By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate

Scene from the Adobe Arcade in downtown Ojai. Photo by Ranee Ruble-Dotts courtesy of the California Association of Boutique & Breakfast Inns.

Just thirteen miles inland from the coast, Ojai enjoys a moderate climate all year round. Long heralded as a place of health, serenity and a cradle of creativity, the valley nestled at the base of the Topatopa Mountains, harbors secrets for you to discover. There are only 8,000 permanent residents in Ojai, but since it is about an hour away from Los Angeles, weekends in Ojai are a beehive of activity. Many music and other events take place at the Libbey Bowl and Park. The 9-mile Ojai hiking and biking trail traces the entrance to the valley. You can rent bicycles at Libbey Park, and many of the lodgings offer them in their pricing.

One of the best ways to explore Ojai is on one of the many Art Tours offered throughout the year. Artists of all stripes, tucked in hideaways, offer oil and pastel landscape painting, ceramics, and experimental mediums. Artist tours are so popular that they have been broken up into bite-sized geographical segments so the visitor is not overwhelmed with too many studios to tour in one day.

I visited a cluster of artist’s homes in the Oakview area on the South West side of Ojai Valley. A pastoral drive spiraled into an area of lavish estates with lush gardens and views of the sheltered valley below and mountain peaks in the distance. I found affordable photographic art and images of the local landscape at a reasonable price. In the past, I have enjoyed an art tour on the East side of Ojai, which is more bucolic with acres of orange and avocado groves. Gracious haciendas shaded by ancient oak trees open their gates to the visitor, alongside the more modest artist studios.

Portrait of Beatrice Wood, photo courtesy of Linda Ballou.

The most famous artist in the area is Beatrice Wood (1893-1998), a studio potter who is known as the “Mama of Dada,” for her early involvement on the Dada artistic style. (Under the umbrella of the Dada movement, participating artists “used a variety of forms to protest the logic, reason and aestheticism of modern capitalism and modern war,” according to Wikipedia.)

If you’re unfamiliar with the Dada movement, let me explain that Dadaists utilized a wide variety of media. What bonded them together was their tendency to make use of nonsense, irrationality, and an anti-bourgeois sensibility. Wood’s whimsical ceramic figurines are displayed in galleries around the world. She maintained a youthful spirit and was productive until she passed at the age 105 in 1994. Early in her career, Wood worked in Paris and New York, where she was associated with Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray.

Happy Valley, home to the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts. Linda Ballou  photo.

Later in life, she purchased five acres in Happy Valley in upper Ojai, in order to be close to the Indian spiritual leader Jiddu Krishnamurti. Her home is now an art and cultural center, the Beatrice Wood Center for  the Arts, which displays her work and that of other local artists. The nearby Krishnamurti Center offers visitors a chance to learn about the spiritual leader’s teachings.

The serene Meditation Mount is another opportunity to find calm in our busy world. According to their website, the Mount’s mission is to “promote the building of an enlightened and compassionate world through the power of Creative Meditation inspirational educational programs, and community-based events focused on the practical application of the six Universal Spiritual Principles and Pathways.” If you’re intrigued with their mission but can’t get to Ojai for one of their events, you’ll be pleased to know that you can still participate in their Virtual Meditations from wherever you live.

Ohai’s greatest benefactor, Edward Libbey – early owner of the Libby Glass Company –  and his wife Florence, first settled in Ojai in 1907. At that time, the valley was peppered with oil rigs. Libbey soon embarked on a beautification mission. When a fire destroyed downtown Ojai, he spearheaded the building of the Spanish Colonial Revival style Adobe Arcade – an historic shopping and dining area also kn0wn as Ojai Town Square.

He’s also the mastermind behind Libbey Park, located in the center of town, a great place to take a break, read a book or just people watch. The park is also home to playgrounds for kids, world class tennis courts, a community bandstand and the Libbey Bowl, an intimate venue for art fairs, music festivals and shows. Today, boutique shops line the arched Adobe Arcade. Designed by Richard Requa the Arcade is also home to the Ohai Film Festival. No chain stores are allowed, in order to keep Ojai’s unique ambiance alive. Instead you’ll find farmers markets selling organic produce, and craft vendors.

The verdant Deer Lodge patio invites patrons to linger, says Linda Ballou.

Hikers have many choices in the surrounding mountains and Ojai Meadows Preserve. My favorite is the Cozy Del Trail off of Highway 33. A stiff climb lined with wildflowers takes you to a mesa overlooking the vineyards below. Reward yourself after the excursion with a stop at the Deer Lodge, a staple in the area since 1932. There is a dining patio shaded by dangling wisteria and music on the weekends. I suggest you download the All Trails app for more hiking choices in the area.

Diners at Boccali’s enjoy al fresco meal. Linda Ballou photo.

After sampling one of the many wine-tasting opportunities end the day on the Pink Jeep tour. At sunset, the mountains take on a distinctly pink cast. After a bumpy ride to the top of the hills for a Pink Moment, you are delivered to family-owned Boccali’s Pizza & Pasta. Boccali’s has been serving Ojai since 1986. They now have their own vineyard with wine tastings on the weekends. They are famous for their strawberry shortcake piled high with whipped cream. A good way to end your Ojai adventure.

Linda Ballou Freelance Writer

Linda's mission is to experience as many beautiful places on our planet as she can before they are no more. Travel tales relating her experiences while kayaking, horseback riding, sailing, birding and hiking about the globe have appeared in numerous national magazines. She had great fun collecting travel stories, and profiles of people she met in “naturally high places” for her book, Lost Angel Walkabout-One Traveler’s Tales. Her latest book Lost Angel Unleashed is the third book in her Lost Angel Trilogy

Go to LostAngelAdventures.com for more adventures.

For more about Linda’s novels and media offerings go to. www.LindaBallouAuthor.com