Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1921-07-28
Pitch Their Tent With Many Others
Where the Waves Of the Pacific
Break on the Shore
GYPSYING IS FAVORITE
SPORT In CALIFORNIA
Former Baraboo Resident Writes
of Sights and Scenes Along the
Western Coast

Mrs. G. w. Crook, nee Bernice
Wichern, has received letter from
her mother, Mrs Will Wichern, 433
North Friends avenue. Whittier, Cal
which will be found below. The Wich-
ern family fc1nlerly 1esided near
Baraboo. Mrs. Crook is here from
California to visit for few weeks
The letter runs as follows:
I suppose you would like to know
how we spent the Fourth. Well, NJ.
WCE ern ard / with cOIs:ns Kit ahJ
i.llta ! eais n drove 10 v ura ~a'-
urday starting at 2:30 in the after
noon. 1t is nearly hundred miles
so it was getting dark when we got
there. We went into an auto camp
slere by the beach where there were
hundreds Of others, put up our little
camp stove, got supper and fixed our
tent and beds It was so restfuI lying
there in the open with the sound of
the breakers pounding on the beach
that | hated to go to Sleep The next
morning we packed up and drove the
thirty-two miles to Santa Barbara.
This drive is between the beach and
the hills nearly all the way and is
wonderfully beautiful drive
Shortly before reaching Santa Bar
bara we noticed lot of oil derricks
out in the water. These wells are in
the ocean bed. It seems there isn't
oil enough on dry fand-they must
go to the ocean for it.
An Auto Camp
At Santa Barbara we went into the
auto camp. BY paying a small fee
the tourists obtain the privilege of US
ing the tourist kitchen where there
are sixteen gas plates, ovens, hot and
cold water and dishpans. A great
many cooked their food there and
then carried it to the tables by
their tents to eat There were hun
dreds of autos parked there by the
tents and it was novel experience
to watch people coming from the kit
chen-sOme with frying pans full
of eggs, others with kettles of stew,
some with pans of hot biscuits and
still others with platters of steaming
pancakes. And while we wouldn't
cale 10 live that way all the time,
don't imagine for a minute that
everyone wasn't enjoying their food
in full measure.
Through the Mission
In the afternoon we went through
the mission, which is the best pre-.
served of the twenty-one California
missions. We were shown many odd
and interesting relics of the early In
dians and Spaniards among them one
of the rawhide beds that you read
about in Ramona" The walls were
covered with old paintings many of
them by famous artists.
The room where services are held
is very beautiful with it's elaborate
altar, images, candle sticks and paint
ings.
We were allowed to go up the wind
ing steps to the belfry from which
a lovely view could be obtained. The
old bells are corroded and cracked
and more modern one is in SER
vice. Several thousand Indians are
buried in the adjacent cemetery
where beautiful trees and flowers are
cared for.
Extreme Clothes Not Allowed
No women or girls with extremely
short skirts or with hiking pants are
allowed in the mission so some of
the tourists were disappointed
Later on we visited the ruins OF
the Ambassador Hotel that was burn
ed down last spring. It must have
been an immense building. We were
told that they are to build still bet
ter one in its place.
Tqward evening there were seq,
vices held in the camp-a song ser
vice of old familiar songs and short
prayer and sermon
The camp is lighted by electricity
but by 10 o'clock everything was
quiet and we all slept fine.
The next forenoon we started home
The beach was literally alive with
camping outfits those thirty miles tc
Ventura. And there were about as
many different types of outfits az
there were campers.
Mondays Los Angeles Times said
Los Angeles is gypsying today" anG
it certainly was. Not only Los Angeles
but all southern California should
say.
We came home through San Fer
nando Valley by way of Van Nuyi