It's a 10-minute ride or a 20-minute walk. ![]() Walk or cycle west on the Monterey Bay Coastal Recreation Trail toward Cannery Row, renamed in 1958 for Steinbeck's bestselling novel. Walk down the Wharf sampling fresh clam chowder, then dive into a plate of Monterey Bay calamari at Abalonetti's, Big Fish Grill or Old Fisherman's Grotto. Now the wharf is lined with restaurants serving today's fresh catch. Saunter down Old Fisherman's Wharf, which features in "Sweet Thursday," the sequel to "Cannery Row." During Steinbeck's lifetime, immigrant and native Californian fisherman mingled here among their catch of sardines, squid and abalone. Most of the pubs Steinbeck visited here are gone, but the scene on this short street is very much like Steinbeck saw it until you reach Custom House Plaza, Monterey State Historic Park. Walk or cycle down the hill to downtown Monterey and take some time to explore its main avenue, Alvarado Street. It's now the Mayo Hayes O'Donnell Historic Library. Just a couple of blocks away, at 155 Van Buren Street, stands the former church where Thom was baptized. He owned the Lara-Soto Adobe, at 460 Pierce Street, which he called "a house I have wanted since I was a little kid." It's now the admissions center at the Monterey International Institute. In 1945, Steinbeck lived with his second wife and son Thom in Monterey the novel "Cannery Row" was published that year. It's a perfect place for people-watching locals traipse through to pick up fresh breads, newspapers and gorgeous pastries. Saturdayīreakfast at the Paris Bakery in downtown Monterey. This restaurant, in a rustic stone-hewn building which Steinbeck would have passed on his treks from Salinas to Monterey, serves well-crafted fare alongside a wide selection of California wines. ![]() With darkness blanketing the Salinas Valley, sample some of its bounty at Tarpy's Roadhouse. The highest point on the Monterey peninsula dazzles with sweeping vistas of Monterey Bay, Carmel and the Salinas Valley. ![]() If it's still light, continue cruising west to visit Jacks Peak Park to get a birds-eye view of the places Steinbeck wrote about. He gained inspiration here for several of his novels including "East of Eden" and "Of Mice and Men."Ĭontinue west on Highway 68 to visit Corral de Tierra, where sandstone cliffs like Castle Rock rise from the still-picture-perfect valley Steinbeck described in "Pastures of Heaven." Steinbeck worked here in the early 1920s, at what was then the largest sugar plant in the world. Turn off to visit the few streets of what remains of the company town of Spreckels. You're now in the fertile Salinas Valley, which inspired many of Steinbeck's stories. Take Highway 68 west out of downtown Salinas. Its front rooms are now a homey restaurant, staffed by volunteers from a civic organization comprised of local women. He wrote several stories and novels in this Queen Anne Victorian. John and his younger sisters grew up here. Head west to Central Avenue to have lunch at The Steinbeck House. 201 and 247 feature in the novel "East of Eden." Click here to access a map of Art Deco locations in Salinas. Many buildings here were built before Steinbeck was born Nos. Stroll along Main Street, noticing the Art Deco architecture. As you end your tour, you'll see the green camper Steinbeck drove through 34 states before he wrote "Travels with Charley," parked right inside the museum. ![]() No matter how much you know about Steinbeck, you'll find a new angle to appreciate. The multi-sensory tour is replete with big-screen clips from movie versions of his novels starring the likes of James Dean. A Model T Ford, like the one mentioned in "Cannery Row" and "East of Eden," sits at the beginning of the Center's chronological overview of Steinbeck's life and times. Elisa and Henry Allen lived off this road in Steinbeck's short story, "The Chrysanthemums." Fridayīegin at the National Steinbeck Center. To have a stay with a connection to Steinbeck's characters, consider choosing one on River Road, which runs parallel to the Salinas River. There's no shortage of hotels in Salinas. But you can base your trip out of the multicultural city where he was born in 1902 and lived fulltime until he began studying at Stanford University. "Not everyone has the good fortune to be born in Salinas," Steinbeck once wrote. Literary giant John Steinbeck told many of them as he turned the Salinas Valley into the "valley of the world." Steinbeck's stories, which won him a Nobel Prize in 1962, are nearly all flavored with salt-of-the earth characters who live and work in Monterey County. The abundant lands between the Gabilan Mountains and the Pacific Ocean burst with stories.
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