Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park

Saddle Rock RanchEdit

The park is located on land originally called the Saddle Rock Ranch. Christopher and Rachel McWay homesteaded the property in the late 1870s. In 1924, former U.S. Representative Lathrop Brown and his wife Hélène bought the ranch from McWay. Julia Pfeiffer Burns, daughter of pioneer homestead Michael Pfeiffer, married John Burns in 1914 at age 47 leased pasture from the Browns. A daughter of the first permanent settlers in Big Sur, she and her husband leased a ranch at Burns Creek and leased pasture from the McWay’s Saddle Rock Ranch. Hélène formed a close friendship with Julia until she died in 1928.

The Browns first built a rough redwood cabin on a site at the top of cliffs opposite McWay Falls. They replaced that in 1940 with a modern two-story home named Waterfall House. The entryway was inlaid with an ornamental brass fish, a gold octopus, and a compass rose. The interior was decorated with fine furnishings and classic paintings. Construction of the Carmel San Simeon Highway took from 1919-1937. During this time, Saddle Rock Ranch foreman Hans Ewoldsen worked in the machine shop of the highway construction crew to build a Pelton wheel. He used hand-split redwood from the canyon and other materials he bought. He installed the wheel on McWay Creek in 1932. The undershot wheel ran a 32-volt generator and was the first electric power in the Big Sur area. It supplied power to three residences, a blacksmith shop, and the Funicular railway. The residences were the first electrified dwellings in Big Sur, powered by a Pelton wheel they installed on McWay Creek.

Tin HouseEdit

In 1944, during World War II, they decided to build a house three miles inland on a ridge high above the fog. War-time rationing of vital supplies included building materials required some ingenuity. A side impact of the rationing was that gasoline was in short supply, forcing some gas stations out of business.

The Browns bought two abandoned gas station buildings. They selected a site on a ridge 1,960 ft (597m) above the coast. They had a 3 miles (4.8 km) road to the site built, hired a crew to haul the tin gas station parts up the steep road, and paid an architect to assemble a home using the various parts of the two gas stations.

When complete, the distinctive, modern house had bold lines. It had a kitchen, living room, and quarters for a maid. The family called it the Gas Station, although it later become known as Tin House. The home had spectacular views. The main windows in the large living room looked not out to sea but up and down the coast. A wall was constructed facing due west to block out the intense, direct rays of the afternoon sun. The living room was richly painted in blue.

But despite the beautiful sights above the reach of the fog, the Browns only spent one night in the new residence. They hadn't anticipated the metal siding and roof expanding and contracting with the daytime heat and night time cold, and the noisy popping and creaking that accompanied it. After one sleepless night, they never returned.

Land donatedEdit

Lathrop and Hélène left Big Sur for Florida in 1956 where Lathrop died in 1959. In 1961 Hélène Hooper Brown donated the entire property to the state, stipulating that it be used as a park and named for her good friend, Julia Pfeiffer Burns, "a true pioneer." She included the requirement that Waterfall House be converted into a "museum for the custody and display of indigenous Indian relics, flora and fauna of the California coastal area, and historical objects pertaining to the Big Sur country.". The museum could not be completed in time for several reasons, including a competing museums, shortage of funds, and poor access to the site. As required by the terms of the gift, the mansion was demolished in 1965.

RecreationEdit

Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park has two environmental hike-in camping areas, named by Sunset magazine as one of the "four best places to pitch a tent on the Pacific Coast." Both sites have exceptional views of the Pacific Coast, but access is restricted to those with camping reservations. The Julia Pfeiffer Burns Underwater Area is a popular location for scuba diving.

The summer 2008 California wildfires burned the upper parts of the park, but were stopped at Highway 1 and did not affect the camping sites. In early 2009 the many non-native acacia trees around the campsites were removed in order to restore vegetation native to the Big Sur Coast. Indigenous plants and trees were then planted, but will take time to grow fully.

In 2007 the Mano Seca group installed a bench at Campsite #2 that can be used to sit and peruse the Pacific below.

There are two ways to hike to the Tin House. The Tanbark Trail, located on the south side of the highway bridge, is a 7 miles (11 km) round trip hike with a total 2,000 feet (610 m) elevation gain. The second route is the road used to bring construction materials to the site from Highway 1. It is one mile shorter, but much steeper and less scenic.

Marine protected areasEdit

Big Creek State Marine Reserve and Big Creek State Marine Conservation Area are marine protected areas offshore from Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. Like underwater parks, these marine protected areas help conserve ocean wildlife and marine ecosystems.