Limekiln State Park
Encyclopedia
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
located 2 miles (3.2 km) south of Lucia
Lucia, California
Lucia is an unincorporated community in Monterey County, California. It is located east of Lopez Point, at an elevation of 354 feet . Lucia is one of the three small settlements of restaurants, and motels located along State Route 1 on the Big Sur coast...
on State Route 1
California State Route 1
State Route 1 , more often called Highway 1, is a state highway that runs along much of the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California. It is famous for running along some of the most beautiful coastlines in the world, leading to its designation as an All-American Road.Highway 1 does not run...
on the Big Sur
Big Sur
Big Sur is a sparsely populated region of the Central Coast of California where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise abruptly from the Pacific Ocean. The name "Big Sur" is derived from the original Spanish-language "el sur grande", meaning "the big south", or from "el país grande del sur", "the big...
coast. It has a secluded campground with two distinct environments. There is beach camping along a sandy cove. Above is camping in the redwood forest. A hike leads up to Limekiln Falls.
The park's name comes from the actual kiln
Kiln
A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, or oven, in which a controlled temperature regime is produced. Uses include the hardening, burning or drying of materials...
s that were used to produce lime
Lime (mineral)
Lime is a general term for calcium-containing inorganic materials, in which carbonates, oxides and hydroxides predominate. Strictly speaking, lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide. It is also the name for a single mineral of the CaO composition, occurring very rarely...
in the 19th century. There is a nice hike up through the redwoods to the lime kilns. Limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
was quarried above in the hills and brought down by pack mule
Mule
A mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse. Horses and donkeys are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes. Of the two F1 hybrids between these two species, a mule is easier to obtain than a hinny...
. After the lime was baked, barrels of it were slid down a wire to the beach area and taken by boat to ships anchored off the inlet.
The campground was family owned before it was then sold and operated by the Esalen Institute
Esalen Institute
Esalen Institute is a residential community and retreat in Big Sur, California, which focuses upon humanistic alternative education. Esalen is a nonprofit organization devoted to activites such as meditation, massage, Gestalt, yoga, psychology, ecology, and spirituality...
for a number of years. It is now run by the state of California.
Limekiln Falls is a 100 ft (30.5 m) waterfall
Waterfall
A waterfall is a place where flowing water rapidly drops in elevation as it flows over a steep region or a cliff.-Formation:Waterfalls are commonly formed when a river is young. At these times the channel is often narrow and deep. When the river courses over resistant bedrock, erosion happens...
near Lucia in Limekiln State Park.
Proposed for closure
Limekiln State Park was one of the 48 California state parks proposed for closure in January 2008 by California's Governor Arnold SchwarzeneggerArnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
as part of a deficit reduction program.
Chalk Fire damage
Limekiln State Park was heavily damaged in the Chalk Fire of September and October, 2008. In total, the Chalk Fire burned 16269 acres (65.8 km²) in California. On July 2, 2010 it reopened for public use. When it reopened the Limekiln Falls trail was initially closed, but in the Summer of 2011 the Limekiln Falls trail was reopened. The Hare trail is shorter due to damage related to the Chalk fire.See also
External links
- Four Lime Kilns, 63025 Highway 1, Big Sur, Monterey County, CA: 25 photos. Public domain photos, at Historic American Building Survey.