Big Sur - Dublab Tonalism Show at Henry Miller, Pfeiffer
Beach
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  We took a quick road trip up to Big Sur for Tonalism (thank you, Dublab!), the all-night ambient slumber party at the Henry Miller Library in Big Sur, where the sounds of Windy and Carl and others echoed off the redwoods. And we visited the amazing sea caves of Pfeiffer Beach and much more. Lisa and I woke up, jammed the truck full of camping equipment and food, and rolled up northward to Big Sur. And on the way, like any seasoned traveler heading up the 101, we made our spiritual pilgrimage to the home of the split pea, Pea Soup Andersen's. I got a burger and a refrigerator magnet. |
 Finally
making it to Riverside Campground in Big Sur, we slapped up our trusty $40
tent and bolted back down PCH.
Why? The Dublab Tonalism show had already begun, and we wanted to situate ourselves on the best part of the damp lawn to experience the all-night ambient slumber party. |
 We
met up with Laura - pictured - and Chris. You may not see Chris here.
All his photos came out blurry. He is in focus when you see him in
person. It was the photos, definitely the photos. |
 Nanny
Cantaloupe of Golden Hits fingers the Mackie. |
 We
busted out the plastic tarp, the blankets, the food, the pillows, all that,
on the damp lawn. Chris came back. "You're missing all the
action back there." And indeed we were. Golden Hits was
performing yummy improvisational music beneath the cool misty Big Sur sky. |
 The
haunting fog in the trees. |
 Ben of Golden Hits elicits sparkly notes from his guitar. |
 As
Golden Hits played on, I found myself enchanted by the meeting of the
electronic instruments and the redwoods, the colorful quilt offering an
interesting barrier between the two visually. Tonalism melded with
mist. If thirty-year old synthesizers didn't meld with the mist, so
much the better. |
 Dublab
curator |
 After
the Golden Hits show, we made our way back to the lawn. The blankets
and pillows were damp.
Lyonnais made pretty sounds. Windy and Carl brought on the everdrone as projections of trees appeared on the enormous screen. I thought they should have shown projections of the very trees the screen was blocking. Or project a projection of the screen. The projection beams danced amongst the misty droplets. Gorgeous, better than the actual projections. I wandered a bit. Curly-haired attendants peeked their head up around out of their sleeping bags. I saw Mia Doi Todd singing in the back. She sounded good. I returned. Lisa was shivering and cold and damp. No more ambient slumber party for us. We left for the dryness of our $40 Target tent. |
 The
next morning, we hiked the Oak Grove Trail in Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park,
past this homestead cabin, which once housed some of the Pfeiffer family,
the first European immigrants to settle in Big Sur.
|
 Passing
the homestead cabin along the Oak Grove trail, we found that the trail was
closed, a result of the disastrous fires that swept through Big Sur in
summer 2008. Disappointed, we wondered why the ranger in the booth
hadn't been told that this most of the other trails were closed. |
 Thankfully,
the Pfeiffer Falls Trail was open, and we hiked up the short trail.
Lisa found some interesting...well, I don't know what they are. |
 I
was hungry by the time we arrived at Pfeiffer Falls, so I took out a bag of
Trader Joe's Soy Flaxseed Tortilla Chips. Before I had even eaten a
bit, a steller's jay flew down onto the railing next to me, attracted by the
rustling of the bag. Lisa gave him a crumbled chip. He nibbled
on it and asked if we had garlic chipotle salsa. I gave him a little
pat on the head and apologized for leaving it back at the camp. |
 A
lovely bed of green along Pfeiffer Falls Trail in Pfeiffer Big Sur State
Park.Went back to the camp. Ate chicken sandwiches with garlic bean dip and even more Trader Joe's Soy Flaxseed Tortilla Chips. Then, on to the Redwood Grill to meet Chris and Laura for pulled pork sandwiches, Big Sur Golden Ale, and Game 6 of the Lakers/Nuggets Western Conference Finals. The Lakers won, and all was right in the world. |
Big Sur, May 2009
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Contact photographer/musician Ken Lee
