Not the asphalt ribbon of a highway...

Far and away the biggest single impact to this coast came in 1769 when the Portolá expedition came up this coast, skirting these mountains, but establishing the mission system. But after this event, the next biggest impact came with building the highway. It changed a homestead economy (and demographic) into a highway economy (and demographic).

But our life-line should not be the asphalt ribbon of the highway. It should be our humility and relationship with these wild mountains. If we're not careful, if we live within these screens too much — only peering out through our windows along the "scenic corridor" — we'll lose that connection, and inadvertently, even as we're saying how much we love it here, we could end up destroying the essential wild nature of this coast.

Ts'owém' (Cone Peak). John Peabody Harrington, October 1932. Courtesy of the National Anthropological Archives.                                            _____________________________

Note

Xasáuan Today is reporting one good prescription — National Trails Day on June 4 at Big Sur Station.