[QUOTE=”Sky Six, post: 15044097, member: 316306”]Dana Point, Calif. (before the harbor) ATTACH=full]5890420[/ATTACH][/QUOTE] 1927 Dana Point Cove before the harbor 44 years before… Hello, The early photo of the “Cove” end of the whole coastal area of California shows nothing coming down the steep western hillside other than perhaps a walking trail. No pier, no walkway along the base of the cliff leading out to the surf point, just a normal rocky cove and rocky shoreline heading south to another point due to the tall cliff jutting out. When the 20s-30s time period came around, the short pier was put in place and work started on the down hill Cove Road to the base of the pier. The biggest problem for our Flathead powered 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery was the lack of power going back up the steep Cove Road incline. (18% grade) There was no flat preliminary road to gain speed, it was just a short left turn to go up the steep incline, one of the steepest in the whole South Coast area roads. (Laguna Beach’s 3rd street being the steepest… 30% grade) So, a very slow, plodding drive in first gear all the way up to the top and homeward bound… YIKES! Even then, the talk of a boat harbor was not in the cards. The southern jutting out cliff blocked all views of this cove from the beach on the southern sandy shoreline area. (Doheny) But, the wisdom? One of the developers decided the tall cliff would have to go in order to complete the outer harbor transportation road to the Cove area. It was not until the late 60s that development was started and finished in 1971. Jnaki As a longtime surfer who rode the pristine waves inside of the protected cove area and the big long lines of “Killer Dana,” the development of the harbor was a travesty. But, there was no where else that had a protected peninsula cliff to protect the area from gnarly storms. As a sailboat person, it gave a lot of people local access to ocean activities that would not be available without a protected harbor. For most, it is a serene place at any point in time. With the view points all along the cliff top portions of the harbor, it is a wonderful place to relax and ponder. The steep road to the Cove Beach led to further development of the Cove end until we teenage surfers were able to walk or paddle out to the point to catch “the big ones” at the place called “Killer Dana.” Now, the development of the whole harbor give education a different place to teach kids the "Hows, Whys and Whats "of ocean explorations at the Marine Institute. The harbor is now going through a reconstruction phase and the aging boat docks are now modernized for longer wear and tear. The commercial end is also getting revitalized with additional parking for visitors. The Killer Dana cove area has the Marine Institute and that too is growing. One of the more popular places in the whole harbor was a independent coffee; ice cream place. The latest is that another wing of the original coffee place is setting up shop at that far Killer Dana Cove Marine Institute area. Instead of driving there to surf as a long ago activity, we might drive there to have a relaxing morning coffee and watch the calm harbor and ocean for some extra serenity... YRMV
The Jalopy Journal
