Well, I've been in Santa Monica for three days now, recovering from the trip and playing with my granddaughter.
I neglected to mention that the reason I drove rather than flew, was that I was delivering a family heirloom that I didn't want to ship. My father, who was in the furniture industry in High Wycombe, had a child-sized Windsor chair made for me, by one of the last "chair bodgers", Jack Goodchild of Naphill. My daughter used it when she was young and now her daughter is the proud owner of it.
I must say it feels very odd driving around Santa Monica in my own car, rather than an airport rental car.
The direct route would have been 1600 miles. I ended up driving 2500 miles! That's like driving to Los Angeles from Pittsburgh.
Alternatively, in European terms, it's like driving from Aberdeen to Vienna, and then continuing to Istanbul.
Thanks to all for the positive feedback - it encouraged me to visit many more locations than I had planned and to see many more interesting aircraft.