Big Bear Lake, CA
Bass Lake
When I was little I used to watch Bugs Bunny and when Yosemite Sam came on, I always thought his name was pronounced “Yoaz-might.” What? I’m from Connecticut, and I never went anywhere. Frankly, when I learned the proper pronunciation, my bubble burst a little. “Yoaz-might” is a cool way to say it.
Now that I live in SoCal, Yosemite National Park and its environs cropped up as a great place to meet some friends from NorCal. We packed up the family into our Ford Flex loaner and away we went to Sky Lake, a sleep-away camp for kids about an hour from the entrance to the park that opens up its facilities to families a few weekends a year. People described it to me as being like the camp in “Dirty Dancing.” That’s all you really have to tell me. I’m all about hot young dance instructors and talent shows and carrying watermelons. Also, this place charged a flat fee for our family of four, and promised three meals a day, that someone else would cook. Now THAT’S all you really have to tell me. I’m in.
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Sandy beaches of Olympic National Park
Washington’s Olympic National Park is an amazingly diverse place, with snowcapped mountain peaks, sandy ocean beaches, and a temperate rain forest all within easy driving distance of each other. One particular part of the park has twice been our base of operations for the ideal family vacation.
The Olympic beaches stretch along the Pacific coast for 73 miles. They range from the wide and sandy Kalaloch Beach to the rugged and rocky Rialto Beach. They all have their own unique characteristics, some with awesome tidepools and others with weird rock formations, and they are all close enough to each other to be explored in just a day or two.
Our discovery of the area happened quite by accident. After I couldn’t find my birth certificate, I had to cancel a vacation through Alberta and British Columbia in Canada just a week before we were to leave. Scrambling for a new place to take the family, I stumbled upon a website for Kalaloch Lodge in the Olympic National Park.
It looked like fun, and it was definitely a place we’d never visited, so I called and lucked out that there had been a cancellation for the three days we wanted. Normally, as with most National Park cabins and resorts, the Lodge is booked up months in advance.
We stayed in a cozy cabin nestled on the bluffs above Kalaloch Beach. It was perfect for a family of four, with two queen-sized beds, a full kitchen, wood stove for the chilly nights, and a bathroom with shower. Hey, this isn’t exactly “roughing it,” although you can do that just down the road at the Kalaloch campgrounds, which are fully equipped for RVs and trailers, but will also accomodate a tent if that’s your style.
Kalaloch Beach is littered with driftwood of all shapes and sizes, making it an ideal place for an evening campfire. We brought hamburgers and hot dogs, as well as the required marshmallows, but if you don’t have supplies there’s a small store at the main lodge where you can find everything you need for a BBQ on the beach and a front row seat to the spectacular sunsets.
The endless piles of driftwood also provide material for your kids to make the fort of their dreams. The cabins and campgrounds at Kalaloch are easily accessible to the beach, so you don’t have to worry about rushing your kids a long way back to a bathroom in the middle of making ’smores. And if you don’t want to make your dinner, either on the beach or in your cabin, there’s always the Kalaloch Lodge Restaurant, which offers a fine dining experience.
The gorgeous, expansive beach around the Lodge might be enough for most families, but we’re explorers. We want to see what’s around the next corner. One great thing about the Olympic Beaches is that you don’t have to drive very far to see them. It’s only eight miles from Kalaloch Lodge to Ruby Beach, and in between you’ll find plenty of places to stop and hike down to various beaches.
Seeing sea stars at Beach #4
One of our favorites was Beach #4, a rocky section of coast that had the best tidepools for the kids to explore. At low tide, they could find every type of sea creature you’d expect, from sea stars to anemones. We actually came back to this beach twice just for the tidepools. These places are ideal for young kids who are just learning about nature and the ocean, and concepts such as erosion, tides, and the life cycle.
Further up the road you’ll find the popular Ruby Beach, with its dramatic sea stacks and meandering creek. A longer drive north takes you to Rialto Beach, with its must-see “hole-in-the-wall” rock formation. Like I said, every beach is different, and all are worth visiting. The Olympic beaches have become a tradition in my family, with plans for us to return every other year to the lodge that I found by accident. Sometimes the best things in life are completely unexpected.
Sunset at Kalaloch Beach
Ruby Beach sea stacks
Exploring Tidepools
Kalaloch Lodge Cabin
The hole-in-the-wall at Rialto Beach
All photos by Phil Corless
View of cabins from the Lodge restaurant.
We approached Big Sur under cover of fog illuminated by a full moon, the throaty rumble of our rented Mustang echoing in the stillness of a nearly deserted Highway 1.
I knew the ocean was to our right, but darkness and the concentration necessary to negotiate the corkscrew of scenic highway prevented me from seeing much more than an occasional lunar reflection on black water.
Our destination, Lucia Lodge, about twenty five miles south of the more populated areas of Big Sur, advertised its “unique cliff-side location” offering “unparalleled and commanding views” of the Big Sur coast and Santa Lucia mountains. Established in the 1930’s, the lodge is now operated by fifth generation descendants of the original owners, Wilbur and Ada Harlan. As we soon discovered, Lucia Lodge is basically all there is to Lucia with twenty-five miles of desolation north on Hwy 1, and about fifteen miles of the same to the south. We were unaware of this geographical fact when, though famished, we decided to skip the Big Sur Roadhouse in favor of locating the lodge. Twenty-five miles after bypassing the last of civilization to the north, we arrived at 10 PM to a locked and darkened lodge and restaurant.
Cabins from the path.
In the lobby of the restaurant (discovered the next day after the complimentary breakfast of pastries, muffins, bagels, fruit salad, and bowls of hard-boiled eggs) hangs a framed 1984 San Francisco Examiner article which begins, and I quote:
“You’d swear you’ve seen the setting in some brooding film noir classic, maybe a 1940’s dark Howard Hawks thriller: a small coastal roadside gas station-restaurant-store with a few cabins off to the side overlooking a steep cliff.”
This description, sans the gas station which apparently was removed between 1984 and present day, could not be more accurate, and I experienced a very film noir feel as we doubled back about twenty yards to the steep, obscured little road that leads down to ten little cabins over-looking that steep cliff. These cabins make up all there is of Lucia Lodge’s accommodations.
Finding the key under the mat as promised we proceeded to drag our luggage into cabin #7, a cute little A-frame with a high, full-size bed at one end and gas fireplace at the other. In between were an armoire, a couch, a coffee table and a couple of wooden chairs; no phone, no TV, no radio. Oh and no cell phone reception; isolation at its finest. Make a note to bring good books and wine.
Our load considerably lightened we hopped back in the Mustang and roared south on Hwy 1 in search of sustenance, coming up on the Whale Watcher Café some fifteen miles down the road in the town of Gorda Springs. It appeared to be open and we made our way to the bar only to discover that the kitchen was closed. Thankfully the gentleman said the clam chowder was still available so we ordered two bowls and a couple of drinks. My wife tried the Merlot but knowing I had a fifteen-mile slalom of a drive back, I opted for Sprite, which I find really brings out the flavor in clam chowder.
So the chowder was great, really hit the spot, very generous amount of clams and a good consistency (I hate watery chowder) but when I discovered that we were charged $10.50 per bowl it suddenly wasn’t sitting very well. Had the kitchen been open we could have ordered burgers at about $16.00 a pop (pricey yes but at least it feels like a meal). Personally, I would be embarrassed to charge $10.50 for a bowl of soup no matter how good it is or how famished my customers. But that’s just me. Needless to say we declined the gentleman’s offer to return for breakfast the following morning.
Next installment: A drive up and down and up and down scenic Hwy 1; windy beaches and more meals. Stay tuned!
All photos by Lisa Romano
© UpTake Networks, Inc. 2009
