Deetjen's Big Sur Inn
Posted by: 
Touchstone
N 36° 13.057 W 121° 45.056
10S E 612268 N 4008808
A familiar stop along the Coastal Highway to the locals, this Historic Inn and Restaurant has offered a scenic rest stop to the weary traveler since the Highway was first built.
Waymark Code: WM18PT
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 02/25/2007
Views: 37
In the early 1930's, Helmuth Deetjen, hiding
out from authorities in his native Norway discovered the secluded and quietly
brilliant beauty of Big Sur, on the California coast. In Carmel, he met his
future wife, Helen Haight - a woman with a nose for business and the means to
buy several acres of land in Castro Canyon (the couple's favorite camping spot
in Big Sur), which was to become their future home. The pastoral canyon
offered the privacy and isolation they sought.
For a time, Helmuth and Helen lived in a tent
on their new property, while Helmuth constructed a redwood barn with used
material obtained from canneries along Monterey's Cannery Row. Upon
completion, the barn housed a few goats and Deetjen's workshop. Today, it is
the heart of Deetjen's; filled with candlelight and guests enjoying meals,
sipping wine and warming themselves by the fire.
The Deetjens' settled in Big Sur in the 1930's. Almost
immediately they began offering hospitality to the adventurous travelers of the
brand new Highway 1. The Inn and restaurant have attracted artists, writers, and
peace-seekers alike--often bringing together Old Hollywood glamour and the
eccentric bohemian Big Sur lifestyle. There's a little something indescribable
about a stay at Deetjen's.
The inn exists today because when Helmut Deetjen died in 1972,
he left the Inn to be forever enjoyed by transient guests wanting to experience
the peace, friendship, and beauty that can be found at the Inn. The Inn is on
the National Register of Historic Places by the US Department of the Interior.
It is operated on a non-profit basis by the Deetjen’s Big Sur Inn Preservation
Foundation.