Behind the scenes look at the making of "California Healthy," recounting the early travels of the author, Patricia Hamilton

I've been an RVing woman since I was nine years old and my dad moved us from the reverie of a family farm in Central California to roam around the forests and deserts of the Pacific Northwest, stopping for months here, years there, in search of the proverbial 'greener pastures.' In a big flat bed truck pulling a cotton trailer--my first 'rig'--we piled everything we owned and left everyone we knew behind. We wound our way up the Old 99 (this was years before the I-5 Interstate), stopping overnight by the side of the road while cars and trucks whizzed by. We kids explored and Mama cooked meals for seven on a Coleman camp stove, while Daddy set up a collection of beds inside the covered truck bed.

My gypsy heart awakened and I eagerly anticipated each move thereafter. During the next nine years, when anyone asked me where I was from, I always said 'California.' Then, as now, California's reputation preceded me and I gained instant favored status at school. "How many movie stars do you know? Is it always sunny? Wow! You are so lucky to be from California!" From 1955 to 1964, we lived in ten different places before I eagerly left Portland for Bakersfield on a Greyhound bus on a typical rainy Oregon morning. I could hardly wait to return to southern California and see what I had missed.

I've often referred to my life as "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride," after a children's book of the same name, where a jovial toad in a jalopy speeds down a curvy road, having wild adventures at every turn, magically surviving them all with a big smile and a "Howdy-do" for his next encounter. I've lived and traveled in several countries, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Spain. In England they call RVs 'caravans,' and they're much smaller, to fit their narrow lanes. What I like most about traveling is seeing the countryside, meeting various types of people, and sampling different types of foods. I learned early on that to really enjoy life you've got to stay healthy and that means laugh and have fun, trust in a higher power, eat wholesome foods and exercise.

Wherever I go, people always want to know more about California, which led to three Monterey County Guides from 1999 to 2004, and then my latest work, "California Healthy." I was camping in Big Sur in 2004 in my 1975 Mini-Gasser tent trailer when I met Bruce Biron, an executive chef from Stanford University, and we decided to collaborate on a book to celebrate California and its bounty: the people, the foods, the scenery, and the communities, with a focus on health and sustainability. In short, we wanted to create a California guidebook of what's important in our lives and to share it all with others. We committed ourselves to the possibility of people living healthy lives, in body, spirit and mind.

We determined the audience specifically to be Baby Boomers, Gen-Xers, college students and teenagers, who are all concerned about having and maintaining a healthy lifestyle and environment, both at home and while traveling. RVing women in my community encouraged me to include more travel directions and maps to food and walking places; a military wife and mother said she wished she'd had a book like this when they moved to California so they would know where to stop along the highway to eat; a neighbor wants the walking opportunities for her diabetic and obese daughter; a Sierra Club member liked the focus on supporting the environment; staff at The Farm in Salinas thanked me for including farm stores and farm tours--my grandchildren, Zack and Grace, always love it when I take them there to eat fresh produce and pet the goats; ladies in the Professional Women's Network liked the walks in the art galleries and museums, and the wine-tasting opportunities; several said "I have several friends who will love this book--I'll buy for them." I also wanted to create community around food. I added food, wine and walking events and festivals, of diverse cultures, so we all might share their intriguing foods and customs. Culinary and cultural tourism is also my thing--so in those spots went!

California grows more Super foods than any country on earth. We chose that theme for our recipe section and Chef Biron began creating and testing 25 recipes using all California-grown products. Each recipe had to be outrageously delicious, healthy for you, and easy to prepare, with all unprocessed ingredients. His 25 recipes appear at the end of "California Healthy" and were also printed as their own separate booklet: "Staying True to the Roots."

I bought a big wall map of California and went on the Internet to find what I needed to research "California Healthy." I spent untold hours surfing site to site, purchasing recommended reference books, and compiling lists of qualifying food and wine establishments, events, farms, museums, parks, walks, etc. Leash free dog parks were added at my brother Bob's request. (He travels in his RV with two pugs named Frankie and Poppy.) Then I took to the road to meet the people, sample the foods, attend the festivals, visit the farms, and take the photos. I was off to live my dream of seeing and promoting sunny California, giving back to the state that buoyed me up in my childhood.

My first research trip was to beautiful, sunny San Diego County where I house-sat for my nephew in Vista, taking day trips by car from there. I had once lived in Carlsbad so knew the area intimately. It has the best weather in California to enjoy the palm trees and beaches. When you're in Ocean Beach, Leucadia or Encinitas, you'd never know the 60's were over. Beach bunnies in bikinis, muscle men with surfboards, and woodies along Pacific Coast Highway are common sights. And, since the current health food craze began in California in the 60's, you'll still find some of the original restaurants and markets to serve you, modernized and better than ever.

One thing you'll certainly notice about the patrons, clerks and owners of the health food restaurants and markets you visit in Southern California, is their easy going and cheery disposition. I think being healthy just makes you happier, more upbeat and friendly. Sunshine also helps!

My only housesitting duty at my nephew's was to feed two big Clydesdales. The twice a day routine was to put pellets in big rubber dishes on the ground just inside the gate. While the horses were inhaling this treat, I was to walk behind them to get the other two dishes for use later. They soon came to associate me with FOOD and clomped up as soon as I appeared. They were gentle beasts, but I didn't really feel comfortable walking behind those giant hooves and swishing tails. On the last day of my two-week visit, they were way off on the other side of the pasture when I thought I would just quickly open the gate and retrieve those two rubber dishes before feeding them from the others. I stepped in, scooped up the dishes, and looked up to see these gentle giants galloping at top speed towards me, covering the distance in mere seconds. I panicked, fell, and barely recovered in time to escape.

My next road trip took me to the City of the Angels, Los Angeles. Truthfully, I was intimidated by the thought of traversing the busy city, while eager to explore its neighborhoods. The sheer multiplicity of cultures in Los Angeles is one of its greatest assets and attractions. For instance, Echo Park, two minutes from the freeway, has a beautiful lake where mostly Latino families come to enjoy each other, the lotus flowers, paddleboats, roasted corn and fresh fruit vendors. In several restaurants nearby in Little Armenia you can enjoy dishes such as rice-stuffed grape leaves, chickpea salad and feta omelet. Visiting Los Angeles is like visiting several other countries--you get the stimulation and fun of traveling abroad without leaving the good old U.S.A. California is the greatest!

I was fortunate to rent a room in the Hollywood Hills from Barbara Perry, a beautiful lady and a dancer from the Big Band Era who eventually had her own one-woman show on Broadway. I viewed a video of her leggy performance on the Dean Martin Show--he gave her a big smooch after her finale! After all these years she still lives the life of a star, with regular trips to the gym, the hairdresser and her agent; she had two movie parts last year. After my daily trips around L.A., she would entertain me with stories about meeting the early Hollywood stars: Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Sid Caesar, Clark Gable, Humphrey Bogart, William Holden, and Judy Garland. She took me to the Academy to see an Oscar-nominated film showing to members and everyone was looking at everyone else to see who might be a celebrity--I decided it could be me!

My plan was to only publish one book about California, but the San Diego and Los Angeles material was piling up so I decided to get a Southern California Edition out there. First, I had to finish seeing the rest of the territory I had mapped out, the long stretches from Santa Barbara to Bakersfield to Palm Springs.

By now I had sold the tent trailer and needed a larger RV with room for my computer and research materials. It was Christmastime and I was invited to five parties; I went with the intent of networking to secure an RV. At the third party, sponsored by Ken Jones, president of my writers' club, I was introduced to Ted and Jan Rose who knew that Heidi Feldman had a motor home in storage that needed to be driven. She paid a mechanic to get it roadworthy and charged me a pittance to take it out. Later, I taught her to drive it and now she's an RVing woman too!

The 21' Fleetwood Searcher was a good size for my needs. It had plenty of room for file boxes on the passenger seat and around the table, a big shower that doubled as outside table, chair and camp rug storage, a custom pantry pull-out, and a convenient kitchen with a window, at the rear. I slept up in the overhead bed, which my grandson Zack calls 'the tippy-top.'

The first night I stayed in El Capitan State Park, just north of Santa Barbara. Big trees, long stretches of sandy beach, ample picnic tables and fire pits, with lifeguards and a camp store in the summer, made it the perfect place to walk, contemplate, rest and gear up for the trip ahead. As I left the campground the next morning, a baby skunk ambling along the side of the road jumped and hissed at the coach's motor noise before scampering into the brush. That was a precious, ball-of-black-and-white-fur sighting I'll cherish forever.

Rving is the best! I really appreciate and enjoy the ability to pull over and take a walk or have a rest, prepare food, or use the facilities at any time I need to. RVing is really the way to travel for me. I easily navigated the small Santa Barbara streets and completed my visits in a few hours. That's a beautiful city to walk, with outstanding tropical plant displays, historic architecture and plenty of healthful places to eat. The harbor and beach are adjacent to downtown.

You might want to check out the website www.santabarbaracarfree.org, and enjoy car-free touring in Santa Barbara when you visit. They post walking maps, train, bus and trolley schedules. The health and environmental benefits of walking are numerous, plus it's the only way really to get to know an area and its people. Getting out of your vehicle and walking around changes everything. You're transported instantly into a personal relationship with local life and have opportunities to really do some interesting and intriguing 'living in the moment'.

I published the "California Healthy, Southern California Edition" (which won the 2007 Indie National Book Award of Excellence), and turned it over to my distributor, and now I'm traveling around to hit the high spots for the Central California Edition, from Monterey Bay to Calaveras County. Occasionally I have my two grandchildren traveling with me. We buy our food from local farmers along the way, cook healthy meals in the convenience of the coach or roast turkey dogs and make s'mores over a campfire, and we walk or hike every place we go. They both love traveling in the motor home, a love they will carry throughout their lives. Sharing RVing and California seems to be my legacy, come to life long ago beside Old Highway 99.