Here’s another one for the “late” file. This was a trip my friend Artie and I had been talking about for a while. A trip to hang out on Sunset Strip at the Rainbow and pay homage to our metal roots as well as Lemmy from Motörhead and then had to the annual NAMM show and check out all the new music gear and listen to numerous bands playing on various stages. Oh and of course get our drink on. I suggested to Artie we should hike out to the old MASH set at Malibu Creek State Park in the Santa Monica Mountains. For anyone who is a fan of the show or just taking a day hike in general it is well worth the trip if you are in the area. The rusted out vehicles are original from the show having been left there after filming was done. The Mess Hall and sign post were recreations after the fact. That area has seen its share of fires and in actuality one had just came through the November prior to our trip. Despite seeing some areas of fire damage, it did not take away from the beauty of the area. The best part was probably when we discovered the bridge was out on the trail to the site and in trying to cross, I took a bit of a “swim”.
If you are a fan of metal and hard rock, then taking a night to hang out at The Rainbow on Sunset Strip something you should do once. It’s actually a chill bar and with the legality of things in California, a place once can really chill out. Plus there is a statue to honor the man, the myth, the legend, Lemmy. What more can you ask for. We had a blast and after being told “If you are going to stumble around in here, I’m going to have to ask you to leave” we felt it best to get back to the hotel, which I don’t remember.
The final part of trip was the NAMM show in Anaheim. This was a blast. As a guitar player I was in my glory seeing all the displays of new and unique guitars, amps, pedals, etc. Overall, it’s basically a 3 day party. There are gourmet food trucks lined up and down the main street feeding you until your hearts content, numerous stages with bands playing live music throughout the day, and hotel bars open to everyone. While I didn’t happen to meet any famous musicians, I did get to meet Ken Haas of Reverent Guitars, one of my favorite brands.
It was a quick long weekend trip but well worth it.
The Prosaic Traveler 