Drawing the Line - 15

On Sunday January 23, 2011 I was on my merry way down to the New Camaldoli Hermitage in Big Sur. Last year I had arrived too early for checking in, so this year I didn't leave Santa Clara until noon. It is about 120 miles down to Lucia which is the town closest to the monastery. Parts of the drive would be on the freeway, but the 55 miles between Monterey and Lucia would be on the quite twisty two lane Highway 1. This section is very scenic and on the weekend would probably have quite a few drivers on it looking more at the views than the road. So it could well take over three hours to make it down there. Three was the check in time and the arrival time I was shooting for.

Along the way I planned to roll out my line. I had prepared four rolls of cash register tape and I thought that I would try to roll them out around Bixby Bridge. This bridge is an iconic scenic landmark not too far south of Carmel. Unfortunately the area around the bridge was jam-packed with parked cars and sightseers, not to mention way too much moving traffic along my planned Line route. I was disappointed, but this is one of the most beautiful coast lines in the world, so I figured I would find a good spot further along.

Well I did finally. Though I chose the spot less for its beauty than for its relative safety. It is actually one of the dullest spots along the drive, but I figured passing drivers might actually be looking at where they were going. Since I'm typing this up you can tell that I survived to tell the tale.

Up until this day my Line Around The World was continuous in a physical sort of way. Each new segment abutted the previous if you took the fourth dimension of time into account. The Line Segment I was rolling out this time would seem to violate this continuity. But this is not so, it is just that the time element is much longer. This segment will at some time in the future connect with the segments I have already rolled out and documented. It might be awhile though.

This segment starts about 5.7 miles outside of Lucia, California. When I got out of my car Green Bay was leading the Bears 14 to 7. The Bear's third string quarterback looked to be a hero by getting his team back into the game. I had too much to do to listen further and it was going to be after 3 o'clock before I arrived at the monastery as it was, so I got busy.

Here is the start of roll 47. It is right on the western edge of the continental United States.

 

That is the Pacific Ocean down there. It looks wet.

Here is the view from the end of roll 47. Note the safety of the spot, plenty of shoulder, sort of.

 

Here is the view from the end of roll 48.

It was very nice that day. Fairly sunny, warm and just a breath of a breeze. Next is the view from the end of roll 49.

Here is a view from the end of roll 50.

There was less of a safety margin here as the shoulder disappeared. There were many cars driving by as I worked. I was definately getting some attention. "What in the world, Martha?!?", one might have asked his wife as they drove by. "Just some California nut, I reckcon, Henry," Martha replied.

Here is the view south from the start of roll 50.

Here is the view west from the end of roll 50.

By the time I got back to the car, the game was almost over. The unlikely hero had failed and Green Bay was going to the Super Bowel.

That's it for this update. I have three more to write up for you. I hope you enjoy the scenery.

Jonathan