Gardens by the Sea I: The Cottage Gardens of Depot Hill
I would love to share one of my favorite neighborhood walks. My family has a house on Depot Hill, above the village of Capitola. This neighborhood of cottages, some from the 19th century, is perched above the Monterey Bay. Surfers lay on their boards and sea kelp drifts in the calm water below the cliffs. The bay extends in a great arc southwards to the Monterey peninsula. The Monterey mountains are a purple silhouette against the sky and at night the bay is ringed by glittering lights.
After lunch in the garden we always take a walk, first to the cliffs. There is almost no automobile traffic as there are just a few dead end roads on the hill. Perfect for strolling in the middle of the street.
Grand Avenue which runs along the cliffs has no traffic at all as parts of it have tumbled into the bay below! The cliffs are are always eroding, but for now Grand Avenue is a pedestrian walkway, with benches placed along the few blocks to enjoy the view.
This border is graced by sculptures fashioned from driftwood dragged up the cliffs from the rocky shore below.
Turning left we come across this colorful garden.
This cottage was once the minister’s house for the church next door.
On Cliff Avenue, a trumpet vine (Campsis radicans) creates a spectaular display.
One of my favorite houses, I have always appreciated its tidy and old-fashioned quality.
The village seen here from Cliff Avenue was a great place to watch fireworks being set off from the pier. Depot Hill with its quiet streets, cottages with front porches, and flowering gardens with picket fences has such a nostalgic air; a kind of perpetual summerland, where every day is the Fourth of July.
Thank you for taking this stroll with me.
What a lovely and charming area. I wish I was there right now. Thanks for sharing such wonderful gardens.
Jan
Always Growing
Comment by Jan — 3. July 2008 @ 03:34
Gosh, what beautiful gardens! The “colorful garden” knocks my socks off! Thanks for sharing these.
Comment by Jared — 3. July 2008 @ 04:15
Hi Philip. What a wonderful post. I felt like I was visiting your beautiful part of the world. I am glad to have figured out who you are and where to find you.
Jean
Comment by jean bradbury — 3. July 2008 @ 04:35
Philip……I lived in Santa Cruz for 6 glorious years. My daughter was born there and each of us hold that area to be the bestest place in the whole world, lol. How funny you post the Capitola and Cliff Drive pictures today. I just spoke with my best friend, who lives there, mere minutes before seeing your post. I must have played 1,000 games of softball in 2 parks near those pictures and I did oodles of gardening there.
By the way, who would NOT want to live where you can grow Protea???? Visit my place for a surprise, btw. And no one paid me to do it, either.
Comment by Steve — 3. July 2008 @ 18:02
Hi, Phillip,
Only a native could give such an insider, secret gardenesque tour.
Beautiful!
Donna
Comment by Donna — 3. July 2008 @ 18:17
Hi Phillip!
That was a great garden walk you shared with us. What a beautiful neighborhood. So you are in California? Love your photos!
Shirley
Comment by Shirley "EdenMaker" — 3. July 2008 @ 18:29
Hello everybody! Thanks for taking this neighborhood walk with me! What fun!
Jan, I enjoy your blog. I Loved the comment on your blog where you described sipping iced tea on a hot day and planning for next summers flowers!
Comment by admin — 3. July 2008 @ 19:31
Jared, I love your “Pleasant Hill rambles” say hi to Dale and B for me!
I am glad to have discovered your blog!
Comment by admin — 3. July 2008 @ 19:34
Jean, I love hearing about your creative process and the art you create. I admire that. Thank you for your comments!
Best regards,
Philip
Comment by admin — 3. July 2008 @ 19:37
Steve, You have humbled me but made my day!year! Thank you so much. You do great work, and I sincerely appreciate your comments.(and the stash is under the bag of gravel
Best regards,
Philip
Comment by admin — 3. July 2008 @ 19:40
Donna! It is always a great day when you come to visit!
Happy 4th of July!
Warm regards,
Philip
Comment by admin — 3. July 2008 @ 19:45
Shirley! I am just crazy about your garden. I love the orange polished glass! Thanks for your comment!
Warm regards,
Philip
Comment by admin — 3. July 2008 @ 19:47
I could live and die quite happy in any of those beautiful homes! The gardens are extraordinary and the view, simply unmatched. I miss living that close to the ocean. Thank you so much for sharing these photos — I look forward to the next installment!
Comment by Nancy Bond — 3. July 2008 @ 21:40
Nancy,actually you inspired this! You spoke of a place by the sea in the post I did on writer’s huts. I have never done anything personal before, so I thought it was about time to do my families place in Depot hill, Capitola first. Then I hope to travel in the next week or two to find some other seaside gardens I hope you find inspiring!
I also have my garden in San francisco,which is very informal but I love it! I will post that shortly.
Thanks for commenting!!!!
Regards,
Philip
Comment by admin — 3. July 2008 @ 21:51
Oh, Philip, you are making me want to get in my car and just GO! What an absolutely charming post!
Thank you! I may have to get myself out to Mendo for the day…:) (next best thing, maybe!) K. xox
Comment by Kathry/plantwhateverbringsyoujoy.com — 4. July 2008 @ 17:25
Hi Kathryn! You know, That is one of my favorite expressions “just get in the car and go!” Mendo sounds wonderful! Isn’t life grand! Great to hear from you.
Warm Regards,
Philip
Comment by admin — 4. July 2008 @ 18:35
Hey………Happy 4th, Philip!
Comment by Steve — 4. July 2008 @ 19:05
Steve, Thanks!!! A very happy 4th to you,too!
Best Regards,
Philip
Comment by admin — 4. July 2008 @ 20:33
What an idyllic place to live - makes me want to move!
Comment by Phillip — 7. July 2008 @ 16:17
Although this is going to sound daft, some of the views you have shown remind me of Weymouth, in Dorset (which is a little to the south of where I live). In an area called Green Hill, walking along towards Lodmoor, there is a similar row of houses and a wide, trafficless path between them and the sea. There even used to be a pier but it was blown up in the second world war to make it harder for enemies to land. And there are public gardens where you can sit. A big difference though is that these houses look properly lived in. Most of the parallel ones here are for holiday lets and have developed a rather sterile atmosphere in consequence.
Lucy Corrander
LOOSE AND LEAFY
Comment by Lucy Corrander — 10. July 2008 @ 14:01
These cottage gardens are fabulous! I love how many of them come right up to the street. So many beautiful blooms. What a wonderful place to visit.
Comment by chey — 20. July 2008 @ 04:12
Lucy!
Thank you for the award!!!!!
Comment by admin — 20. July 2008 @ 17:31
Chey,
I love your site, “A Maritime Gardener”
Thanks for your comments!
Comment by admin — 20. July 2008 @ 17:33
Thanks for the useful information
Thanks
Garden flags
Comment by Garden flags — 8. August 2008 @ 11:07
Gorgeous gardens. I love the pics. I wish my pictures would turn out as well as yours. Great blog too!
Comment by Molly Gardens — 10. November 2009 @ 20:33
Great pictures
Comment by Gherefordshire — 23. January 2011 @ 20:06