GOOD ROADS.

Press, Volume LVIII, Issue 17609, 11 November 1922, Page 12

GOOD ROADS.

CALIFORNIA BY MOTOR. (By Olive Wilcox in "Sydney Morning Herald.") ! LOS-ANGELES, September 30. | We have arrived safely at Los : Angeles, after, I suppose, the most wonderful and most enjoyablo motor- ! trip it will ever be our good fortuno to take. Covering three days we have, done between ISS and 230 miles a day, and in that way we have seen a marvellous lot of the country, whereas if he had tried to go direct in one day, as the stage-coach does, we should have had to leave about dawn one day and arrive after midnight the same night, and feel bruised and sore for days afterwards. Such is not the case with us. We arrived early on Monday morning at the Golden Gate, dropped j anchor in the Bay, and the doctor I came on board about 6 o'clock. Most I of the morning in San Francisco was j occupied in business. Then in the ! car we went across the Bay in the .' traffic* punt to Oakland and Berkley. I shall never forget the beauty of that drive. I thought I had seen some pretty gardens once in a while, but I nearly went wild over the dahlias and chrysanthemums, sweet pea3j and asters. What amazing wealth there must be in some of these Californian homes! We drove here, there, and everywhere, along beautiful avenues, where each garden is a i feast for the eyes, there being no I fences to obstruct the view. We pass- ; ed into the University Campus at ! Berkley, but made no inspection of the buildings, there being no time. We returned to Oakland for tea at the home of friends of our host. Giant Trees. On Tuesday morning we were called at 6 o'clock, and after an early break- 4 j fast we made a start in our Super-six on our long drive to Los Angeles. We passed through Burlingame, where we met some more old friends of our host, and on to San Jose for lunch, through Los Oatos, a very interesting town, and on over to Santa Cniz Mountains, down into the valley of Santa Cruz, amongst the big giants, where we had afternoon tea and a rest. About a dozen cars were parked in the trees here; some folk were camping, a very common sight in California. We felt like ants as we tried to look up to the top of the great Sequoias, some of which are 5000 years old, it is estimated. Refreshed by the cool of the trees and the afternoon tea, we whizzed up over the mountains again, passed a little town called the "Holy City," where a glaring placard informed us that this was "'Holy City' Garage; Good Eats and Ice Cream!" It was a curious announcement. We were tickled L to. death, and took a photo. I just want to stop here and try and describe the roads. There we were, on a mountain top, and the highway is a credit to the State. The roads are like polished granite, or at times they reminded me of an endless satin ribbon belt. Is it any wonder that 'even a careful driver, as our own un- . doubtedly is, can easily slip into a speed of 40 to 50 miles an hour if the road is clear. Motoring is a sheer delight. It is something we can never appreciate to the full until tried under these exceptional conditions. j One thing I noticed was that every possible facility is given to the motorist, should he be tearing along at high speed. There are notices everywhere of what to look -for ahead. Another source of wonder to U3 were the hotels all along, even in the smallest towns. We stayed two nights in the country hotels,- and we could not help making contrasts. Here we were in a small place like Los Alamos, with only one street. I think in that one* street there were two or three motor garages, four ice-cream shops, and a splendid hotel, the like of which you would,not find in Australia outside a capital. We had a spotlessly clean bedroom, with our own bathroom . and lavatory attached, and a snowy white bed all ready for tired "travellers. - No doubt the automobile has done all this, and: just as soon as we can get some decent highways.- in Australia we can expect the same conditions to come about. We did not attempt to come in a direct way to Los Angeles, as I could show you on the map. A We made several detours into the mountains and valleys, so that we could see some of the best scenery. The history of Cali: fornia is extremely interesting, and while I do not intend.to give you a history lesson, be it ever so fascinating, I want to mention, one of the most historical' features of California. In 1760 a Spanish monk inaugurated a chain of missions extending, over 600 miles between San Francisco in the north to San Diego in the south. The name of this old monk was Junipero Serra, and the monks visited these missions periodically, walking for thousands of miles to do so. A great many of them are still remaining. We visited one of the best at Santa Barbara. The missions were built of mud, called adobe by the Indians, under the direction of the monks. They are, of course, very crude and very quaint, and are visited by thousands of tourists. - - / Wonderful Orchards. From, the Santa Cruz and the big trees we passed on to Monterey, where we stayed Tuesday night. We en- * tered the*"town, and crossed the Salinas Biver at sunset. There was a wonderful colour, the afterglow lighting up all the surroundings, including the mountains, which looked exquisite in the rosy light. On the bridge over the river we stopped to drink in the beauty of the scene, and it trill always be a living picture stored away in my memory. We partook of late dinner at the Hotel Monterey, then went out and "did" the town, which has some very good'shops. Early to bed and up early next morning, and we made a detour here that was quite worth while. We did the 17-mile drive to Carmel, running along the sea front all the way, a most beautiful, radiant morning, lovely sea breeze; it. was good to be alive. We passed along a rugged coast. The rocks were. picturesque but cruel, and most of them were covered with thousands of pelicans. It was a picture to see them. On from Carmel through Del Monte, where we passed some exquisite homes; through Salinas to King City, where we were obliged to stop and feed the car and occupants. We had a delightful lunch at the hotel there, and passed on again through miles and miles of walnut and almond groves, through peaches, pears, and apples, tomatoes, beans, and beet—a veritable maze of orchards. Do not forget that in California they have very little rainfall, and all this amazing vegetation is the • 1 result of irrigation. It is said of California that God made the north and man made the south, and when you have seen the work of man's hands and brain in Southern California you begin to feel there is truth in the statement. t>„vi„„ We passed through Passo Bobjes, and bought some peaches by Ue roadside; they were fine in size, but lack- [ ing/in flavour. On through Abasce- , dero, and we stopped for afternoon tea j at San Luis Obespo Pizmo. Just be- J yond here we made a most dramatic • turn to the ocean front once more, j and here we saw a sight we should pro-

i bably never see again—a flight of birds i moving northwards, close -in to the i shore. They moved like a never-end-ing funeral, miles and miles in length. It was a sight worth.seeing. We came on to Santa Maria, and to Los Alamos, where we stayed for the night at the little* hotel I have mentioned as being such a credit to the town. Thursdav morning we made another early start,, and passed through Las Cruces, where we bought more fruit; through the Gaviata Pass, on to Santa Barbara, where we spent two hours, and saw some of the most interesting parts of the town. "We inspected the Santa Barbara mission, it being one of the most famous, and had a run out to the swanky millionaire Hotel Samarkand. I wish I could tell you something about it and about its garden. Great ponds filled with water lilies of all colours, with goldfish, and surrounded by gardens gorgeous in colourings. The hotel itself is a huge structure, standing very high, and commanding a glorious view of the surrounding countrv and its own beautiful gardens. A few days there would surely be something to remember, but that must wait until we have made our millions! The road from here is very picturesque, dipping every now and again to the seafront; indeed, in several places the ocean washes up under the causeways on the road over which we passed. Here at a place called Summerland, we came on an oil centre, where there were derricks in the ocean. Probably this is the only place in California where they are actually extracting oil from the ocean. San Fernando Valley. In one of these latter towns—l think it was Santa Barbara —we saw a house being moved; a sight I had never seen before. The folk were probably in the house, tho curtains were up, and the furniture inside, and things were going on as usual, though the house was being carried along the street on a great wooden frame. On through Ventura, Camarillo, Conego, Grade, and Hollywood, into the San Fernando va Hey—one of the richest possessions of Southern California. Its vegetation is something you could never dream of., On the hills beyond the cultivated areas are great golden hills, brown and tawny in places, where the hillside has been ploughed for future crops; and here and there are patches of the great spreading Calif ornian oak trees, providing as they do shelter from sun and storm to man and beast. I only wish I were clever enough to make, a picture of that San Fernando Valley, to me the most beautiful part of our whole trip. For miles and miles along the beautiful concrete roads grew goldon sunflowers; stretching yards back from the roads here and there avenues of pegper trees, palm trees, and eucalyptus trees, giving us a touch and a fragrance of home, through acres and acres of lima beans, one of the most important industries of California; through corn and most lovely walnut groves; and the most wonderful-thing oftall is that all these groves and orchards are quito unprotected from the passer-by. Nobody bothers to stop and pick the fruit; everybody fiies past on their own business intent, no time for thieving, no fences—just one great garden. Evening began to fall before we got out of the lovely valley on the borders of Los Angeles.