E is for. . .

Eric Tognazzini!

In his later years, Eric buzzed up and down the sidewalks of Downtown Hollister on an electric wheelchair. Before that, he rode his tricycle. Eric was constantly stopping to talk with friends and acquaintances, some of whom crossed the streets or popped out of the shops and restaurants to say hello and chat with him for awhile.

I never knew what Eric's physical disability was. I just knew that he did not stick to the shadows because of it. He had a charming personality that disarmed people so that they didn't feel uncomfortable being around him.

Eric died in May, 2011 at the age of 64. Immediately, his friends started a memorial fund to build a statue of Eric, so that we may all remember and be inspired by Eric's amazing joyful spirit. Last month, the statue was installed and unveiled in front of the Briggs Building on the corner of San Benito and Fourth Streets.

To Eric!

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The West Side of the Anza Trail

Last week, the Husband and I went up the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail via the Salinas entrance. I read that the west entrance is a few hundred feet higher than the east entrance. That may be why the hike up to the summit is easier. It's also nearer—about 1.5 miles from the gate, as opposed to about 2.5 miles from the San Juan gate.

Looking east towards San Benito County from the summit.

Looking west towards Monterey Bay from the summit.

There is quite a difference in terrain between the two sides. On the east side, you steadily traverse upward on the trail. At one point, it seems like you could walk right into the sky. On the west side, the climb is gradual. Your attention is diverted by the meadow along the start of the trail, then the rounded hills on the north, and the now and then pass through overhanging oak branches.

How to Get to the West Entrance
Via San Juan Grade Road: At the intersection of San Juan Grade Road and Crazy Horse Canyon Road, turn left. At the end of the road, turn left. You're on Stage Coach Road. Drive a few miles to the end of that road.

Via South on Highway 101: Take the Crazy Horse Canyon/Echo Valley Road exit. Go to the left for Crazy Horse Canyon Road, and continue for several minutes until the road dead ends at Stage Coach Road. Turn left and drive to the end of the road.

The west entrance of the Anza Trail

D is for . . .

Looking North on San Benito Street

Drag. As in the main drag.

In Hollister, that's the main street which is called San Benito Street. I was an adult before it dawned on me that the main street in Downtown Hollister was not called Main Street.

Looking south on San Benito Street

D is also for dragging. As in cruising the main drag.

Remember the movie American Graffiti? Teenagers in a small town dragged the main street all night long in their cars or their parents' cars. That was Hollister way back when. After school and on weekends, teenagers slowly dragged the main street from one end to the other, and back again. I recall a guy sitting in a nice comfy chair on a corner of the main street, as if he was king of all the cruisers.

Today, Hollister's main drag gets closed for the Farmers Market every Wednesday afternoon, between May and September.

In July, it's shut down for the Hollister Motorcycle Rally around July 4th, and then again for the Downtown Hollister Street Festival and Car Show later in the month.

And, let me not forget that the street also closes for the various annual parades that take place throughout the year, such as the San Benito County Saddle Horse Show & Rodeo Parade, Veterans Day Parade, and Lights on Celebration Parade.

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C is for. . .

County seat.

Hollister is the county seat of San Benito County, which is part of the California Central Coast. Wait, now. Don't jump to the conclusion that my city is the one being blasted on the expensive tee-shirts people buy in that big box store I shall not name. The tee-shirt is all about a fictional beach town in Southern California. This Hollister, the real city, is about a 40 minute, more or less, drive away from the coast.

When California was established as a state in 1850, Monterey County ruled the area. Due to political this's and that's, a big interior chunk of Monterey became San Benito County in 1874. Hollister was made the county seat, rather than San Juan Bautista, which was a bustling mission town and had been for many years back then. Hollister was only incorporated in 1869. No doubt it helped that the Southern Pacific Railroad built a station there.

The former courthouse that now houses many county offices.

The new county courthouse

The county library

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B is for . . .

Buildings. Historic commercial buildings.

Many of the buildings on Hollister's main street are part of the Downtown Hollister Historic District, which is in the National Register of Historic Places. Here are just a few of the historic buildings. To see more, check out this link.

The two Italianate style buildings were erected in the late 1800s.

The Masonic Lodge built in 1908

This commercial building went up in 1915.

The once-upon-a-time Bank of America building,
constructed around 1930.

The old Elks Lodge built in the early 1920s.

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A is for . . .

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Air.

Airplane.

Airshow.

The Hollister Airshow, to be precise. And, it will be happening June 20 – 21, 2015.

Prepping for the April A to Z Blogging Challenge

"Wednesday starts the April ABC blogging challenge," I said to the Husband late last night. "I've run out of juice. I have no ideas at all."

"What letter are you on?" he asked.

"A."

Silence. 

We both laughed at the same time.

Since 2010, the Blogging from A to Z April Challenge  has been an annual event in blogland. Every day, except Sunday, participants post something about a subject beginning with the letter of the day. April 1, naturally, would be any subject beginning with A.  

I did the challenge in 2013, entering both Take 25 to Hollister and my other blog. It was fun, but tough, so last year I decided to just enter The View from the Top of the Ladder. This year, since my goal is to post every day on the two blogs, I've entered both of them in the blogathon.

Each blog has a theme. I'm going simple with Take 25 to Hollister. The theme is Hollister. Go ahead and laugh. It's not as easy as I thought it would be. Think about it. I can't write about the Pinnacles, Fremont's Peak,  or other things outside of the city limits, unless I tie it into Hollister somehow. That's the challenge I've given myself. Of course, being that I'm the boss here, I can change my rules. Maybe then I can come up with a subject for the letter A.

For those curious, food is my theme for The View from Top of the Ladder. You're welcome to check me out there, too. I pretty much have a line-up of tales ready to go. As for Take 25 to Hollister. . . stay tuned for tomorrow, dear readers.

Wildflowers on the Anza Trail

Yesterday, the Husband and I walked a bit of the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail (pshew, that's a mouthful) in San Juan Bautista.  Butterflies and grasshoppers escorted us throughout the walk, bees serenaded us, and wildflowers greeted us as well. The flowers showed up in all sorts of places along the trail.

A Sunday Flashback: A Sign of the Past

I've always liked the sign "San Juan Gardens" that graces the side gate at Vertigo Coffee in San Juan Bautista. I like to imagine a donkey playing under the sign.

Morning, Mustard, Maze, and Musing

I took a short ride on the bicycle this morning, stopping on Hillcrest Road to take in the sweet view of the yellow mustard and the soon-to-be covered fields that were once-upon-a-time apricot orchards. When the trees came down, I was surprised to see Marguerite Maze Middle School from Hillcrest Road. I still am, for that matter. Another view that will be gone, too.

Wouldn't that be wonderful if the field on Hillcrest became a park instead? Now, that could be a perfect place for an outdoor public pool. Just a thought.

Memories of Bolado Park

Today's post is a memoir of Bolado Park, written by Robyn Detherage Asimus, who lived in Hollister once upon a time. Robyn wrote this piece several ago for our defunct 1971 Balers website. She kindly has allowed me to republish it here. All photos are courtesy of Robyn. Thank you, Robyn!

Bolado Park

 © Robyn Detherage Asimus 

I loved those summers at Bolado Park. I can still remember those magical summers in the 60s as if it were yesterday. . . .

Entrance to the Swimming Pool

Driving down the long hill from Tres Pinos, the golf course on the left, rounding the last corner to begin your first glimpse of Bolado Park. The long, long grassy area and the rodeo grandstands, pulling into the parking lot, walking up the stairs, through the main doors, and there on the right was the most beautiful sight in the whole world. The unbelievably big, beautiful, blue swimming pool. The water sparkled in the sun. WOW!! How I loved summers at Bolado.

Swimming, diving, synchronized swimming pageants. Doing front and back flips off the board, (wearing a tee shirt so that I wouldn’t sting my back), being on the swim team, and practicing until I thought that my legs would fall off.

The Dance Hall

And the most important event at Bolado Park………BOYS !! (Hello, Burgie Valenzuela, Greg Guerra, Joe and Bob Maddox, Doug Goularte, Tom Medeiros, just to name a few….)

Remember the upper deck sunbathing area down by the shallow end? Of course, us girls never went there. We all knew that the cute boys were at the deep end, swimming, diving, and just sitting on the bench looking good.

The smell of Coppertone and Sea & Ski suntan lotion, the baskets we used to put our clothes in and the pin with the number on it that went with it. (Remember those?) The huge dance floor, knotty pine wood everywhere and the juke box playing our favorite songs over and over again. Surfer Girl, Help me Rhonda, I Get Around, Dead Man’s Curve, and Do the Locomotion With Me. (Just to name a few.)

 

The Snacks at the Concession Stand

I loved the hamburgers at Bolado. I always ordered mine with just mayonnaise and pickles. What was I thinking?

Bazooka Bubble Gum that was shaped long—kind-of like a tootsie roll, cream soda, Big-Hunk candy bars, and those delicious milkshakes.

The Staff

I have lots of special memories of the employees there, too. Lovey ran the main cash register. (I was scared to death of her.)  Cleva Harlan and Vivian Kaiser, sisters, and the main cooks.

Martha Hatch, Dave Tomasini, (also a mailman in town; he rode a bike to deliver the mail, remember him?) and Dean and George Clevenger, super-hunk brothers from the Bay Area. (Okay I just threw that in—they are actually my cousins, but according to their wives, still super hunks.)


Frank and Julie Escover: Frank was the groundskeeper and drove the little cart around; Julie was his cutie-pie daughter. Tommy and Francine Medeiros. Did she not have the most perfect ponytail in the whole world?

Coach Hardin, Pete Maddox, and Pat McCone were the main lifeguards. Peggy Slater was the swimming teacher who gave private lessons. Not many people knew that Peggy had taught soldiers in World War II how to swim under the water and avoid the burning fuel on the surface when their ship was attacked. She was responsible for saving many lives.

 

Pop Burns

Of course, my grandfather “Pop” Burns, who by the way was also the best grandpa in the whole wide world. He always had a huge set of keys hanging from his side and a hug and a smile for me.

As great as my life has been I would give anything just to step back in time to the 60’s again and spend a day at Bolado Park swimming, laying in the sun and just living the good life again.

The California Welcome Center—Salinas

The other day, the Husband and I dropped into the California Welcome Center in Salinas so that I could get some brochures and such about Salinas and Monterey County to inspire me with future story ideas. Sure, I could research the Internet, and I shall, but I also like to read printed materials. Call me old, I don't mind it. Besides, I love going into visitors centers. It's like going into a library, which I also love to visit, and being welcomed by books full of knowledge and entertaining stories. The California Welcome Center in Salinas certainly lived up to that. 

It's a bright and cheery place with friendly, helpful staff. That morning, the Husband and I met Inez Don Carlos, Assistant Manager, who kindly kept pulling out brochures, pamphlets, and maps of some familiar and many not-so-familiar places to check out in Monterey County. She also gave us tips of places to visit in Salinas, such as the windmill at the Harden Foundation (which I'll write about another day), and when are the best times to visit the area. For instance, in the summer, you might plan your trips around the various festivals that take place in Monterey County. 

State welcome centers are located throughout California, each covering a particular region. The California Welcome Center in Salinas is one of three centers in the California Central Coast, and it covers the Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz counties. Although designated by the state of California, the nonprofit welcome centers are not run by it. Some are connected with a city visitor's center or a chamber of commerce, while others, such as the Salinas center, are independent. 

The Salinas center has a plethora of brochures, pamphlets, maps, and gorgeous visitor guides to help you plan your adventures and tours for visiting families and friends, not just in our area, but also in other parts of California. You'll also find books, postcards, and souvenirs of our area for sale at the center. Be sure to check out the maps on the wall that show where visitors to the center have come. It's rather impressive. 

The center is located at 1213 North Davis Road, at the south end of the shopping complex that's on the west side of Highway 101, near the Laurel Street exit. It's open every day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Here is its Facebook page and website.

By the way, did you know that the artichoke has been our official state vegetable since 2013? Who knows how long I would've gone ignorant about that fact if we hadn't stepped into the California Welcome Center in Salinas the other morning. 

Llamas in San Juan Bautista

Sure, everyone knows about the wild chickens roaming the streets of San Juan Bautista. But, who knows about the llamas?

Now, did I say they are live llamas?

But, there are live llamas in San Benito County. Oils of Paicines raises llamas on their ranch just north of the Pinnacles National Park. They shear the animals yearly and turn their wool into fiber which they sell.

Back to the llamas in San Juan. If you want to check them up close, here's where you'll find them.

Driving the Back Road Home

Yesterday, the Husband and I took San Juan Grade Road back from Salinas. We figured the scenic route was the best way to get back home during the evening commute. I drove the wiggly road at an old fogey's pace, but it seemed like we got to San Juan Bautista just as fast as if we took the highway.