I completed all 21 missions back in 2006. Three road trips but well worth the effort.
The tricky one is San Antonio de Padua. You have to have proper documentation to enter the army base where the mission is located.
Some of the 21 don't really exist any longer such as Santa Cruz and San Rafael.
It was a wonderful experience for a California native. I,too called it my "mission mission".

I have to bookmark this, you know it's gonna be a fun ride if Tom and Tracy are driving.

Mmmm.... I love missions. I love the history and the love that went into building and decorating them. My dad used to take us to missions when we were traveling in Mexico and as a result I think all of us kids have a respect for the missions and what they meant to the communities.

"you know it's gonna be a fun ride if Tom and Tracy are driving."

...with an over/under of three moving violations!

logandog, which missions were your favorites?

Three comments:
1. You must have no children, since all of us and our children who grew up in California went through the ever popular 4th Grade California History, which should have been called 4th Grade Missions. You (I mean, your kid) sees a couple of Missions and ends up putting together either a Mission Diorama or a 3-D Mission Puzzle. If you were raised here and have one kid, you go through this process twice. The more kids you have, the more dioramas you have lined up on the mantle piece. (Those who don't live in California probably think I'm kidding. I'm not).

2. Missions are cool. Father Serra is buried in Carmel's Mission. My favorite is San Miguel, just north of SLO. Can't explain why, just is.

3. You are exactly one day older than me. (And I spent my Monday ziplining in Catalina!).

Hey surfergirl, First of all, happy birthday!

You're right. No kids. We were going to take the dogs and cats to Mission San Juan Capistrano for the Blessing of The Animals, but they found out the Corgis were Presbyterian and the cats Agnostic (plus they are not old enough for fourth grade), so we stayed home.

Looking forward to my "Mission Quest." Off to another one on Sunday. Maybe they will have a zipline through a bell tower.

checking in for the duration...

Ditto what Toucan2 & bardo1 say...I'm jumping in for the Mission mission ride!

We visited San Gabriel Mission last July. Also went to Buena Ventura and San Fernando on that SoCal trip. We've been to all but two, I'm ashamed to say the closest to us (Santa Clara and San Rafael). As logandog noted, Santa Cruz and San Rafael are small replicas, not the originals.

Purisima is impressive. Santa Barbara beautiful, as is Carmel. San Juan Bautista is interesting and the town itself is fun. San Juan Capistrano is also beautiful (at least the swallows think so). We always like our visits and each Mission seems to have a personality of its own, so we like many or most all for different reasons.

Your trip report was great, as always, and particularly interesting since we had been there just a yaar ago.

By the way, Happy Belated Birthday!

Growing up in California, we visited a lot of missions, but I haven't been to all of them. This sounds like a great ongoing report!

Lee Ann

I have learned that our famous travel partners in crime, Kim and Mary, will be joining us on our Mission mission this weekend. Usually the only Padres the four of us see together are the inept ones in baseball uniforms down in San Diego. We will see if the four us can get this Mission accomplished on Sunday.

For the four of you accomplished travelers, it won't be a Mission Impossible! Have fun.

Two down! 19 to go!

Yesterday I (along with Tracy, Mary and Kim) visited "The Jewel Of the Missions," Mission San Juan Capistrano. Mission SJC lived up to its advanced billing and then some. Beautiful gardens, fantastic buildings and exhibits, not to mention a very informative Audio guide. Below is a link to my website story on our day at Mission San Juan Capistrano and a lot of photographs. The Mission continues!!!

http://www.travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/Mission_Possible/Entries/2011/7/31_Mission_San_Juan_Capistrano.html

Thanks for this, maitai. I was just talking with my sister about wanting to visit all the missions after visiting Mission San Luis Obispo. I'll be following your progress with interest.

Thanks Leely.

As stated in the last installment, Mission San Juan Capistrano is going to be a tough act to follow.

Looks like this weekend we are going to visit Mission San Buenaventura and Mission San Fernando Rey de España. Missions, nothing but Missions!

<<<You must have no children, since all of us and our children who grew up in California went through the ever popular 4th Grade California History, which should have been called 4th Grade Missions. You (I mean, your kid) sees a couple of Missions and ends up putting together either a Mission Diorama or a 3-D Mission Puzzle. If you were raised here and have one kid, you go through this process twice. The more kids you have, the more dioramas you have lined up on the mantle piece. (Those who don't live in California probably think I'm kidding. I'm not).
>>>

Speaking of Mission San Antonio de Padua, that was the one my DS chose for his 4th grade mission report. At the time, it wasn't difficult to get in (1993 or 94). We parked, walked into the gift shop and right there at the door was a table with a sign that read "Fourth Grade Mission Report Materials". For $10, we got the history, a postcard or two, and a little plastic statue of Father Junipero Serra. Made our lives much less miserable (the mission was great, too...we did tour even though we already had everything we needed!)

Wow, what a surprise! After our visit the previous week to Mission San Juan Capistrano, Tracy and I thought our next Mission would pale in comparison. Far be it.

Mission San Fernando Rey de España, just 25 minutes up the freeway from downtown Los Angeles, proved to be quite a worthwhile experience. Nicely renovated with well-cultivated grounds, we were quite impressed. There was even a a little bonus trip that I took the following day to complete our journey here, however the heat nearly had me joining the people I "visited."

Click on the link below for all the photos and more details from our self-guided tour this past Sunday. Comments on the site are welcome, too. Three Missions down. 18 to go. So far this has been fun, but now we are actually going to have to travel some distances to see the rest of them.

http://www.travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/Mission_Possible/Entries/2011/8/7_Entry_1.html

Yeah, a few of the missions are in pretty out-of-the-way locations. You're going to have to get creative.

Pretty mission. Bob Hope!

Wow Tom and Surfergirl! You are bringing back the 4th Grade Memories - Missions - 21 of them, complete with diorama!

I will have to think a bit to remember all the missions I've visited, but I certainly do remember the 4th grade field trip to San Juan Capistrano.

San Juan Capistrano
San Fernando
San Luis Obisbo
Purisima
Santa Barbara
Carmel
San Gabriel - all I can remember

I grew up in Orange County - back when it was a really great place to be growing up (and there were lots of orange groves even).

T&T,

What a great idea! I am jealous for two reasons. One, I used to live in S.Cal and your posts brings back some great memories.

Two, you are probably gonna have a movie made about this, "Mission Possible" and I am not going to be able to play Tom Cruise (Because I am booked until I am 139)

Well you have seen the most beautiful in my opinion.The ruins of the old stone church and the Serra Chapel make Capistrano hard to beat.
San Juan Bautista is my second favorite, close to 101 but located in a scenic spot.
Soledad is an odd one. Located all out by itself in the Salinas Valley it had a sad lonely vibe.
You can hit Ventura,Santa Barbara,Santa Ynez,Purissima,San Miguel and San Luis Obispo all in one trip and enjoy some wineries too.

I've been to a most of the Missions.
I love San Diego de Alcala - I think it is still in use for services (we went to a lovely wedding there). San Antonio (as logandog mentioned) is on an Army base but very unspoiled without subdivisions, freeways, burger joints or any other signs of civilization - it seems very much like it would have been 200 years ago.

There were missions in baja in Mexico but have never been to any. Anyone else been?

DMBT - "I am not going to be able to play Tom Cruise"
I am going to play the old Martin Landau part and be disguised as Junípero Serra wearing a San Diego Padre uniform.

logandog, "You can hit Ventura,Santa Barbara,Santa Ynez,Purissima,San Miguel and San Luis Obispo all in one trip and enjoy some wineries too."
That's a great idea. I see a road trip in my near future.

I don't know how I missed out on those fourth grade Mission trips. Of course, I am so old that when I was in fourth grade, a lot of them hadn't been built yet.

Tom, when the MaiTais are done with the CA missions, you might want to continue on to the Texas Missions. All 35 of them.

Just to get you started: http://www.texasalmanac.com/topics/history/spanish-missions-texas

Happy travels. I love your trip reports! You may inspire me to do my own Texas mission tour! (I've been to the Alamo a couple of times. So, 1 down- 34 to go!)

sarge, I'll be lucky to get all 21 here in California before I join Bob Hope six-feet under (now there's a "Road" movie for you). I took time out from my Mission visits to go to the Getty last weekend, so am working on that report. Might be able to sneak another Mission in this weekend if I'm lucky. So sarge, get crackin' on those Texas Missions.

T

We will probably be moving to CA sometime next year and you gave me a great idea for a travel to do list when we get there.

We saw San Diego back in '85 and San Luis Obispo, altho only briefly, in '02 but there are so many others to see. And of course we have seen Nuestra Reina de Los Angeles.

I find them to have a strong spiritual aura and who knows, that may help to reawaken my previous faith. We will see....

Did your recent experience influence this choice of travel? (If that is too personal, feel free to ignore the question!)

"Did your recent experience influence this choice of travel? (If that is too personal, feel free to ignore the question!)"

No, it really didn't. It was more my curiosity about history and going to places I had never been before. But my "recent experience" obviously messed up a lot of plans. It made me think about my mortality, so this was more a spur-of-the-moment idea to get me off my butt and start traveling again and seeing as many places as possible before I go to that cozy "bed and breakfast' in the sky.

Sarge: Tom, when the MaiTais are done with the CA missions, you might want to continue on to the Texas Missions. All 35 of them>>

We visited San Antonio some years ago and after touring the Alamo (originally a Mission) went to the four nearby. It was a great way to spend the day. We found them similar to those in California, but different in some ways.

I didn't realize there were that many Missions in Texas. That might be a future trip for us.

So our brief Mission interlude (ok, it was eight months, but who's counting) was over, so we finally ventured out and hit a couple of the San Diego area missions in late April. First up is Misión San Luis Rey de Francia in Oceanside. Luckily, we picked a picture-perfect day, so Tracy, Mary and I (poor Kim had to work) took a little trip to see this mission (the fourth on my quest to visit all 21). Here is the report with photos. We liked this one a lot. Very pretty mission. We also visited the Mission San Diego de Alcalá on this trip, and I will get that one up with photos in the near future. It will be interesting to see if I can get in all 21 before I join Junipero Serra at that big bell tower in the sky.

http://www.travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/Mission_Possible/Entries/2012/4/28_Entry_1.html

I missed this last year but I've caught up.. sounds like an interesting mission and I love the photos of the gardens.

Will there be a Mission mission for the big 6-0 or are there bigger plans for your special day this year?

"Will there be a Mission mission for the big 6-0 or are there bigger plans for your special day this year?"

I don't think there will be any Mission visits on my birthday, but not too long ago 6o looked like Mission Impossible for me, so whatever we do should be fun.

maitaitom, I'm glad you're still with us with plans to have fun

I've googled and found that I'll miss the Festival of the Bells by a few days but I still hope to visit one of the two San Diego Missions next month. Which one did you like best?

" Which one did you like best?"

Definitely, Misión San Luis Rey de Francia in Oceanside.

Yes, San Luis Rey is a beautiful mission. However, you have not finished your quest because the missions of Baja California beckon. These are the first of the California Mission chain.

Otis, I still have 16 more missions in California to see. I have a long way to go.

<a Mission Diorama>

Oh yeah!!! Does that ever brings back memories. Born and raised in southern California in the 50/60's. I LOVE the missions, what a great project to pursue, maitaitom and tracy.

Today's installment of Mission Possible takes us to the very first mission, Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá . We also pay a visit to The Presidio. Only 16 more!!!

http://www.travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/Mission_Possible/Entries/2012/4/29_Entry_1.html

Maitaitom, we really enjoy your reports on the CA missions, as well as other wonderful places to visit in your area. Being midwesterners, we've been to only a few of the missions. Our latest was San Juan Capistano. We were staying in Delmar, and enjoyed the train trip there. Not only do we enjoy visiting the missions, but capping off our visits with some good vino and/or a nice meal really completes the experiences! Thanks for sharing the wealth of wonderful attractions in your area of the country! We feel like "Californians at heart!"

"We feel like "Californians at heart!"

Thanks tomarkot. Southern California (and Los Angeles in particular) gets a lot of flack, and many people could not fathom living here, but I really can't think of a place I would have rather resided for almost 60 years than Southern California. I hope my next 60 are just as fun.

We are finally 1/3 of the way to our ultimate mission goal of visiting all 21 California missions. A couple of weeks ago we hit the Mission San Francisco de Solano in Sonoma and the Mission Santa Clara de Asis. This makes a total of seven that we have visited.

Neither of these missions takes much time to explore. The Sonoma mission is only three rooms, and Santa Clara's is really just the church and some gardens, although the location on the campus of Santa Clara University is very nice.

Below is my little write-up (with photos) of each. The quest continues!!!

http://www.travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/Mission_Possible/Mission_Possible.html

All my best wishes that you make it to all 21. Your coverage is wonderful. Just enjoyed reading your coverage and seeing the photos of San Fernando. That was the last mission Angelo and I visited a couple of years ago. Unfortunately we only made it to 19. The last two closest to home ironically, San Rafael and Santa Clara, will never be visited by us now.

Thanks Giovanna. Wishing you the best in these difficult times. We were surprised by how much we liked the San Fernando Mission. Next up: Ventura and Santa Barbara. Hopefully soon.

Hi, maitaitom.

Do they still have the audiotape self-guiding tour at the San Diego Mission?

db...don't remember for sure, but usually if there is an audio guide, unless we are in a real hurry, we get one, so my guess is "no" but I could be mistaken.

Interesting! Here my wife and I are trying to attend games in all of the major league ballparks, and you're trying to hit all of California's missions. Suddenly our pursuit seems banal. Please light a candle for us.

Best wishes!

"Interesting! Here my wife and I are trying to attend games in all of the major league ballparks....."

I'll trade you Mission San Juan Capistrano and Mission Santa Clara for Yankee Stadium and a ballpark to be named later.

Sorry, I already have two S.-J. Capistranos. I'll give you Comerica Park for Santos Luis and Buenaventura. I can also sell you an Ark of the Covenant that looks good and still runs great.

Oh, since I'm a Tribe fan, you can have Yankee Stadium free and clear.

Santa Barbara is very beautiful. I think you'll enjoy your visit there. We managed to get there several times. Buenaventura was one we visited on the trip we went to San Fernando. We did San Gabriel as well. We had been to Buenaventura many years before and had a picture of our MGA parked in front. It had all changed completely on our last visit (our MGA was long gone too).

maitai- something is very striking about that Mission Santa Clara. Love the exterior.

Can't wait to see the next report!

PS I'm with Dave- you can have the Yankees! (I'll take Wrigley Field- but the lights have to go!)

Maitaitom, thanks for your reports as you continue your mission quest. We enjoy following along. When we've visited CA, we've seen only two and intend to take in more on future visits. For now, our only travel was to escape our midwest winter with some days in tropical San Juan, PR. . .85' with warm ocean surf. We'll stay tuned for your reports.

Wow, glad I stumbled on this report. Students at Santa Clara are known for booking wedding dates in that wonderful church many years ahead. I have heard of guys booking it before they even have a serious girlfriend.

We're rolling now! A couple of Sundays ago, Tracy and I ventured up the Ventura Highway (ok, the 101) to the San Buenaventura Mission, our eighth mission in our quest for 21.

Although relatively small (only the Mission church and its gardens still survive from the olden days),there was a lot to see. The interior of the church contained some interesting altar pieces, the gardens were nice and we even found some other things to look at behind the Mission church.

As a bonus, we drove a short distance into the Ventura Hills to Serra Cross Park at Grant Park (beautiful Pacific Ocean views, too) and to cap our morning we had breakfast at one of the best breakfast joints we have visited in quite some time.

Here is the story and the photos...13 to Go!!!

http://travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/Mission_Possible/Entries/2013/2/10_Mission_San_Buenaventura.html

A full day! Very nice.

Yes Toucan, and we were still back at our house by about 1:30. Great 1/2 day excursion. Thanks. Next stop on the Mission Quest...Santa Barbara...hopefully in the very near future.

Tom, while you were busy doing something else recently, I got myself to Missions Santa Clara and San Jose, plus two Spring Training venues: Camelback Ranch and Goodyear Ballpark.

Eagerly awaiting your counters.

Dave...right now my only planned trip is to the couch tomorrow afternoon to watch San Diego State in the NCAA tournament. Baseball parks and missions are on hold.

Can't you trade future options? Prospects? This has gotten interesting for the rest of us.

Tom:
I wanted to light a candle for you at Mission San Jose. Strict Fremont fire law forbids it. Said a prayer anyway...still not forbidden, so far.

5alive:
When Tom is up to it again, I'm considering a deal with him involving another ballpark, a little league field, and two minor league saints to be named later.

And I might even throw in Pope Francis' rookie card...

Tom, love the pics. I was all enamored of the beautiful grounds when I spied the pictures of breakfast. Good thing they were at the end..'cause now I'm hungry and have to go get some breakfast!

The pictures were great. I like it when you can take pictures of something that has been long-standing and show it side-by-side with current pics.

Thanks again for sharing!

What a great idea! I love the Mission architecture and history, too. The Santa Clara campus is a great setting for the one there. Loyola Marymount has a beautiful old church, but I don't think it was actually a mission location.

Got pictures to post?

"Got pictures to post?"

http://www.travelswithmaitaitom.com/Tom_%26_Tracy_Home/Mission_Possible/Mission_Possible.html

Yay! Thanks.

SD State played it's usual - undisciplined game - and got hammered in the 2nd half by the March Madness Tournament's darling - Floria Gulf Coast. Next game, be sure to look for the FGC Coach's wife (a former supermodel) and their three kids in the stands.

And for clarification - San Diego physically has 3 Missions - Oceanside and two in San Diego - Alcala and Presidio. The first Mission in Cal was built at the Presidio site - overlookng Old Town, and a few years later - they they moved inland to raise corn, etc.

Some of the Native Americans didn't like having their cherished rituals forbidden by the Padres - so after a wee bit of an :uprising" - the Padres fled/ moved back to the Presidio.

You can still visit both locations in San Diego - easily in half a day(they are about 10 minutes apart) - and then take in Oceanside if you like - 30 miles to the North, or just go kick back at the beach.

"And for clarification - San Diego physically has 3 Missions - Oceanside and two in San Diego - Alcala and Presidio."

...and if you read my report on Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcalá (which I'm sure you did), you will see I went over to the Presidio and included it in the report.

As for the Padres, please don't mention them this close to the start of baseball season. I don't need to be any more depressed.

Tom, you got nothin' on me.. a Cubs fan.