California Dreamin’ – Page 2 – Gfpacificbee’s Insights & photography

Amazingly Beautiful Mountain Escape

***Viewing the***
***Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains***
***and Hume Lake***
***from***
***Hume Lake Christian Campgrounds.***

Hume Lake is a reservoir in the Sierra Nevada, located within the Sequoia National Forest 65 miles east of Fresno, California. It is in the unincorporated community of Hume, California adjacent to Hume Lake.

The 87-acre lake lies behind the world’s first concrete reinforced multiple arch dam, designed by John S. Eastwood and constructed in 1908 by the Hume-Bennett Lumber Company.

Hume Lake is a popular destination for a variety of recreational activities including camping, boating, fishing, hiking, and swimming.

Hume Lake Christian Camps is a non-denominational, nonprofit parachurch organization and is one of the largest operators of Christian camps and conference centers in the world. Hume has camps and conferences for every age group ( for children and adults alike).

My parents,along with other couples from our church, spent a weekend at Hume during the summer of 1979. I’m not sure if they were attending one of the marriage retreats offered at the campground or they were all volunteers for the weekend. It seems they had plenty of leisure time to explore and photograph the Sequoia National Forest and the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

I attended weekend at Hume in my late teens with others from my church one winter. Somewhere, not sure where, I have pictures from when I was there. I remember seeing and walking by the lake.

Whatsoever is Lovely Challenge-2024 Week 29

Sunny Sunday

Jez’s Water Water Evverywhere #229

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Location: Hume Lake Christian Campgrounds; Hume, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting the Hume Lake with us. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 Silent Sunday: 07.21

Standing

at the Foot

of the Cross

***Nornal Hule & Doyce Eileen Waters***
***My Mom and Dad***
***by a Cross***
at
***Hume Lake Christian Campgrounds***
***Hume, California***

Silent Sunday

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Location: Hume Lake Christian Campgrounds; Hume,California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting the Campground Cross with us. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 Pull Up at Seat: Week 28

California Marriott’s

Great America Addition #2

This week we are continuing our adventures from August 1979 allowing y’all to imagine the experience and excitement of Pulling Up a Seat with us … Let’s Ride!

… California’s Great America’s Willard Whizzer Roller Coaster in Santa Clara, California. A transition roller coaster was introduced later on in 1986 called Grizzly Roller Coaster, which helped kids adapt from the kiddie roller coaster versions of Lucy’s Crabbie Cabbies and Woodstock Express to more grown-up thrills.

Willard’s Whizzer’s hills and ground-hugging curves gave riders a heightened impression of speed. Lacking inversions, the coaster has been a favorite of families. In the beginning, the ride didn’t have lap bars or seat belts. Small children rode side by side with a parent helping them to feel comfortable and protected. The forces of the ride were designed to keep well-behaved riders in their seats according to the laws of physics. For many children, at the time, this was their very first “big” roller coaster ride.

Pull up a Seat Photo Challenge 2024-Week 29

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35 mm

Location: Santa Clara, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

A Walk Through a Japanese Garden

A walk back in time to visit a place my mom and dad visited with friends, remembering the love they shared. I believe this was a day trip they took with friends from their Sunday school class.

On this day trip from San Diego, California, in 1979, they ventured to The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens located in San Marino, California. The Botanical Gardens section of Huntington has approximately 120 acres of specialized botanical landscaped gardens, including the “Japanese Garden”, the “Desert Garden”, and the “Chinese Garden”.

***Walking through***
***a floral passageway***
***with friends.***

The Huntington’s Botanical Gardens showcase plants from around the world. Huntington worked diligently to make them thrive in the generous climate conditions of California. The gardens are divided into more than a dozen themes including the ones mentioned earlier.

The Japanese Garden creation began in 1911 with a donation from art dealer George Turner Marsh and was completed in 1912. However, it did not open to the public until 1928. In the Japanese Garden you can find three distinct gardens: the original stroll garden with koi-filled ponds and a drum or moon bridge, the raked-gravel dry garden which was added in 1968, and the traditionally landscaped tea garden.

An interesting side note: the gardens are frequently used as a filming location. Shits can be seen in the Carpenter’s music video, “Only Yesterday” (1975), in Star Trek the Next Generation’s episode Justice (1987), in CSI Miami’s episode of You May Now Kill the Bride (2008) and in many other productions.

The Huntington Botanical Gardens were honored on May 13, 2020 with a postal stamp as part of the American Gardens stamps. The Desert Garden was featured on the postal stamp.

Debbie’s Six Word Saturday

Cee’s Flower of the Day

Jez’s Water Water Evverywhere #228

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Location: Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens, San Marino California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting the Gardens with us. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 FOTD: 07.18

Orange Rest Stop Flowers

***Orange Flowers***
***seen at a***
***Rest Stop***
***along PCH***

Cee’s Flower of the Day

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Location: Near San Francisco; Rest Stop; Along Pacific Coast Highway, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 CWWC/CPC: July — Week 3

Pathways and/or Passages

According the Oxford Dictionary, a Pathway is a path which you can walk along or a route you can take and a Passage is a way of exit or entrance; the act or process of moving through, under, over, or past something on the way from one place to another.

This week I am combining Cee’s Which Way with Dale’s Cosmic Photo Challenge doing it My Way. I have chosen to post pathways and/or passages at Marriott’s Great America in Santa Clara, California.

***Entrance to***
***Marriott’s Great America***

Aerial Views of

Pathways at

Marriott’s Great America

Pathways Around the Shops

and Places to

Pull Up a Seat

at Marriott’s Great America

***On the Pathway***
***with Warner Bros.***
***Looney Tunes Characters***
***& My Mom***

Cee’s Which Way Challenge

Which Way My Way

Dale’s Cosmic Photo Challenge

Pull up a Seat Photo Challenge 2024-Week 28

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Location: Marriott’s Great America, Santa Clara, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 Thursday Doors & Monday Window #3

1933 Duesenberg

Torpedo Sedan

***California***
***20 Grand***
**Model SJ**
**8 Cylinders**

Dan’s Thursday Doors

Ludwig’s Monday Window

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35 mm

Location: California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 Judy’s Numbers Game #30 — 151

For Judy’s “The Numbers Game #30”Today’s number is 151. To play along, go to your photos file and type that number into the search bar. Then post a selection of the photos you find under that number and include a link to your blog in my Numbers Game blog of the day. If instead of numbers, you have changed the identifiers of all your photos into words, pick a word or words to use instead, and show us a variety of photos that contain that word in the title.

California Adventures

Since I have been working on digitizing my dad’s old slides more than photographing outdoors in our extreme heat, I decided to share some of my dad’s slides and my memories from our California adventures with all y’all.

Lombard Street
San Francisco, California

***Doyce Eileen Waters***
***( My mom) and Myself***
***Redwood Sequoia Sempervirens***
***Washed Ashore at Crescent City***
During The Christmas Flood Of
1964. Placed Here At The Gateway
***To The Redwood Empire.***

***Nornal Hule Waters***
***(My dad)***
***Sequoia National Park***
***Three Rivers, Tulare County, California***

***Centennial Stump***
***Sequoia National Forest***

Sequoia National Forest
Campground
Princess

Sequoia Sempervirens
Coastal California Redwood
Sequoia National Forest

Judy’s Numbers Game #30-151

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Locations: 1-5) San Francisco, California; 6-9) Sequoia National Forest Campground; Three Rivers, Tulare County, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. Sharing memories are precious and a delight to behold. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 Wordless Wednesday: 07.17

Catalina Island

Hugh’s Wordless Wednesday

Throwback Thursday

Jez’s Water Water Everywhere #227

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Location: Santa Catalina Island; View from Los Angeles, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

Sunday Stills/FOWC Tranquility in Red, White & Blue

Red & White Ship
on Blue Waters
Port O Call
Los Angeles, California

Sunday Stills Monthly Color Challenge- Red, White, and Blue

Fandango’s FOWC-Tranquil

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Location: Port O Call; Los Angeles, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 Monday Window: 07.15

Round Table Windows

***Round Table Pizza***🍕
**Solvang, California**

With Solvang being the Danish Capital of America, the Businessmen’s Association thought it would be too their advantage to capitalize on their natural advantages and adopt Danish style architecture in their buildings and in the remodeling of old buildings. Danish architectural styles had been developed in Solvang from its earliest stages of development, however, there was a more intensive effort conducted after their business meeting in 1946.

The Round Table Pizza building originally housed the Roeser Milling Company building (built in the 1930s). Back in the late 1970’s, tourists loved to stop for a bite at Round Table Pizza helping to contribute to their booming business. It is no longer in operation in Solvang, California, but there are plenty of other eateries to delight your appetite.

Ludwig’s Monday Window

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35 mm

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

Disneyland Parade — 1979

Here Comes

Mickey & Minnie

and Friends

Disneyland’s first parade was held on Sunday, July 17, 1955. The Opening Day was dedicated at an “International Press Preview” event which was open only to invited guests and the media.

The dedication and other special events of the opening were televised nationwide and anchored by three of Walt Disney’s friends from Hollywood: Art Linkletter, Bob Cummings, and Ronald Reagan. It was broadcast live by ABC. Even though the Special Event was by invitation only, many people succeeded in sneaking into the park soaring the number of attendees to an astounding 28,000 people.

https://videopress.com/v/rYRRGrxb?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true

Disneyland has been having parades at the amusement park since that very first day except during the Coronavirus pandemic in 2020 when the park was closed. The theme of the parades change periodically with the seasons and significant historical events of the times. The Characters Parade occurred most years, as well as an annual Christmas parade and were popular among the tourists visiting the park.

In 1979, the Dumbo Circus Parade theme featured the same basic “Character Parade” floats with added circus decor. This particular theme parade only ran in 1979.

Although none of the floats were captured by my dad on this particular visit to Disneyland, many of the Characters were captured by his 35 mm camera. I am so glad that I am able to digitize his slides for preservation and am able to share them with all y’all.

Lens-Artist Photo Challenge (LAPC) – Tourist Attractions

Cosmic Photo Challenge-Motion

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35 mm

Location: Disneyland; Anaheim, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and watching the parade with us. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts with me. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 Silent Sunday: 07.14

Horseshoe Bay

and

Alcatraz Island

Silent Sunday

Jez’s Water Water Everywhere #227

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35 mm

Location: Horseshoe Bay; San Francisco Bay; San Francisco, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

California’s Great America Bugs Bunny Show

***Bugs Bunny & Wile E. Coyote***
***at California’s Great America***

Since the Opening of California’s Marriott’s Great America in 1976, the park featured appearances from Warner Bros. Looney Tunes characters. Some of the Looney Tunes characters included Bugs Bunny, Wile E. Coyote, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, Daffy Duck, Tweety, and Yosemite Sam. The Looney Tunes characters would roam around the park greeting visitors as well as putting on a fun entertaining show.

Debbie’s Six Word Saturday

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Location: Marriott’s Great America, Santa Clara, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 CWWC: July – Week 2 _ Any Roadways or Pathways with Cars and/or People

This week I’m continuing Cee’s Which Way Challenge doing it My Way. Therefore for this the second week of July, I have chosen a theme of Any Roadways or Pathways with Cars and/or People. Remember signs are always welcome. I welcome anyone who desires to join me on this week’s Which Way Challenge.

Here is my entry for this week. These are from a trip to Solvang, California back in September of 1978. Solvang is known as “Danish Capital of America” because of its Danish heritage and European-inspired culture, architecture, and museums.

Solvang is a sun-soaked slice of Danish culture in the Santa Ynez Valley, where California wine cellars mix with European bakeries and shops. It’s where you can drink, dine and shop like a Dane without ever leaving the California sunshine.

The name Solvang means “sunny fields” in Danish. The city of Solvang was founded in 1911 by a group of Danish immigrants who purchased 9’000 acres of land near the Old Mission Santa Inés and built a community to preserve and promote Danish culture.

An interesting note (especially for Hallmark fans), A still from “A Very Charming Christmas Town,” the Lifetime Christmas movie set in Solvang.

Cee’s Which Way Challenge

Which Way My Way

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35 mm

Location: Solvang, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. Take Care Cee! Chris thank you for taking good care of our friend. I appreciate y’all very much.

Monochrome Madness #12 — Sculptures

This week PR from the blog Flights of the Soul is hosting Monochrome Madness with the theme of Sculptures. Let’s see y’all’s monochrome sculptures and don’t forget to link to Flights of the Soul’s blog.

My selections for this week’s challenge were captured on film in 1978 in Solvang, California many years ago.

This Statue is a milestone marker indicating the distance from Solvang to Copenhagen, Denmark, a mere 11270 kilometers apart.

The Bronze Statue of Hans Christian Andersen is located in Hans Christian Andersen Park in Solvang, California. This Park is a tribute to the renowned Danish author, Hans Christian Andersen and was founded in 1970.

Presented
To The
Community Of Solvang
By
Friends Of Denmark
Sponsored By The
Solvang Chapter Of
***Rebuild National Park Society***
***1976***

Solvang is known as the “Danish Capital of America” with its strong Danish heritage and European-inspired culture. It was founded in 1911. It wasn’t incorporated as a city until May 1, 1985.

Besides the Statue of Hans Christian Andersen there is a museum dedicated to him you might be interested in visiting. The monument of Hans Christian Andersen Denmark’s renowned Fairy Tale Writer was created by Henry Luckow Nielsen of Copenhagen, Denmark.

Leanne’s Monochrome Madness

PR’s Monochrome Madness

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35 mm

Location: Solvang, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. Take Care Cee! Chris, thank you for taking good care of our friend. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 Pull Up a Seat: Week 27

California Marriott’s

Great America Addition #1

Pull Up a Seat on Willard’s Whizzer …

The Whizzer is a steel roller coaster located in the Hometown Square section of Marriott’s Great America. This one pictured here was taken at The California Marriott’s Great America amusement park in April of 1979.

The Whizzer, originally named “Willard’s Whizzer,” was one of two identical roller coasters built for each of the Marriott’s Great America parks. The Whizzer roller coasters made their debut when the parks opened in May of 1976.

The California Great America Whizzer operated from 1976-1988. My family visited the California location of Marriott’s Great America in Santa Clara, California in April of 1979. I am not sure if I actually Pulled Up a Seat and ride the roller coaster or not (I’m not too keen on large high-speed roller coasters.) The second location for Marriott’s Great America (currently known as Six Flags Great America) is in Gurnee, Illinois.

From the very beginning, both versions of Whizzer suffered with problems surrounding the braking system. The braking system would sometimes allow the trains to collide in the station. From 1976-1979, there were at least 11 recorded instances of station collisions on the California’s Great America version, resulting in an unknown number of injuries. The Illinois’ Great America Whizzer also had two station collisions which occurred less than a month apart in 1976. A total of 31 riders were injured in the Gurnee collisions.

The Steel Roller Coasters were manufactured by Anton Schwarzkopf of Germany. These two versions of Whizzer were the last “Speedracer” models ever built.

If you want to have a chance to Pull Up a Seat on the Whizzer, you’ll need to visit the Gurnee, Illinois location of Six Flags Great America.

Pull up a Seat Photo Challenge 2024-Week 27

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35 mm

Location: Santa Clara, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

2024 Wordless Wednesday: 07.10

California's Great America — ***California’s Great America***

Hugh’s Wordless Wednesday

Throwback Thursday

Camera: Minolta XG-7 35mm

Location: Santa Clara, California, USA

God Bless. Thank you for visiting and sharing your time and thoughts with us. I appreciate y’all very much.

Happy Fourth of July America!

***Independence Day***
***Via Zen Color App***

Early U.S. settlers brought their love of fireworks with them to the New World and fireworks were part of the very first Independence Day – a tradition that continues every 4th of July when we celebrate as John Adams had hoped with pomp, parade, bonfires and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other.

Southern California
Fireworks

**San Diego Fireworks**
by Julee Vaughan

Growing up in Southern California, we would almost always watch the Fireworks show from Mission Bay or Sea World. I enjoy seeing the fireworks through my friends photographic eyes.

***Southern*** ***California***
***Fireworks***
By Julee Vaughan

Fireworks are amazing to watch when done properly. If you are going to set off fireworks, please be respectful of others.

Remember Fireworks Safety – Use Extreme Care
Never Use fireworks while impaired by drugs or alcohol
Anyone using fireworks or standing nearby should wear protective eyewear.
Never hold fireworks in your hands.
Never light them indoors.
Never throw or point fireworks at another person.
Only light one device at a time and maintain a safe distance after lighting.
Never ignite a device in a container.
Do not try to re-light or handle malfunctioning fireworks.
Soak both spent and unused fireworks in water for a few hours before discarding.
Keep a bucket of water nearby to fully extinguish fireworks that didn’t go off or in case of fire.
Never use fireworks that are illegal where you live.
Always keep Fireworks away from children.

In making your plans, please include pet safety as well as human safety. Pets find fireworks highly stressful. Bring your pets indoors, close curtains and blinds and turn on the radio to provide some distraction. Leave treats filled with food to comfort animals.

Remember not everyone embraces the fireworks tradition. It is not just pets that are bothered by the loud noise and the flashing lights caused by fireworks. Young children and elderly are also affected by the loud noise caused by fireworks, disturbing their sleep and wellbeing.

Those who have served in the Armed Services, and live with various levels of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) sometimes also have a hard time with fireworks.

Warning your friends and neighbors about your plans to set off fireworks is a much appreciated courtesy.

Dogs may still have a hard time with those, but people who know what to expect and when to expect it can generally cope with the noise and flashing lights of a fireworks display. If they know they are going to have problems despite expecting what is to come, they can take steps to remove themselves from areas with community displays.

The real problem isn’t the planned events, but instead (especially for those who might have combat related traumatic experiences) is the unplanned and unscheduled pops and bangs of impromptu displays.

God Bless. Happy 4th of July! Enjoy the fireworks. Remember to be courteous of the stressfulness that fireworks may cause others. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts with me. I appreciate y’all very much.

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