One Man’s Trash…

Nitt Witt Ridge, Cambira, CA

So my kids and I took a trip up North to an adorable little town called Cambria.  What a wonderful place it is.  I was surprised to have time off from the normal grind and decided to plan a quick trip out of town.  I really had no idea where I would go since it was so last minute and it was over the New Year’s holiday. Airfare was ridiculous, so a road trip is what it had to be.  Cambria was the perfect drivable distance and right on the beach.  Anyone that knows me, knows that I absolutely live for the beach!

Anyway, I booked a hotel, and bought tickets for us to see Hearst Castle all lit up and decorated for the holidays.  We hopped in the car and were off.  The drive was so relaxing with the stunning views everywhere.  I of course took the scenic route up the coast.  I would rather drive longer and enjoy every inch of ground I cover, than to be bored with nothingness along the way.  I’ve been known to stop for a super cool looking tree or even an adorable cow when time isn’t an issue.  (Yep, here’s proof…I stopped for this super cool tree covered hill and nifty farm.  My daughter simple said “Really Mom, you’re stopping for a random hill!”. She’s getting use to me though.)

So, we did continue to take our time and stopped for a walk and lunch in beautiful Santa Barbara (on State Street of course).

When we finally got into Cambria, we checked into our cozy hotels room lit the fire place and unpacked.  After a bit of relaxing, we then headed up to the Castle for our tour.  It was absolutely beautiful.  I love the holidays so this was perfect.

We spent the next day walking around the quaint little town of Cambria.  My kids and I love art, so the art stores took up a lot of our time.  Of course we enjoyed lunch and all of the old architecture too.

The next day we did more exploring. We walked on the beach and found Sea Lions and little see creatures.  It was another great day!

My plan was to visit a nearby Lighthouse, but it was closed to the public so instead I found a interesting little place called Nitt Witt Ridge.  Oh my goodness, what a cool story.  It’s definitely not your typical tourist attraction, but I love little oddities that have some interesting history behind them.

This place was built by a garbage collector named Arthur Harold Beal, who people nick named “Captain Nitt Witt”.  He wasn’t fond of the nick name, but it stuck due to his unusual way of building his mansion on the hill.  The place is constructed & decorated with all sorts of crazy odds and ends like tire rims, toilet seats, beer cans, old car psrts.  It’s a neat place to check out if you’re up in that area.  It’s a strong contrast to Hearst Castle for sure. Here’s some pictures of the place from our visit. (I love the water fountain made of old sinks and a bathtub. And the toilet that’s placed on the roof as a place to sit and enjoy the ocean view is quite funny as well.)

Mr. Beal passed away in 1992 at the age of 96.  Now the mansion is owned by Michael and Stacey O’Malley who offer tours of the property and tell stories from Mr. Beal’s life there.

Although very different, my kids & I agree that this was one of the highlights of our trip. If you ever make it to Cambria, check it out.

It was an amazing trip.  I’m so glad we chose to check out Cambria!