It is hard to fathom what kind of mentality finds it necessary to deface our beautiful coast, but there are those for whom the natural beauty of this place is not sacred.This type of person, and thankfully there are few, must create what can only be considered an abomination – an affront to Our Mother and her spectacular beauty.
Wally Barnick of Coast Ridge Outfitters, Big Sur (next to Fernwood) sent me this photo yesterday.
So, I contacted the new supervisor of Willow Springs, Greg DeAlba, (look for a profile of our new supervisor in the next few days), and asked him about Cal Trans plans for dealing with this vandalism on their retaining wall. He informed me there was currently a discussion going on about painting or staining this wall so that it blended in with it’s surroundings. He said he would keep me informed about the outcome of this discussion, and I will be following up to make sure this shameful affront to our coast is eradicated as soon as possible.
Today, I got to witness this for myself. I am befuddled by the idea that anyone could be so insensitive to the remarkable beauty of this place to do something like this. What will it take for all our visitors to be respectful of this place we call home and which we share with MILLIONS of visitors every year? What will it take?
In Fresno we have city owned graffiti trucks that run around during the day repairing the visual pollution caused by these vandals. Fortunately for residents of the Big Sur coast there is not much concrete to desecrate.
My dentist asked me the other day if that was me he saw picking up trash along highway one and at a scenic lookout…yep. It is depressing. If I listed the things people have thrown over the wall into our garden…well who can understand?
There are dozens of adverts with Summer Road Trip as their theme, everything from contests to insurance companies to musicians to movies. (Googled). I suspect it’s someone’s ad for something, done with the intention of photographing and using. I lived in graffiti nirvana in Brooklyn; this is not street art style this is pro. Maybe a new reality show. Will the Kardashians show up in Big Sur. In any event it’s defacement, and took awhile unless the letters are printed on something? But, ah DNA, certainly illegal and likely prosecutable.
I remember once long ago when I stepped up to the edge of the turnout at Hurricane Point, a favorite photo-op stop for tourists and visitors (I classify the two as different species) and even residents, and looked down in horror at a sea of bottles, cans, film boxes, wrappers and trash of every sort stretching down toward the ocean below. The answer to your rhetorical question, Kate? Clearly it is secession. As an independent country, the Big Sur Nation could establish the necessary procedures to reduce if not eliminate such disgraceful acts, whether amateur or, as this case almost certainly is, professional. Even according to the laws extant under the occupation forces, such graffiti is certainly a punishable offense. In Helvetia we also have a graffiti problem – there are special paints employed here now which make the offending scripts much easier to remove.
P.S. I haven’t found this image or any reference to a “Summer Road Trips” company or advertisement related thereto on the web. If anybody does, please inform the embassy at: bigsurnation@gmail.com and appropriate action against any identifiable culprits will be immediately instigated.
Makes me want the road to be closed….
I just saw a “contest” with the same name, done by DAYS INN (motel) out of Canada . Interesting……google it……whoever they are … just dummys..
We are in a bubble here…so it will be effected at times.
I hppe Cal Trans will also address the work Kock (sp?) on the hwy at Willow Creek Vista View.
Oops, make that the “word Kock”!
I thought it was kook. There is also a spray painted esoteric philosophical comment in the upper parking lot, and while both are inappropriate, none is as visible as the one at Salmon Creek.
bigsurkate, on a mountain top in Big Sur