A Big Sur Podcast
A Big Sur Podcast An ongoing conversation with people from near and far about Big Sur's past, present, and future. A Big Sur Podcast interprets “community” to mean ALL people from around the world who are curious about, and who care about, the preservation and restoration of the wild and rural character of Big Sur. Stories are told by visitors and residents, plumbers and linesmen, musicians and authors, dancers and jugglers and others. Sometimes we drift (way) off-topic into the arts, sciences, personal stories, gossip, politics, philosophy, ornithology, Henry Miller, and our zeitgeist in general. We like that! The opinions expressed here belong to the people who express them. They may or may not line up with yours, mine, or your neighbor’s — and that’s exactly the point. Different perspectives, lived experiences, and even wildly clashing views are what make conversations worth listening to: enriching, infuriating, life-affirming, and sometimes all three at once. If you are planning a visit to Big Sur and you listen to some of the folks on this Podcast talk about their love of the place your visit will probably be a lot more rewarding. Please email magnus@henrymiller.org with any comments, critique & suggestions. Music intro clip courtesy John Holm: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DZ06evO0Rh2QU Sound editing software by Hindenburg: https://hindenburg.com/ Please support the podcast by making a donation to the Henry Miller Library, a 501(c)3 nonprofit arts organization. Thank you!
Episodes
Travel writer, guidebook author, former Big Sur ranger, and old friend, Stuart Thornton, returns to Big Sur—at least in spirit—to reflect on a career spent encouraging people to visit the very places he sometimes wishes they would leave alone.
We talk about discovering California's coast, writing guidebooks, the challenge of over tourism, and whether AI will help travelers find deeper experi...
In this episode Magnus has a conversation with Carol Olson, Executive Director of the Ventana Wilderness Alliance, about wilderness, responsibility, and the increasingly difficult art of protecting a place people love.
GOOD LINKS:
Big Sur Wilderness and Conservation Act
Ventana Wilderness ...
In this episode of A Big Sur Podcast, I speak with the writer and journalist Matti Friedman about his remarkable book Out of the Sky — a work that begins with four words from the Bible, “Out of the sky,” and unfolds into a meditation on fear, memory, survival, aviation, mythology, Jewish history, and the strange psychological atmosphere that has surrounded Israel since October 7, 2023.
We ca...
A conversation with artist Katie Holten about life and art, climate and action, walking and inaction!
Katie's website
Announcement for her new book!
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This podcast is a production of the Henry Miller Memorial Library with support from The Arts Council for Monterey County!
Let us know what you think!
SEND U...
"At intervals the condor passed, huge as an ocean liner.”
Henry Miller in Big Sur and the Oranges
Besides marveling at the exceptional beauty and almost mysterious power of these amazing birds Joe Burnett and I discuss work in Big Sur and Monterey.
We talk about the rebuilding of the Ventana Wildlife Sanctuary after the 2020 Dolan Fire, how the sanctuary supports releasing, feeding, monitoring and reca...
The Mysterious World of the Bull Kelp Forest
a New Heyday Book
The Mysterious World of the Bull Kelp Website
I sit down with artist, photographer, and author Josie Iselin, and what begins as a conversation about kelp opens into an exploration of the intricate world in the waters just off our coast.
Josie traces her own path into that world—from artist to something closer to a naturalist of the sho...
Alison van Diggelen – Journalist, interviewer, and author of The Love Project: A Journey of Intimate Conversations.
Photo is of Alison and her Mom.
Alison's website.
Buy "The Love Project" at your local bookstore.
May we suggest the Henry Miller Library.
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Topics in This Episode
- The origins of The Love Project
- Love across generations
- The...
ShamergenceThe skeptic asks, “Is it real?”
The shaman asks, “Did it help?”
COME MEET ROB SOMERS ON SATURDAY, MARCH 21
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Carlos Castaneda
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Shaman, Skeptic, and the Voice in the Belly
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In this episode of A Big Sur Podcast, I sit down with Brita Ostrom — longtime Esalen resident and author of Steeped: A Big Sur Elixir of Sulfur and Sage.
Brita’s life bridges several revolutions at once: the islands of the Pacific Northwest, the Haight-Ashbury explosion of 1966–67, the psychedelic and political turbulence of the Summer of Love, and the early, formative years of the Esalen Institute.
...
Andrew Munn in conversation!
Deep Listening, Between Cage and Wagner, from Silence to Parsifal. Listening for the unheard, where sound becomes ceremony.
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Links to more on what we spoke of:
The Ballad of Kendra and Matt (or, The Song That Never Made It to the PA)
A neighborhood celebration, a home-recorded love song, a forgotten “play” button — and a reminder that even when things go sideways, community and humor always find a way. Magnus tells the true story behind a tune that almost didn’t get heard — until now.
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This podcast is a production of the Henry Miller Memorial Library with support from The Arts Council for Monterey County!
Let us know what you think!
SEND US AN EMAIL! 😊
magnus@henrymiller.org
FaceBookInstagram
A clown stands alone… somewhere between Henry Miller and Samuel Beckett… somewhere between laughter and the cosmic void.
Henry Miller once said, “A clown is a poet in action.” Today, that poet is Kangalee—the one-man actor and director—returning to the stage with a new mono-drama that refuses to stay in one world. Silent film. Revolutionary vaudeville. Delirious mime. Poetry. Nir...
Author-photographer Josh Jackson grew up camping the Midwest’s state-parks but it wasn’t until he had moved to California, and after the birth of his third child, in 2015—when every California campground was booked solid—that a friend uttered the words “BLM land.” One spur-of-the-moment trip to the Trona Pinnacles cracked open a new universe: 15 million acres of under-sung, &ldquo...
This episode is a particularly tender one. I had the privilege of speaking with Patte Kronlund whose husband, Butch, recently passed away after a long and difficult battle with cancer.
Patte and I have an open, heartfelt conversation—one marked by courage, honesty, and that shows Patte's extraordinary personal strength.
She speaks about grief, love, and the quiet acts of devotion that carry us through our ...
If Diablo Canyon stays open, does it open the door for a broader reevaluation of nuclear’s role in the U.S. — or is it a one-off anomaly in a blue state’s climate panic?
Talking with Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow author of "Atomic Dreams: The New Nuclear Evangelists and the Fight for the Future of Energy."
What role should nuclear power play in our energy future?
Rebe...
Ever since she picked up her father’s camera at age twelve, Rachael Short has been captivated by the art of photography. Listen to our conversation to learn more from and about Rachael's remarkable story.
LINKS:
Relay for Rachael
Rachael Short Photography
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SUMMARIES:
Rachael's Nature-Inspired Photography Journey
Rachael and...
In memory of Butch Kronlund, this episode is a replay of a live interview recorded as part of the Under the Persimmon Tree series at the Henry Miller Library.
In this conversation, Butch reflects on his early life and upbringing, meeting his beloved wife Patte, and his arrival in Big Sur—where he would go on to lay the foundations of the Post Ranch Inn, collaborate with architect Mickey Muennig on several iconi...
Mary Lu had a stroke* on October 18, 2024.
In this episode she speaks of the moment it happened and a bit about the past five months of slow and steady recovery.
The episode is followed by a conversation from 2015 where Mary Lu tells of how she got to Big Sur "on the saddle of a Hell's Angel Harley" and what happens after that...
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* some deatil about the stroke and treat...
I just found out that Clovis left us a short time ago.
Here in this chat she is sharing some of her stories. There are so many, many people that will miss her and treasure the memory of her. Thank you Clovis. A true 'Big Sur Woman!'
SHARE THIS WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS
Some of the folks mentioned in this episode:
Doug Madsen
Lolly Fassett
Tevye Morgenrath
Helen Morgenrath
...
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