That Vintage Girl

A serene lake surrounded by mountains covered with pine trees and chaparral is the least likely image conjured when one thinks of Hollywood, California.  But some of Hollywood's most famous neighborhoods, such as Beechwood Canyon and Laurel Canyon, are located in the Hollywood Hills, which are part of the Santa Monica mountain ridge that spans forty miles from the Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles to Point Mugu in Ventura County.  The Hollywood Hills are steep canyons with curvy roads, mature trees and lush foliage, which served as a perfect location to build a lake in the 1920s.  To meet the water needs of a rapidly growing city, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power built a dam in Weid Canyon to serve as a water reservoir for the Los Angeles aqueduct system.  The dam was built during the United States City Beautification movement which advocated for public infrastructure to embody civic pride, beauty and monumental grandeur.  The curved dam features decor...

A spectacular botanical event occurs when the desert regions of California receive the right amount of autumn and winter rains followed by cool and sunny springtime days with just a whisper of wind.  The dormant seeds of wildflowers awaken from a long dream and begin to grow and blossom simultaneously, transforming the barren landscape into a spectacular display of super blooms. Depending on the region, the blooms can peak between February to May.  Some common wildflowers include poppies, daisies, lupine, verbena,  and primrose. However, due to the unique combination of weather events that must occur, the super blooms do not appear every year, but when the do they are a majestic reminder of nature's beauty and resilience.  Popular Super Bloom Locations in California Channel Islands in Ventura County Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve in the Antelope Valley Carrizo Plain National Monument in San Luis Obispo Figueroa Mountain in Santa Barbara County Diamond Valle...

In the high-desert region of Navajo County in northern Arizona, there is a small quiet town called Winslow.  It was once a thriving community along Route 66, but today it might be missed in the blink of an eye by the average traveler driving along Interstate 40.  However, for the nostalgic traveler, Winslow holds a grand history and many treasured remnants from its glorious past.  Winslow, Arizona was founded in the early 1880s as a divisional terminal for the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad to serve as an operating headquarter and maintenance center for the growing railroad industry.  In 1930, the town celebrated the opening of La Posada, a beautiful hacienda style luxury hotel that was designed by Mary Coulter and built by Fred Harvey for the Santa Fe Railway to serve the surge of train passengers traveling to the Southwest.  In the same decade, America celebrated the opening of U.S Route 66 that connected Illinois to California. The new highway transformed ho...