Art & Inspiration A cool roadside attraction!

Island Park, Idaho

 

Roosevelt Arch and Yellowstone sign in Gardiner Montana

 

We also ate at the Frostop in Ashton Idaho

 

Wayfarer’s chapel in Palos Verdes in So Cal coastal clifftop location. Closest land to Catalina Island.

The latest from So Cal:

Chapel & Grounds Are Closed

NO PUBLIC ACCESS ALLOWED ON PREMISES

"Wayfarers Chapel management announced plans to move forward with disassembly of the iconic structure to save it from landslide destruction. Currently, Wayfarers Chapel and the surrounding grounds are closed due to the momentum of local land movement. The Portuguese Bend landslide has accelerated at an unprecedented rate and is dramatically impacting the Wayfarers Chapel campus and surrounding area."

"It has been determined that the immediate deconstruction of the chapel is the safest and most viable preservation action to take at this time and will prevent further irreparable damage to the chapel’s structure and materials."

"The team will begin the careful disassembly of the chapel, which includes cataloguing and documenting each piece, preserving as much of the chapel’s original materials as practicable, and relocating all component parts to a temporary safe location until they can be reassembled. Simultaneously, the team will evaluate options for reconstruction on this site or one nearby. The Wayfarers community is committed to preserving the historic chapel and giving it a resilient future."


Hello,

Ever since our dad found out about this out of the way place in 1952, he took us on a visit one day. It was near the home of the Palos Verdes Coastline that included the original Marineland a few years later. But, growing up in San Pedro, just around the cliff top curves, he knew the area quite well. His own adventures with his favorite pastime, fishing, took up lots of shoreside explorations along this coastline.

The surface road that runs from the Los Angeles Harbor in San Pedro around the tall cliff side has some of the most prolific views looking all around at the greenery and in combination of the blue ocean. It is a wonder more folks are not in accidents, due to the distraction of the views from the cars traveling in both directions.

Wayfarers Chapel, a popular spot for weddings and receptions for decades that was damaged during a barrage of winter storms, will be dismantled starting this week.

The grounds around the chapel have been crumbling off the cliffs in Rancho Palos Verdes and the Palos Verdes Peninsula and into the Pacific Ocean for months.

It has been a wedding, worship and filming destination for 73 years.


Jnaki

We used the serenity of the place to just sit and wonder, while looking at the ocean. Our old hot rods in the parking lot.

In a different place than normal teenage hangouts. Later on, as 20-30 somethings, it was a special place to come as a couple and just enjoy life.

But, once in San Pedro, the coastal drive is not finished. For the hot rod guys living in the South Bay of So Cal, it is their cruising grounds. The views are endless and outstanding, even in the pouring rain and fog.
from Fort MacArthur towards the ocean.

We have driven by this park and monument many times in our coastal drives over the years. In the early years, the land was part of Fort MacArthur. Then it was dedicated and built in 1976. It is used as a navigation point when out on the ocean as it stands prominently high on the edge of the Western San Pedro cliff side. Even if it is slightly foggy, the large structure and bell is still seen from the water.


Note:
photo by VNak
On our sailing adventures, out in the Pacific Ocean, we happened to be in this area. We were taking an up the coast journey, to the destination of Marina Del Rey. My wife took a nice photo of the resort from our sailboat vantage point out on the ocean.

The Terranea Resort from the ocean…photo by VNak
As soon as we rounded the big peninsula, the winds changed and we had to take a different path to move North up the coast to Marina del Rey. It is at the old Marineland location, just a few blocks from the now, closed Wayfarer's Chapel on this coastal winding road.