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Looking for something new to see in SLO County? Check out these offbeat tourist spots

Stories by The Tribune journalists, with AI summarization

San Luis Obispo County is full of landmarks and must-see spots, but it also has many curiosities that go unseen by the residents who live here and the millions of tourists who visit each year.

Whether it's a nondescript memorial for screen legend James Dean along Highway 46 East, a San Luis Obispo building designed by Hearst Castle architect Julia Morgan or Paso Robles' most famous inn, these stories offer a look at some lesser-known spots you may have missed on your travels around the Central Coast.

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories below were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.

Dawn Turner, left, Monday Club president, and Gerry Johnson, who has been a club member since 1963. The Monday Club women’s club is celebrating 100 years, and the members continue to be active in community service. Famed Hearst Castle architect Julia Morgan designed the building, seen here on Monterey Street near Grand Avenue, on Sept. 20, 2024.

NO. 1: WOMEN’S CLUB CELEBRATES A CENTURY OF HISTORY FROM ITS LANDMARK BUILDING IN SLO

The clubhouse was built by a legendary architect and is the hub for a civic group that’s been around for 100 years. | Published September 23, 2024 | Read Full Story by Kathe Tanner

James Dean memorabilia collector Neil Sheehan, right, is organizing an effort to restore the 1977 memorial to the famed movie star who died east of Cholame in a 1955 car wreck. He talks to Ben Higgins, director of agricultural operations at Hearst Corp., which owns the Jack Ranch property around Cholame.

NO. 2: JAMES DEAN MEMORIAL IN SLO COUNTY TO UNDERGO REPAIRS AHEAD OF 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF CRASH

James Dean collector and fan Neil Sheehan is leading an effort to restore the monument to the 1950s movie star on at the Cholame “Y” in San Luis Obispo County. | Published September 30, 2024 | Read Full Story by Joan Lynch

The Adelaida Cemetery in rural Paso Robles is reportedly haunted by the ghost of Charlotte Sitton, who lost a child to diptheria in the late 1800s. Sitton’s ghost is called the Pink Lady.

NO. 3: WHAT ARE SLO COUNTY’S MOST HAUNTED PLACES? CHECK OUT THESE 7 SPOOKY SPOTS

Tales of spirits spark from grisly murders at a local mission and phantom phone calls at a historic hotel. | Published October 16, 2024 | Read Full Story by Hannah Poukish

Larger rooms are in the 1899 house, the building with the Grand Ballroom. Tour of the newly renovated Paso Robles Inn on Oct. 9, 2024.

NO. 4: HISTORIC PASO ROBLES HOTEL REOPENS AFTER MASSIVE 8-MONTH RENOVATION. SEE WHAT’S CHANGED

The $25 million remodel included everything from new floors to poolside cabanas. | Published October 14, 2024 | Read Full Story by Hannah Poukish

This report was produced with the help of AI tools, which summarized previous stories reported and written by McClatchy journalists. It was edited by journalists in our News division.