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Orange Remembrances
The
hikers 
White sand beaches
Beautiful scenery 
Tour of Newport Beach
Bill Queale came all the way from Yardly, Pennsylvania to attend the walk. He reported: “the opportunity to hike the California Coast was one I could not pass up. My college fraternity brother, Tom Andrusky, told me he was leading a hike and asked if the idea interested me. I told him, ‘yes’. He supplied the tent, sleeping bag, etc. so all I needed to do was catch a plane and bring my clothes.
“I particularly enjoyed the people on the trip. It was Tom and I with seven women! I soon found out that people interested in hiking and camping are like golfers. All are out for the fun of the adventure. We got along great and had many laughs.
“During the week, we visited the Bolsa Chica Wetlands and hiked miles of great beaches in Huntington Beach. We took in the scenes and boat tour at Newport Beach, and paddled a canoe through a part of the Newport Ecological Preserve. A day later we enjoyed the Park Ranger's presentation at Crystal Cove State Park, after which we saw the rehab efforts of the historic cottages in the park. We had a tour of the Ocean Institute at Dana Point Harbor, and took part in a walking tour of old San Juan and the Mission at Capistrano. There were also a few impressive walking detours through ritzy neighborhoods, and the houses built into the bluffs were amazing. A couple dips in the cool Pacific regenerated us.”
Thanks go to Bill for these photos!
Crystal
Cove’s Cottages
By Winter Bonnin, State Park Interpreter
The Historic District at Crystal Cove State Park houses 45 cottages that have been placed on the National Historic Register of Historic Places. This stretch of beach was spared development and became a haven for families from the inland valleys who were trying to escape the heat. As the population of both Los Angeles and Orange County grew, more and more people were seeking coastal refuges. The invention of the automobile, coupled with the opening of Pacific Coast Highway in the late 20's, brought newly mobile southern Californians to the shores of what was then Irvine Ranch. The Irvine Company allowed friends and favored employees to build small shelters or cottages along the shore bluffs. Others who wanted to stay the night pitched tents. By 1936 the Irvine Company decided that no more cottages could be built and requested that no restoration be done to them.
Today, we see the remains
of a community of houses known for their unique architecture. In 1979, the State
purchased the Historic District from the Irvine Company. In the General Plan it
was decided that the residents would leave and the cottages become available for
all Californians. It took until July 2001 for all the residents to say their final
farewells and the State to begin the lengthy restoration process. With $12.1 million
in funds from park bonds & Coastal Commission mitigation money, the State
has begun the process. By summer 2005, 22 of the cottages, along with all of the
infrastructure, will be completed. Some of the cottages will be available for
short-term rental (yet to be decided how long or how the rental operation will
be run), whereas others will be devoted to park operations including a Visitor
Center.
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