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Sunday Drive: The Voices of Big Sur
We will spend the day, tarrying, and dawdling along the fabled Big Sur Coast, listening to the descriptions and tales of the explorers, historians, poets and novelists who tried to describe a landscape that is, by definition, indescribable.
Beginning with Spanish ship captain Joao (or is it Juan?) Rodriguez Cabrillo in 1542 who saw the coast from the sea and declared that the “mountains appeared ready to fall on the ships” travelers and wanderers have tried to capture the Sur country in prose. They are still trying…
When the Spaniards returned in 1769 by land, Miguel Costansó, an engineer said that the Sur country had an “impenetrable ruggedness.”
And so it went.
 Jack Kerouac wrote one of the most famous pieces of Big Sur literature while living in the Bixby Creek canyon. |
You will rediscover the old Sur Standbys such as Steinbeck, Kerouac, and Henry Miller, and we’ll explore some of the locations for Robinson Jeffer’s poems.
We’ll also introduce you to some locally-famous writers such as the late Ric Masten, the Poet Laureate of Carmel-by-the-Sea.
And we’ll listen for the voices of the Rumsien and Esselen Indians who understood the Sur Country better than anyone ever has.
Treasure Island? There is a raging debate (well, maybe not at YOUR house…) about the location of Robert Louis Stevenson’s fabled Treasure Island. We’ll explore that debate and see if we can resolve it. Re-read Treasure Island and see what you think.
 Robert Louis Stevenson was only in the neighborhood for a few short weeks, but left some of the most descriptive prose about the area. |
The Dark Watchers – A frequent theme in Big Sur literature is the Dark Watcher – the solitary figure that many residents and visitors frequently saw standing atop a nearby ridge, staring down at them. Who were they? Sandy Lydon first heard stories of these figures while sitting around campfires deep in the Little Sur at the foot of Pico Blanco. We will explore this theme during our journey.
Sandy Lydon has been exploring and listening to the Big Sur landscape for over 50 years. This will be a literary and personal journey, including his encounters with wild trout, wild pigs, and the wild countryside.
Date: Saturday, May 1, 2010
Time: 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Down to Secondary Meeting Place: We will join our Monterey adventurers at Monastery Beach at 9:45 AM.
Note: Because of the adult nature of the class, no one under 18 years of age is permitted to register.
To Register: Cabrillo College Extension – By Telephone: 831-479-6331 – On Line. – Cabrillo College Extension Web