”The 70 miles of California coastline that makes up the unincorporated area of Big Sur has a storied, almost mystical allure, largely thanks to its staggering beauty. With redwood forests, stunning Pacific views, winding rivers and natural hot springs, the area has for decades attracted celebrities, artists and millions of visitors. So many visitors in fact, that these days, Kirk Gafill, the president of the Big Sur Chamber of Commerce, estimates that 90 percent of the local economy is tourism-dependent.

But getting there, and living there, is increasingly difficult.

Big Sur’s main thoroughfare is Highway 1, a scenic two-lane road constructed between 1919 and 1937 as part of a statewide initiative to make the California coastline a drivable tourist attraction. In the past two years, the area has been hit by fires, heavy winter storms and landslides that cut off the community for sometimes months at a time. In March, one chunk of the road crumbled into the sea, restricting car travel to residents only for two months. Another debilitating landslide, in February, continues to cut off the southern portion of the coast: Last month, work in the area to remove debris from the road was paused indefinitely. According to the California Department of Transportation (known as Caltrans), that portion of the roadway won’t reopen until 2025, at the earliest.”

The rest of the New York Times article may be found here: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/18/travel/big-sur-tourism-california.html

“It’s so important to preserve and protect this landscape, or you will not have economic sustainability,” Ms. Daniels said. (Kate Daniels is the incoming Monterey County Supervisor, for the 5th District, Board of Supervisors, which includes Big Sur.)

She also said, later in that same article: “Our economy relies on tourism and visitation,” Ms. Daniels said. “We won’t have a viable tourism industry if the people that support that industry can no longer afford to live here.”

“My wish is that all of the stakeholders here feel proud of being a part of this extraordinary place,” Mr. Toren said. “And that that pride expresses itself by embracing the notion that this place deserves strength, protection and restoration.” (Magnus Toren, Henry Miller Library as quoted in the above article.)

It is not just Big Sur, but many places on the planet — we are destroying that which we love most, via our numbers, our unconscious members of this community of humans, and our anger and hatred. We have to find a better way to relate to our natural world than how we currently do or we will destroy all these special places.