Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
divers; without donning a wetsuit, you can still get an idea of the underwater terrain with a
3D model located by the parking lot. Reserve snorkeling, scuba-diving, kayaking and SUP
permits (per person $5 to $10) up to 60 days in advance online.
Arrive early on weekends; parking is limited. Don't skip paying the entry fee by parking
outside the park gates on the highway shoulder - California's state parks are chronically
underfunded and need your help.
San Carlos Borroméo de Carmelo Mission
CHURCH
9:30am-7pm)
Monterey's original mission was established by Franciscan friar JunÃpero Serra in 1770,
but poor soil and the corrupting influence of Spanish soldiers forced the move to Carmel
two years later. Today this is one of California's most strikingly beautiful missions, an oas-
is of solemnity bathed in flowering gardens. The mission's adobe chapel was later replaced
with an arched basilica made of stone quarried in the Santa Lucia Mountains. Museum ex-
hibits are scattered throughout the meditative complex.
The spartan cell attributed to Serra looks like something out of
The Good, the Bad and
the Ugly,
while a separate chapel houses his memorial tomb. Don't overlook the grave-
stone of 'Old Gabriel,' a Native American convert whom Serra baptized, and whose dates
put him at 151 years old when he died. People say he smoked like a chimney and outlived
seven wives. There's a lesson in there somewhere.
Tor House
HISTORIC BUILDING
12-17yr $10/5; tours hourly 10am-3pm Fri & Sat)
Even if you've never heard of 20th-century poet Robinson Jeffers, a pilgrimage to this
house built with his own hands offers fascinating insights into both the man and the bo-
hemian ethos of Old Carmel. A porthole in the Celtic-inspired
Hawk Tower
reputedly
came from the wrecked ship that carried Napoleon from Elba. The only way to visit the
property is to reserve a tour (children under 12 years old not allowed), although the tower
can be glimpsed from the street.
