Diary of California Vacation,
June, 1954
By Ethel Osthoff Brown
Highlights – Rock Springs – Generator
[generator went out and headlights wouldn’t
work…]
12th – Salt Lake City – flat
tire
13th – Salt air – swim in
Lake, go out to eat for Richard’s 18th birthday
14th – into desert and Reno –
find camp, pitch tent, shower – solar heat
15th – flat tire in San
Rafael, huge nail in new tire, San Francisco, miss camp, no lights, camp
in farmer’s barn
16th – Jim’s camp on
tamalpais, go to town, cross Golden Gate bridge, got a new used
tire, drive around, go down to pier, watch fishermen and crab fishermen,
go to wharf, smell all, see all, buy fish, go back to camp
17th – go to Golden Gate
Park, see aquarium, climb telegraph hill, cross S.F. Bridge into
Oakland, cross on Oakland Ferry, wandered home
18th – Muir Woods, cross
ferry back to Oakland, (lose light meter), on into Yosemite, see fire
fall, camp with 6,000,000 other people
19th – Ride to top of Glacier
Point, see where fire fall originated, look down 3,000 feet – amazing –
ride on into San Fernando Valley, Camp in dust at Oak Flats, Surprising
how dry it all is
20th – Into L.A., get to
Darrell’s place about 11:30, has moved, spent 30 minutes finding him and
one hour for him to reach us and guide us to his place. Betty very nice,
visited, then she got dinner and talked till four, left for Bessie’s at
____, got there about 5:15, talked half an hour. She’s not well. Glad
to see us. Leave for Encinitas about 5:45 – arrived about 7:45, drive
was fast, but no lights, finally made it, tired but happy
21st – Rested and showered,
feeling better when in come Mary’s friends – 5, 3 kids, man sick and
goes to bed
22nd – Palomar, swimming
23rd – Reed Browning Home
Town Show – lunch at Brown Derby coffee shop, I win two prizes on show –
see Queen for a day. Go to Knott’s Berry Farm, get home about 8:00, get
lazy susans for Mary
24th – Hollywood again, see
JukeBox Jury radio show. Johnny Mercer, Marilyn Maxwell, Tony Martin,
Rhonda Flemming, special guests Eddie Fisher, Gary Crosby – secret guest
Jeff Chandler – wonderful
24th – go to San Diego, see Ramona’s
Mission and other historic buildings, see museum, go home
25th – Balboa Park, bus
around to see animals, pizza pie [everyone’s
first], Point Loma
26th – San Diego County Fair
at Del Mar, walked miles, flowers early, saw exhibits, home
27th – Tijuana, saw old
Mexico, got bag, looked and grabbed, home 4:00, decided to leave Tuesday
28th – got up 3:30, off by
5:30, taking Gloria along, hit Las Vegas at noon, hot as blazes, eat on
Court House lawn, on to Hoover Dam, hotter, on to Kingman (6:00), find
road to camp ground in mountains – cool and nice
29th – down to the heat
again, on through to William’s, see Grand Canyon stupendous, on almost
to Holbrook, camp beside road, not well – decide to drive all night,
blow out about 30 miles from Albuquerque, nearly wreck. Use spare –
flat in 5 minutes, bolt in tire, on to Albuquerque, 1 ½ hours to find
tire, start about 6:30 on home, Santa Fe. Las Vegas, Raton (lunch), on
into Colorado – lovely Colorado, grass, trees, lawns, home 6:00 on
Thursday
EOB writing about trip later
On a lovely June 12 we left for the long
awaited trip to Cal-if-orn-ia. Planned to leave at about five but it
was nearer six. Wyoming looked the same as ever. Everything went well
till Rock Springs, when the generator gasped its last. Because it was
Saturday afternoon, we had difficulties finding a place open. Finally
made it and our first expense – a new generator – was indulged in. This
set us back about an hour and a half in time.
Approaching Salt Lake, we were pleased
with the mountains – rather green and home-like. Because of our delay
it was almost dark, and we had trouble finding a campsite. Put up our
tent on very rocky ground and had a nine o’clock supper. Got to bed
late – awoke to find a flat tire, whereupon the boys and Dick took turns
pumping it up and we made it to a station (about ten miles). The tent
site was in the mountains, lovely and green. Salt Lake burst upon us
Sunday morning in a myriad of color – mostly pinks and reds – every
house had at least one climbing rose. (Highway coming in.) Sometimes
there were more. Shades of pink and rose and yellow were gorgeous, but
the reds were superb. Wayne is the first to notice the “men” sign on a
station – he tries every one possible.
(Went to Temple Square before Salt
Air.) Went out to Salt Air – lakeside stand and island. Disappointed
in whole setup. Boys (Wayne and David) went in the water, but the rest
of us chickened out. It was so salty, but interesting, too. Had
expensive but not too good hamburgers and drinks. Came back into town
to plan seeing Mormon Square. Got into guided tour, heard some almost
weird talks on their beliefs. Rather strange to us, some of their
ideas.
We came back from Salt Air in time to
get into the organ recital. It was wonderful – some good numbers and
the sound stupendous. Wayne fell asleep and David and George almost
did. It was a treat of a lifetime. Have heard organ before on radio,
so it was a real treat. We all went out to dinner afterwards to
celebrate Richard’s 18th birthday. Poor boy, no cake or
nothin’. But the trip is our treat for now.
After dinner we walked up and down the
streets looking in windows and enjoying them. The streets were so wide
and the stores very pretty. About seven we started out again.
Now we were ready to cross the desert.
It was dusk when we got around the lake. It is huge – but is slowly
drying up. This is one night we all hated. We felt so cramped and
crowded. Richard traded off driving, such a big help to Dick. About
seven-thirty in the morning we passed through a small town, where we
bought some rolls and fruit for breakfast.
By about nine-thirty we were in Reno,
hunting for our campground. It seemed very dry, but not a bad place to
camp.
The ‘showers’ advertised were heated by
solar heat, a system whereby rows of pipes are placed in a sunny roof
and allowed to heat in the sun. By mid-afternoon, if one is lucky, the
water is warm. Finally got showers. Went down to see town later –
generator cutting up again. Couldn’t solve it, so went home to sleep.
In the morning, Dick ‘grounded out’ the generator, got a battery charge,
and on we went.
[The narrative ends here –
too bad.]
