Along Highway 101 between Los Angeles and the Bay Area, cast metal bells spaced one or two miles apart mark what is supposedly a historic route through California: El Camino Real.

The iconic mission bells that line California's El Camino Real (The Royal Road) were originally intended to be spaced approximately one mile apart. However, in practice, the spacing varies significantly. When the first bells were installed in 1906 by the El Camino Real Association, the goal was to mark the historic trail connecting California's 21 missions. In rural stretches along Highway 101, you might still find them at one-mile intervals, but in urban areas like Los Angeles or San Francisco, they are often placed more sporadically at major intersections or historic landmarks. There are currently over 585 bells standing along the roughly 600-mile route. Each bell is a cast-iron replica of a standard 17th-century bell, hanging from a distinct "shepherd's crook" pole. While the story that the missions themselves were spaced "one day's walk apart" is largely a romanticized myth created by early 20th-century boosters, the bells remain a powerful and recognizable symbol of California's colonial and automotive history.