President and Mrs. Nixon in San Clemente Beach, California

Richard Nixon believed in frequent escapes, discovering "how isolated from the reality of American life" a president can feel at the White House. "Like other presidents, before and after me, I felt the need to get out of the White House and out of Washington in order to keep some sense of perception." President and Mrs. Nixon stroll along the shoreline of San Clemente Beach, California. January, 1971. (Photo by the Richard M. Nixon Presidential Library)