A gilded age monument dedicated to how money can't buy taste.
Last updated
The climb to Hearst Castle starts at the visitor center. The shuttle winds up through green hills; the Pacific hangs in the haze to the west. Then the castle appears on the ridge. Towers and tile roofs above the oaks and pines.
I got the last ticket on a tour otherwise booked out by the Elks, a fraternity and charity of mostly old codgers who take their uniforms and fraternising rather seriously. They were gracious explaining to me who they were and what they did.
