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Published: June 22nd 2009
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On the Road to California
We are westward bound on the interstate that takes us out of the Tucson mountains, across the desert and into the southern tip of the California Rockies. On Tuesday, April 21, we set the alarm clock for 4:00 a.m. Why such an early hour when you have no itinerary and are on vacation? You may ask that question. The answer is simple, ....... we wanted to have a good part of the desert behind us before the day got too hot. By the time we had all showered and loaded the RV with last minute food items, it was 5:30 a.m. It was gloriously cool when we left.
We headed north on highway I-10 with Janice and I sharing the driving. From Phoenix it was west on I-8, towards our destination of Alpine, California and the home of James and Laurie Schwark and their family.
We stopped for gas mid-way between Tucson and Yuma. It was a great stop because I found the hanging pots I had been looking for and a cow skull for my yard.
The day was sunny and clear and it heated up quickly. By the time we were nearing the California state line, we had to turn the AC on in the camper. We alternated between AC and rolling our windows down because we did not want
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church
Prince of Peace is in Yuma, Arizona. The parsonage is located at the end of a long driveway behind the church. the engine to overheat. There was a lot of desert with a few picturesque oasis'. At one point we passed a huge dairy operation which we could smell for miles before we actually got there!
We were making relatively good time so we decided to stop in Yuma and visit a pastor friend of Janice's by the name of Richard Kugler. We arrived at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church at around 10:30. It was quite a nice facility with a large parking lot and a long paved laneway to the parish house which was located at the back of the property. There are a lot of beautiful cottonwoods in Yuma and I discovered that I just love these stately trees. Their trunks are a uniquely mottled and their foliage is a full, bright green (similar to the Arizona sycamore). I wonder if we can grow them in Ottawa or are we in the wrong zone?
When we left Yuma, we crossed the Colorado River and the state line at the same time. We were in town and not on the highway so we missed a sign to say we were entering California. There was also no
Janice and Pastor Richard Kugler
Old friends renew their acquaintance. It's always good to visit and catch up on the news. Information Center. I took pictures of the river which, at this spot, is only about as wide as the Rideau Canal in Ottawa. This surprised me for being so close to the mouth.
As we continued westward, the temperature rose into the 100's. We crossed over several branches of the ''All American Canal'' which has been built in agreement with the Mexican government to provide water to Mexico for permission to build the Hoover Dam further up the river. Currently there is a project underway to line the bottom of the canal with cement to prevent water loss through ground seepage. The existence of these canals might explain why the Colorado River is so narrow this far south.
Shortly outside of Yuma, we were stopped at a Border Patrol Checkpoint. This is normal all along I-8 which travels very close to the actual US-Mexico border at times. We could often see the fence that is being built to make illegal crossings between border points more difficult. There are mixed opinions as to whether or not it is working.
At 11:30 we stopped for lunch at a rest stop west of Yuma, in the “Sand
The Colorado River
As you can see, the river is not very wide at this point. One of the branches of the All American Canal is just to the right of the river. Dunes National Park” region. It was
veryhot. There were beautiful song birds flying all around us which were lovely, but biting flies which were not. Above us in the trees was a very strange sight, a white/creamy-yellow fixture that nestled amongst the needles and waving boughs of the pine tree. Once we got out our binoculars and actually were able to zoom in on the object we saw that it was a huge honeycomb in the tree above our camper. What an amazing sight as none of us had ever seen one in the wild before. After putting a litre of oil in the engine we were on our way.
At about 13:15 we gassed up again. We had more than a half a tank but since we were going into the mountains, we wanted to be safe. When we got out of the RV, we could already notice the difference in the air temperature. Either the higher elevation, or breezes from the ocean which were making it through some of the mountain passes, or a combination of both, gave a relief to the sweltering temperature. Something very unusual occurred at this gas stop, which neither Janice or
Sand Dunes National Park
These dunes are just west of the Arizona/California state line. They are amazing. If it weren't for the busy highway traffic and the hydro-electric lines, we could have been in the Sahara Desert. I had never experienced before. When I loosened the gas cap, the tank began venting with a steady stream of air. It scared me a bit and I was glad Janice was along because with her car experience, she knew what to do. As a treat, we picked up some ice cream cones.
In the Borrego Desert, west of Yuma, we were at sea level. Within the course of the day we went from zero to over 5,000 feet above sea level. The RV endured some very long, slow inclines. Nathanael and I found it interesting to see emergency call boxes as we climbed the mountain passes and pull-in stops for radiator water all along the way. Obviously state highway officials have had to deal with the problems drivers have experienced in the past and are trying to circumvent them before they arise.
The wind began picking up in the mountains and the temperature became much more bearable. At approximately 13:45 we were at 4,000 feet near Campo Junction. There were huge windmills to harvest the wind energy in the region. We drove through several Indian reserves and passed numerous casinos along the way. We also
Honeycomb in the Wild
What a surprise to see this huge honeycomb hanging in the tree over our heads. I don't know where the bees went for pollen in this desert landscape. began to see ranches nestled in the hillsides and we crossed a huge ravine called “Horse Thief Canyon.” We wondered if it was named because of the previous occupation of its occupants.
By 14:00 we were well into the mountains and Alpine was only 60 miles away. The landscape was much more lush and green. There was a cool breeze. Could we smell the ocean or was it our wishful thinking? We were still at 4,000 feet and it was here that we saw our first pine trees. There were only a few, but they were standing proudly on the side of the mountain. The rest of the land was still scrub grasses and bushes, agaves, and boulders. Another Border Patrol Checkpoint was located in the mountains. Every time, we have been fortunate and were simply waved through.
The Laguna Summit elevation was posted as 5,055 feet and from there it was almost downhill all the way, .... LOL. At 3,000 feet we began to see Italian cypress. Alpine is at 2,000 feet, about 30 miles east of San Diego.
We arrived at around 14:30 and Laurie’s daughter, Joanna, opened the door to us.
Windmill Alley
This photo only shows a few of the many windmills that have been built to harvest the wind energy in this canyon corridor. We could feel the gusts blowing our RV around as we drove down the highway. Laurie’s dad introduced himself and his wife, Lee and Arlene Radicle, and got us situated where the RV would sit during our visit. We plugged into electricity and turned on the fridge in the camper. We also unloaded some of our food supplies to the Schwark kitchen.
Laurie brought pizzas home for supper and was extremely happy with the surprise we had for her, having Janice along for the visit. It had been a secret. We were so glad to be at our destination and after a relaxed supper, we sat and chatted as darkness fell. It was not a late evening since everyone worked in the morning and James was coming home from shift work at the hospital. We said “good night,” looking forward to the promise of tomorrow and a wonderful visit in this beautiful region.
Our next blog will fill you in on our stay in Alpine and our forays “down the hill” to San Diego. What a wonderful place to visit. There is so much to see! We will not be here long enough to do it all! I guess we will just have to come back some day.
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