Los Osos Oaks State Reserve

This past week I took a short camping trip in the Central Coast. I camped at San Simeon State Park, approximately seven miles south of Hearst Castle, a campground where I have stayed on at least three other occasions. This time, it was a bit crowded for my tastes, as I have often had the entire upper campground to myself. Not this time.

Perhaps with the economy in trouble, Americans are rediscovering camping. After all, it's far cheaper than a motel, that is, if you don't go the RV route. In some ways, I welcome this trend, as I have been sorely disappointed when I have queried my students in recent years as to their camping experience. Only one student in the past five or six years has ever camped--and he was an Australian. So, perhaps Americans will once again become the outdoor explorers. We'll see.

Of course, though this may be a wonderful thing on a mass scale, for me, the long-time camper and seeker of solitude, it definitely has its drawbacks. I was, however, grateful for the getaway, as the Central Coast of California is truly spectacular. Golden hills interspersed with greenery. Miles of protected beaches.

The highlights of this brief jaunt: watching the brown pelicans swoop and dive at the San Simeon pier, gazing at the stars, and the Nit Wit Castle, also known as the Poor Man's Hearst Castle in Cambria--a folk art amalgamation built by a cantankerous man who had the good fortune of being the town's garbage collector and so he used what he collected to build his eccentric abode.

For anyone who travels to the Cambria area, be sure to visit Nit Wit. It's well worth the $10 tour.

Another gem I discovered: Los Osos Oaks State Reserve in Los Osos. I have camped very near this reserve at Montana de Oro many times, but never saw the sign for the reserve. I was heading back to LA when I spotted it and so I checked it out. So glad I did. I had the entire reserve to myself. It was filled with the twisting, turning limbs of hundreds of old California oaks, that enchanting species of tree that does not just grow vertically but often takes a rest and grows horizontally for a few years before ascending once again. I took trail after trail in this Hansel and Gretel woods. What a magical place!