Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The sheer coastal topography has kept the Big Sur coastline rugged and largely uninhab-
ited even to the present day.
Highway 1 Construction & Recent Settlement
U NTIL 1938, early settlers could only dream of a safe, fast route down the coast from
Monterey to Big Sur. Even a simple supply trip to Monterey required a three-day trek
up steep ridges and across creeks and deep canyons. In 1919, after lobbying pressure
from a local politician, the federal government began construction of a road along the
central California coast. The construction project pitted settlers who wanted to pre-
serve their privacy against those who sought to profit from California's growing tour-
ist trade.
Built by convicts and local labor, Highway 1 would become one of America's
most popular roadways, revealing a gorgeous natural landscape. Artists and writers,
social activists, scientists, philosophers, and other visionaries flocked to the area for
inspiration, forming small artists' colonies and Bohemian sanctuaries. In the 1940s
and '50s, playwright Henry Miller lived and worked in Big Sur. Other famous people
who spent time here include Robert Louis Stevenson, Ansel Adams, Jack Kerouac,
Mary Austin, Jack London, Sinclair Lewis, John Steinbeck, Robinson Jeffers, Lillian
Ross, and Edward Weston.
Today, millions of annual visitors drive the Big Sur coast in appreciation of its
unparalleled natural beauty. While the road literally paved the way for so many of us
to access this wild, remote coast, it has also spurred government agencies, conserva-
tion groups, and local activists to preserve its exquisite beauty.
Big Sur Lore
W ITHIN THE JAGGED cliffs and narrow valleys live generations of mysteries: tales
of buried treasures, haunted beings, and supernatural speculation. The awe-inducing
beauty and eerie isolation experienced by many who venture to Big Sur, whether to
call it home or a place of refuge, gave birth to many interesting and irksome stories.
In my countless days in the backcountry, I have yet to experience any evidence that
these tales shed light on life within the Santa Lucia Mountains, yet they still remain an
alluring part of Big Sur's cultural heritage, and I do not intend to endorse or debunk
them.
The Dark Watchers
The sighting of the Dark Watchers originates from the Chumash Indians. They first
spoke of these dark humanlike beings inhabiting the forests and high country of Big
Search WWH ::




Custom Search