Descanso Gardens

When I was a kid, my parents "made" us (my brother, sister and I) go on weekly hikes.

We hated it.

The other kids got to hang out and play (or watch TV?) while we were being forced to enjoy nature.

My paternal grandparents lived very close to Descanso Gardens, so if we weren't hiking in the mountains, canyons, or beaches - we'd "have to" go there.  (This was almost always followed up with dinner at my grandparent's house.)

Soooo boring!

On a whim, I recently drove one and a half hours to revisit this place from my childhood.

I loved it.

Really, really, loved it!

I can't understand how I wouldn't have loved it as a child too.

(This is the part where my mom laughs her ass off, right?)

The beauty of Descanso Gardens, begins in the parking lot.

I don't know what kind of tree this is, but it's beautiful and I want one.  And yes, people did stare at me strangely when I laid down in the parking lot to take this shot.  (I'm pretty sure this is the same type of tree they have growing on Rodeo Drive/Wilshire in Beverly Hills - such pretty pink blossoms!)

Due to my schedule, I didn't have the entire day to spend in the gardens - which means I'll have to return again very soon.  I didn't have time to explore more than half of what I wanted and, you know me, I can't leave anything half done.  (Of course, if I wasn't taking nonstop photos of everything in my path, I might have covered more ground.)

Bee enjoying adorable little white flowers.

I spent a lot of time in the rose garden.

Roses in the rose garden at Descanso Gardens.

I've never considered myself much of a rose person.  I like roses, but there are other flowers I like more.  

But, oh the pretty!

Pale yellow rose.

There were so many different types and colors of roses!  (Have you ever heard of a Bourbon Rose?  It looks nothing like a "normal" rose.  I'm sure I have a photo of one around here somewhere ....)

Instead of following the map I was so kindly provided, I wandered aimlessly.  

Minutes after leaving the rose garden I found myself in a forest.

Entrance to the Descanso Gardens forest.

I encountered a beautiful, huge, deer.

"You aren't supposed to be here eating in the gardens, are you?" I asked her softly.

The deer smiled at me, all the while looking at me doe-eyed.  We watched each other calmly for several minutes, and then she turned and disappeared into the trees.

While walking around in the forest, I heard the sound of rushing water.  I followed the sound and it led me here:

Waterfall at Descanso Gardens.

There was no one at the waterfall, but me.  There was a little bench nearby.  I could have sat there - by the water, and hidden by the trees, for hours.  

Maybe next time I will.

© Twenty Four At Heart

Comments

[Jan]

*sigh* I have an envy.

It's 22 degrees here.

[Jack]

Back in my days of leading hikes we would have called that tree a Red Leafy Tree or a Jackass Tree. People would have scrunched up their faces and I would have explained how the donkeys liked to rub against it to relieve their itching.

Then I would have spent a few minutes talking about why they got itchy from the saddle bags and how Red Leafy Tree was the nicer version of the name.

Later on I would fight not to start laughing because I just made all that stuff up on the spot- but people would eat it up so...

[gd]

Phabulous photos, 24!

[Di]

I never liked Sunday dinner with the grandparents when I was a child either... but I think I would have loved that park.