Since we have an extra day in the central coast of California, we decided to go to the ocean near Lompoc about 30 miles away. The sky was a bright blue and the scenery continued to be spectacular. Peggy is takes photos while I drive. Although she doesn’t miss the noise of the convertible or the hot sun beating down on her head (I don’t mind either), she misses the ability to just hold the camera above the windshield and have a panoramic view for her pictures.
Peggy has always wanted to visit some of the missions here in California. On the way to Lompoc, we decided to stop at La Purisima Mission in Lompoc. We were just in time for the 1 pm daily tour. It was terrific. Our tour guide was well informed and very engaging. The original mission, built in 1787, was destroyed by an earthquake and subsequent floods in December 1812.
The mission was rebuilt at its current location in a straight line formation rather than the traditional rectangular mission formation to avoid the buildings toppling in on each other, and to allow a quick evacuation for the residents in the event of future earthquakes. Franciscan Father Mariano Payeras was instrumental in using this unusual architectural design for the mission. He was also a very capable manager and the mission provided for almost all of its needs. It was well known for its wool blankets and leather goods. Through its large cattle holdings, it was able to produce enough leather for the mission’s needs and to supply some of the leather needed for the Industrial Revolution machines and earn a profit for the mission. At its peak, the mission had almost 300,000 acres and 24,000 cattle and sheep. The residents’ occupations included weaving, candle making, blacksmithing, leather works, farming, and care of animals.
The mission went into decline because of rebel attacks, and according to our guide, the geographical limitations prevented the expansion of the mission. The Mission was taken over by California State Parks in 1933 and restored to the 1820s era. We were able to tour much of the grounds and inside many buildings including the chapel, military barracks (which housed 5 soldiers and their horses, the corporal’s quarters, the Mayordomo’s (ranch manager) apartment, the guest room, priests’ quarters including their kitchen and privy, weaving shop, and the outdoor patio. This is where the olive press and a bread oven (horno) was and where some socializing took place.
The outside grounds are beautiful and included several fountains that were the water sources for drinking, cooking, bathing and doing laundry. The gray water from bathing and laundry was channeled to the fields for irrigating crops. There are large animal pens. The current livestock include some horses, 2 longhorn cattle, and some sheep. The park frequently has days where docents and volunteers dress in period costumes and recreate mission life. It also hosts groups of 4th grade students as mission life is taught in the 4th grade in California schools,. This was a thoroughly informative and enjoyable tour!
Following our tour, we went into Lompoc for a bite to eat. We are sorry to say that it looked like a town without much life or business (bear in mind, today is Sunday). They do have some really interesting murals painted on the side of the buildings. Eventually, we found a Subway to satisfy our hunger. Then we drove down to the beach. Even though the marine layer had rolled back in and it was windy and cold (at least for Peggy), we parked the car and walked across the railroad tracks to the dunes to get a view of the ocean. Yes, I did say railroad tracks. According to a local resident, Amtrak stops there (Lompoc-Surf station) twice a day. 
An Amtrak train came by while we were there, but it didn’t stop. After that we headed to our home away from home. Since it was still early, and I like to explore, we decided to continue down the road past our motel to see where the road went. We were pleasantly surprised to find the Walker Firestone Brewery where we stopped in for a drink and a pretzel. It it was a wonderful end to the day.