Grand Canyon/Los Angeles - Day 6

Friday, November 17, 2017 - The day in LA:


Started with a morning hike up in Franklin Canyon Park, then the Original Comic Art auction at Heritage Auctions in Beverly Hills, then a stroll up and down Rodeo Drive.

Franklin Canyon Park is in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, and has a nice group of trails that go up and down and around a pretty pond:




The Visitor Center had a cool 3-d map of the area, showing the canyons:


Sure makes me want to go exploring!

Nice lunchtime back at the house:

Then it was down into Beverly Hills to Heritage Auctions. Well, it wasn't Sotheby's, but they sure sold a lot of comics and original comic art! The auction started at 1:30, and my Neal Adams-Batman page sold at 1:46:40

I had hoped for more, but it was a Very Good Experience to see it as it happened. (Now I don't need to do that again ["go see the auction" - not "sell comic art"])

Wendy and I had a cup of coffee at Peet's Coffee up the block, and then went to see Rodeo Drive:




It might be early for christmas-tree-lights-around-palm-trees, but it does make it look festive!

Back home for a quick dip in the pool:

Then down to "The Beach Club" for a great dinner - it reminds me of a fancier, built-out Chappaquiddick Beach Club, with the families and kids doing smores out on the beach (and very nice dining service!).

THANK YOU GOD for this wonderful LA Adventure!

Grand Canyon/Los Angeles - Day 5

Thursday, November 16, 2017 - Leave Barstow behind, visit 3 museums, and end up in Bel Air:


no swimming this morning!

(maybe in LA?)

The first stop this morning was 1 1/2 hours southwest to the Ruth Chandler Williamson Gallery at Scripps College in Claremont, California. I had exchanged emails with Kirk Delman, their Gallery Registrar, and was looking forward to seeing their 2 Winslow Homers and 3 pieces by Thomas Moran.

All the pieces were "in storage", so I AM SO GLAD I MADE PREVIOUS ARRANGEMENTS!

The standout is Winslow Homer - Four Fishwives, 1881 watercolor:



there was also a lovely piece by Childe Hassam - Highland Light, 1900

William Keith - Mt. Tamalpais, 1893


We then headed west to the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. They open at noon, which is PERFECT TIMING for the nice lunch-time view of the Sculpture garden and pond (from their Garden Café):

The Museum has a GREAT collection of European art, including:
Amedeo Modigliani - Portrait of the Artist's Wife, Jeanne Hébuterne, 1918

Claude Monet - The Artist's Garden at Vétheuil, 1881

Canaletto - The Piazzetta, Venice, Looking North, early 1730s

Francesco Guardi - View of the Santa Maria della Salute with the Dogana di Mare, c. 1780

Auguste Rodin - The Burghers of Calais, 1884-95


Only 15 minutes west is the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles:



Although Thomas Moran's Mountain of the Holy Cross (1875) has a wonderful positioning front-and-center:

Along the Mariposa Trail by Virgil Williams (1863) was not so fortunate, being BLOCKED BY THE BIG RED DRESS:


A final lovely piece was Mountain Lake by Albert Bierstadt (undated):


We were soon making our way up Beverly Glen Blvd, watching the TONS of headlights going the other way! Traffic here is insane. THANK YOU GOD for these wonderful museums-out-west!

Music for today was albums from my iPod (not very loud, so we would listen through the albums twice):

Joni Mitchell - Ladies of the Canyon, 1970

(because we are driving among the canyons!)

Grand Canyon/Los Angeles - Day 4

Wednesday, November 15, 2017 - Today we make our way from the Grand Canyon, going through the Mojave National Preserve, and continuing west to Barstow, California:



The first stop this morning was 13 miles east, from our hotel in the "Historic District" to Grandview Point:


A parting morning shot of "Lookout Studio":

Grandview Point certainly had some GRAND VIEWS:



We then headed south to Williams where we got some lunch food from the supermarket, then 165 miles west to Palm Gardens, Nevada. From there you head north on US-95 (no, not THAT "95") to Searchlight, Nevada. Searchlight is just a turning point to get on 164 West, also known as the "Joshua Tree Highway":

I LOVE taking pictures from "the middle of nowhere" - looking west (ahead of of me):

and then turning around - looking east (behind me):


Crossing into California, we stopped at an oasis - Nipton:

It turns out that Deede and her 2 fellow bike-riders stayed in this parking lot on their cross-country trip 3 years ago!

I don't know - I think it takes A LOT OF IMAGINATION to see "flooding" as a problem around here!!:


By 3:30 we were down at the Kelso Depot Visitor Center in the Mojave National Preserve:


Unfortunately the building is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Nice seeing the mountains in the distance:

and eventually leaving the Preserve:


Two hours later, we were settling in at the Super 8 in Barstow, Californis:


THANK YOU GOD for wonderful adventures-in-the-desert!

Music for today was albums from my iPod (not very loud, so we would listen through the albums twice):

Paul Simon - So Beautiful or So What, 2011


Sade - Soldier of Love, 2010


Dave Matthews - Some Devil (2cds), 2003 (studio-cd-plus-bonus-live-cd)


The Rolling Stones - Some Girls, 1978