...Leaving Santa Cruz we headed towards North and took 1 North Highway, reached Half Moon Bay and spent there a beautiful day enjoining its beaches, cold water of the Pacific ocean, and clam chowder made with real ingredients and without added flower.
Next day the weather had changed and we faced thick fog instead of sunny morning. The first stop we made on our way back home that day was the Fort Ross.
It was very interesting to know that the first California's windmill was built at Fort Ross in 1814 by Russians.
The mill ground grain into flour for bread to feed both Settlement Ross and the Russians' Alaskan settlements. While the original structure no longer exists, the historical record captures many images and references to the Russian-style windmill.
The replica stolbovka style windmill, just as the original, features authentic mechanisms, a "nail-free" roof structure made of birch bark, and two pairs of blade wings. This historical reconstruction was carried out by Russian masters of the windmill building technique as introduced in the early 19th century using such traditional tools as an ax, planer, scraper, and adzes of that period. The mill was constructed in Russia and shipped to Fort Ross for installation.
I had a very interesting feeling walking along the road that lead to the former Russian settlement
The first house we saw was The Call Family Residence
George Washington Call (1829-1907) bought 2,5000 acres including Fort Ross in 1873. He and his Chilean wife, Mercedes Leiva (1850-1933), soon made Fort Ross a thriving community center and shipping port for neighboring farms, ranches, and lumber mills.
These are the pictures of the Fort Ross itself
Church at the Fort Ross
I would love to own this bell
Inside the church
Inside of some of the rooms
Next place of interest we stopped at was Point Arena Lighthouse that was erected in 1870.
This site and natural landmark has been a welcome guide to self navigation for ships along the Rugged Mendocino coast since 1870, destroyed by the 1906 earthquake, two years later stately tower was erected.
159 steps up and down
Do you see these formations?
There is an explanation why they look the way you see. As I've been told, there are two plates at that point - the Natural American and The Pacific - that are moving and change the shape of the coast.
There is one more place that stroke my attention and I wanted to tell you about. We drove through a little town Loleta (almost like Lolita by Nabokov, as unpredictable as Lolita herself). There is about 700 population, if I am not mistaken.
First I liked that absolutely gorgeous abandoned factory and couldn't resist not to take some pictures of it
You might think there is nothing extraordinary in this town. It was early motning, around 9 a.m. and half of the town was sparkling in the morning sunshine, when the rest of the town was sinking in the deep fog. For instance, I took the pictures of this church at the same time as the abandoned factory (they are located across each other), but the church looked so creepy and mystic in the fog
and then this forgotten Gilded Rose Tavern
or this out of business Antique store
or this dog on the chair almost in the middle of the road
and then absolutely unexpectedly for us we found 2 pearls:
this Cheese Factory with a HUGE variety of different kinds of cheese, where a pack of cheese is sold for only $3.99
While we were waiting for the Factory store to be opened we found the place with absolutely incredible bakery inside and absolutely beautiful baker hutch for this place.
Last but not least, can't not to show you the pictures of elks in the Elk country
As for Rick's class, as you know I left it on the third day and for now my castle looks like this
Time to start working on it!
I hope I didn't make you too tired and thank you for your interest and patience!
Happy Sunday!
Natalia
