Wine
and Big Sur Tours
Carmel-by-the-Sea
New
!
Hiking
Carmel
Carmel
Birding
The
Abalone Song
“Sauntering
by piney trails.” Mary Austin
Carmel
was a dream
Carmel’s
political history
Big
Sur Lodge
– base for exploring Big Sur.
Stay here to help conservation.
Quick
call reservation
Point
Lobos
Point
Lobos Lore
Creating
the Reserve
Interactive
Map
Pacific
Grove
Pebble
Beach
Carmel
Valley
Monterey
Monterey
Peninsula
About
the fabled early days, see this sketch about Mary Austin,
“Sauntering
by piney trails.”
The
Abalone Song
Story
of Big Sur
Big
Sur EcoGuide
Big
Sur Camping
Big
Sur Lodging
Birding
Hiking
Old
Coast
Road
& Hwy One
People
& Places
Bixby
Bridge
Partington
Cove & Canyon
Julia
Pfeiffer Burns State Park
Nacimiento
Road
Ventana
Wilderness
Santa
Lucia Reserve
Mission
San Antonio
Wildlife
in San Simeon
Once
thought extinct, Elephant Seals have made a
resounding comeback. Go to the scene of some real
wildlife excitement. Hearst would have loved it,
right there in his front yard!
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Cambria
Cayucos
Harmony
Morro
Bay
Montaña
de Oro
Pinnacles
Monument
Salinan
Nation
Steinbeck
Center
Central
Coast Activities
Santa
Cruz
Natural
Bridges Butterfly Sanctuary
Castroville
Artichokes
Santa
Cruz Redwoods
Marine
Sanctuary
Moss
Landing
Voices
of the Wetlands
Elkhorn
Slough
Pelican
Protection Alliance
California
Back Country
San
Juan Bautista
PelicanNetwork
About
Pelican
Pelican
Membership
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Carmel-by-the-Sea
has legends of art colony Bohemian
exuberance. But, its real history is about
a heroic body politic that has kept this
idyllic coastal village a special, small
place.
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Carmel
Beach Sunset January 22, 2011 by Howard
Jones
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A
foggy night, chimney smoke, lights blinking through
pine needles, a Bach sonata in the air, Carmel
feels like a European village. Open air markets
with fresh flowers and local grown artichokes,
Brussels sprouts, basil, garlic in bins out on the
sidewalk further the notion. Candlelit storefront
cafes with lingering couples, cozy pubs for the
adventurers.
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Like background
music, the sea beats out a steady soothing tune.
A rumble, crack and roar of the surf steadily
rolls in and whooshes back out. Every sound,
though expected, is a surprise. Coming through
the forest, the music creates an
excitement.
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The
distinction of this rare setting begins at
the beach. The sands are like pure white
crystals. They became that way through
millions of years of earthquakes and
volcanoes forming granite.
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Rock promontories a mile
apart protect the beach from sediment runoff.
So, the sand rubbed from the granite by the
surf is not contaminated.
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Beyond
the beach, two other promontories, Point
Lobos to the south, and Point Pescadero to
the north, are among the world’s most talked
about meetings of land and sea.
A picturesque river and lagoon form a
centerpiece for the Bay. This spot was
considered by Father Junipero Serra as the
best California had to offer, and he
stayed.
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The
Village was created by a
visionary with convictions
Carmel
became an artists’ village not by
accident, but by the design of a
San Jose real estate
developer.
Frank
Devendorf’s
Dream
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In
the 1770’s Father Serra built the
Monterey Mission a safe distance
away from the military, as he
wanted his neophytes’ purity
reserved for the Church. It later
became an inspiration to the
artists who gravitated to
Carmel.
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Painters,
poets and writers came to Carmel to live
and work a bohemian artistic experience in
Nature.
They
created a theater in the woods, built tree
houses to write in, and had rollicking
beach parties that are still talked about.
Their names were Mary Austin, Sinclair
Lewis, Xavier Martinez, David Starr
Jordan, Jack London, and they made a name
for the woodsy village on the beach.
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What
if the people who made it charming couldn’t live
there anymore?
Carmel
became such a magnet for wealthy people, that in
time, the artists who created the mystique of
the Bohemian village in the woods by the sea,
could not afford to live there. Ironies
painfully evolved in this idyllic repose.
Once,
when Carmel had become such an artsy attraction
for the well-to-do, the town boosters began
demolishing the village’s allure. Its finest,
funkiest, most authentic symbol of this allure,
the woodland playhouse, was proposed to be
destroyed to make room for the expensive
condos.
Fortunately,
a sense of artistic heritage, and civic outrage
prevailed, and the theater was saved. But,
another Carmelesque twist resulted
differently.
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Going
to that theater, today, is one of Carmel’s most
treasured family events.
The
first lot Devendorf sold was to an African
American woman. He thought she represented a
cultural diversification that would be important
in his envisioned community. Now, however, it is
hard to find any black people in the
village.
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Practical,
innovative conservation as lifestyle
Poked fun
at for its environmental policies, such as not spreading
concrete all over so rain water can’t seep down to the
aquifers, and to preserve a forest canopy it has a
Department of Forestry. Carmel has turned ridicule into
praise. Nowadays such policies have earned Carmel the
mantle of respect among urban planners. Conservation
measures that have long been in practice here are now
looked at by other communities as necessities for a
livable future.
The house built by
Frank Lloyd Wright on Abalone
Point.
There
are no street addresses in the
village
In
the beginning it was thought
numbers would demean the
artistic community feeling so
arduously achieved.
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40
years later the
California Legislature tried
to impose house numbers on
them, and there was a revolt.
“Individuality is the
life-blood of Carmel,” a
planning commissioner said.”We
have avoided numbering our
houses under penalty of having
to fetch and carry our own
mail.” Indeed, all village
residents get their mail at
the post office, and that
contributes to a sense of
community.
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State
funds would be withheld from
Carmel if it insisted on this
peculiarity. The Legislature
continued its campaign to
force Carmel to join the ranks
of the humdrum everybody else.
But, it refused, and
threatened secession from the
State. There was a donnybrook.
The State’s public works sent
an inspector, who reported the
village was a dismal
situation, what with no
sidewalks, and trees growing
all over the place.
In the end, that fervent,
artistic individuality
prevailed.
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Even
though threatened by
overdevelopment, Carmel accommodates
many visitors. There are nearly 2,000
hotel rooms, and more than 30 Bed and
Breakfast Inns. Their trademark is an
unspoken elegance, and homeyness. It’s
a comfortable, close-knit town with
everything in walking distance … and
full of outstanding galleries and very
special restaurants.
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Per
capita, Carmel likely has more great
places to eat than anywhere else in
the world. French cuisine with a
fireplace, courtyard fountains, and,
well, the list is practically
endless and exquisite. And, don’t
forget the pubs … there are at
least half a dozen of them in
Carmel. Have you tried a lobster
tamale?
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Carmel’s
artist colony history is legion in the
annals of bohemia. Since World War II,
the atmosphere has become sedate in
comparison, and rarefied in tone. But
the tradition as a great place to
create art carries on. And, even though
there are mostly very commercial
artists here now, many enclaves of
treasures can be found.
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A good starting place is the Carmel Art
Association on Dolores between 5th and 6th.
Everything east and south of there drips with
art for several blocks.
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