to check out the "continental" breakfast.
There was coffee and orange juice,
no toast of any kind,
and no fruit.
Just an impressive variety of cellophane-packaged sweets
- Little Padma Cakes -
which I don't eat.

We actually went out for a REAL breakfast.
First time on this trip.


 Mr. Hawthorne had an omelet with ham.
I got to eat his delicious potatoes.
These were perfectly cooked - nice and crisp.
Excellent potatoes.


 I decided to be daring and ordered the Eggs Benedict.
The Hollandaise was not bad.
But you know it's nothing like Eggs Hawthorne.

The eggs were overcooked
and the muffin was not toasted at all
so it was soggy mush.
The hash browns were excellent.

This is along the pathway to Glass Beach.
Wild blackberries!



Again, the iceplant is everywhere.













Fort Bragg was established in 1857
to oversee the Mendocino Indian Reservation.
When the reservation moved,
the fort was abandoned and Fort Bragg
subsequently became a lumber and port town.

Fort Bragg is home to Glass Beach, one of the most
unique beaches in the world.
Beginning in 1949, the area now known as Glass Beach
was a public dump.
The residents discarded all types of refuse
by dumping it over the cliffs into the ocean.
Household garbage, including lots of glass,
appliances, and even automobiles
were dumped into the ocean here.
In 1967, the North Coast Water Quality Board
and city leaders closed the area
and various cleanup programs were undertaken
throughout the years to try and correct the damage.

Glass Beach is unique, not because nature made it that way,
but because time and relentless wave action
 have corrected one of man's mistakes.

Mother Nature has reclaimed this beach.
Years of pounding surf have deposited tons of polished glass
onto the beach.
There is also an interesting array of tidal pools to explore,
in which crabs, mollusks, and many aquatic plant make their homes.


It is a misdemeanor to confiscate any artifacts
from the beach, which is now State Park property,
so Rosie has no glass to show you. ; )


































This is my little friend, Ramone.
He came within two feet of me
and begged to have his picture taken.


Of course, I obliged.










I love this garden and this plant.








A magnificent plant.
And Rosie has the SEEDS!


Artichoke.



Allysum growing through crack in sidewalk.


I had to stop and chat with the gardener.
He was out weeding.
I wanted to know what the purple spires were.
It's Echium and he told me where his weed/plant pile
was and I now have seeds!

He said this was the "Crazy Lazy Man's Garden"
and he was going for a "wild look."
I think he succeeded.
The garden is beautiful.








9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Beautiful photos, Rosie. Sometimes I forget how beautiful this state is, as we live in the San Joaquin Valley--very agricultural. How far are you going in Calif?

Rosie Hawthorne said...

Hi NMOAC, we went down as far as Sunnyvale, then crossed over to Bakersfield where we stayed last night. Death Valley next, then VEGAS! California is too big. We're saving the southern part for another visit.

Lea said...

Those trees look like they belong in a Dr. Seuss book! Love the sea glass.

dh said...

The glass beach is awesome!! And those plants are soooo coooollll. I wonder how the seeds of that crazy tall purple plant will do in NC.

dh said...

Oh! And thank you for showing Ramon. I had to see him upclose because he was so cute. BTW mama I have a wild lizard who invaded my house and is camping out under my furniture. This happened about three hours after I pretty much bragged about how many lizards I had seen but how none of them ever get inside the house, so... lizard karma and I are super in touch

Rosie Hawthorne said...

Lea, I love sea glass, but never bother to comb the beaches at home for it. Need to go after a Nor'easter to find the stuff.

DH, I'll let you know how the echium does in NC. The gardener told me it was a biennial and Mediterranean/Portuguese. And also, it doesn't freeze in Fort Bragg. That may be a problem for me on the Outer Banks. But I'll give it a try. The spikes are drying out in the truck as I type.

Rosie Hawthorne said...

And some of those plants had to be 15 feet tall.

Rosie Hawthorne said...

DH, let Dogwood loose on the lizard. Good times!

Rosie Hawthorne said...

DH, Ramone's a cutie!