We left Albany at 9:30am on Sunday, April 15th. I brought along a book to read out loud as we drove, something I did years ago on our trip to Yellowstone Park. That trip I read The Firm, by John Grisham. This time I brought along The Client, by the same author. So I read until we got to Southern Oregon then I got my camera out for some photos of Mt. Shasta...
While driving through the Siskiyou Mountains we marveled (well, that's not the right word) at our diesel mileage! 6.4 MPG.
Ok, I don't promise that all the photos that I post here are going to be standard shots, yes, some of them might be off the wall. But that's just how I roll.... :-)
Driving behind this truck I noticed that there were metal stars embedded in the bottom of these logs....
The clouds moved in over Mt. Shasta as we got closer.
Almost to the California border, we passed a truck dealership that had a fleet of trucks that looked like a rainbow....
Our first stop for the night was Redding, California.
We called up our friends Kevin and Debbie and they picked us up for a pie outing then on to their beautiful home.
The next morning we pulled out at 10:30am. Headed down I-5 to Sacramento then we switched over to Hwy 99, a more scenic route.
Nice cloud pattern... and the Fireman antenna ball!
In 1998, on a car trip with Casey down to Disneyland, he saw Lodi on the map and wanted to stop there because of the Creedence Clearwater Revival song, "Stuck in Lodi Again." We didn't stop that trip because we were on I-5. So this time Larry and I decided to stop with thoughts of Casey. At first the town was a little sketchy looking but once you got away from the freeway and drove into downtown it was really nice.
We found downtown Lodi to be very charming.
With some very nice historic looking homes.
This one seemed to have a Frank Lloyd Wright style to it.
A few more hours on the road and we decided to stop for the evening in Chowchilla, CA.
The RV Resort there was really beautiful.... after a hard days' driving, I soaked my feet in the hot tub...hahahaha (Ok, hard days' sitting....)
Below is a short video of the frogs croaking (ha! they didn't die) next to our trailer in the evening...
That evening's route planning...
Back on the road, traveling scenic Hwy 99 down through California's agricultural land.
Then turning East into and through the Tehachapi Mountains on Hwy 58. I love California for its' pastoral scenery!
Ok, here's another funky photo... I spotted a funny looking tree in the distance, high atop a ridge in the Tehachapi's. Then I remembered an article I had recently read about how a company is building microwave/cell towers that look like trees in order to camouflage them. And here I had spotted one!!
Zoomed in....ha! looks like a tall evergreen, where only deciduous trees are growing!
Wind turbines filled the hills.
First sight of cactus, in the Mohave Desert.
The elevation is increasing and temperature is rising! Yea!!!!!
We were making good time, so we decided to take a tour through the Visitor's Center of the Boraxo company mine in Boron, CA.
Viewpoint above the working mine.
Visitor's Center. A retired gentleman from the mine was at the information desk and while talking to him he told us that on a few occasions, he and his crews were lucky enough to see NASA Space Shuttles come in for landings at Edward's Air Force base, across the highway. This would happen when the Shuttle couldn't land in Florida. THAT would have been fantastic!!!!!
One of the many beautiful rocks we saw at the center.
You might be familiar with the "20 Mule Team Boraxo" soaps from the past. This mine started out with the 20 Mule Team, back at the turn of the century.
Here are some of the things that make use of the materials that they mine in Boron today.
Cleaning supplies, pink insulation, ceramic tiles, millefiori glass, agriculture and porcelain dishware.
Here is a sample of ulexite we received at the Visitor's Center. Officially, ulexite is a calcium-sodium borate. This ulexite has been cut and polished. In nature, the mineral can look almost fluffy, which is why it's also called "cottonball."
Unofficially, it's called "TV rock." Because, placed on top of a photo you can see through it. Ulexite is made up of long transparent crystals that transmit light.
Here ends today's geology lesson...
Just past Boron we turned south on Hwy 395, we stopped for the night in Hesperia, CA.
The next morning we were up and on the road early. Today we planned on stopping in Indio, CA which is just past Palm Springs to visit friends Harold and Myra. Larry lived next door to them while growing up in So. California. Then after visiting, we would travel the rest of the way to our destination in Arizona; North Ranch, to stay with Wayne and Ione.
Now driving on Hwy 10, going through the Palm Desert, more wind turbines.
92ยบ Now this is what I was looking forward to!!!!
In Indio, I finally got to meet a very special friend, Myra. We had never met in person, she started following my blog when I was sick and we became fast friends over the internet. Sweet, sweet lady! Like I mentioned earlier, she and her husband Harold and their children lived next door to Larry and his family all the years Larry was growing up in California. Actually I knew Myra's daughter in Jr. High and she and another friend and I hung out together, but I never met Myra. Amazing how life sometimes brings back past connections!
Harold helping me find ripe lemons to pick! It was AWESOME picking fresh lemons!
Myra and Harold's beautiful backyard!
I was so surprised to see Plumeria growing in her backyard. I thought it only grew in Hawaii. :-)
As a side note.... here's a photo of the Plumeria stick that Larry and I brought home from Hawaii in 2009. It has never had a bloom on it, but it's still growing, I haven't killed it....
Harold and Myra led us out of the beautiful gated community where they live, and we waved good-bye.
On Hwy 10 heading towards Arizona, where Spring temperatures are just starting?
Arizona state line.
Wednesday, April 18th 5:00pm. We've reached our destination! North Ranch Escapees Park, just south of Congress, AZ.
We called Wayne and Ione upon our arrival, and as we waited for them to come to the front of the park to show us the way, I took this photo of cactus. After seeing this photo, my brother pointed out that I had 6 different kinds of cactus in one shot.
Our beautiful spot for the next 5 nights.... that Saguaro cactus out front was at least 20' tall.
After getting set up, the 4 of us went to a little pizza place in Congress for dinner. This was the evening sky, looking west as we set off for home.
The next morning Larry and I rode our bikes over to Wayne and Ione's. They were just about 3 blocks from us.
This is the view out the door of their motorhome, looking east.
To the left of their motorhome is a little out building where they have another refrigerator freezer, a washing machine, a workbench and a place set up for Ione's sewing machine so she can quilt.
Here's Ione in her creative zone..... (sooooo cute, I really love that lady!)
One of her creations:
Here's a map of No. Ranch Park. Wayne and Ione are in lot #333 Iron Eagle Drive, and we stayed at their friends lot on 141 Meandering Lane.
Just getting to Wayne and Ione's one morning to have breakfast together, I shot this photo of their place...
One day I did some of my laundry at Ione's and hung it out to dry. It was dry within the hour!
We sat and visited while it dried on the line.
After 3 attempts, I finally made it back to my chair in time to be included in a timer set photo! I had them all laughing at me.... :-) I like to keep my "peeps" entertained!
When it cooled off in the evenings we would head outside to sit and enjoy the warm night. The next two photos are just looking down the streets around Wayne and Ione's lot.
When it got dark, we'd recline in our lawn chairs and watch for satellites and shooting stars. One night I think we counted up to 18 satellites.
I was able to get a good shot of the big dipper with my camera on a tripod....
Looking west I took a couple of photos of the moon...
On this night, the moon was really low on the horizon, and the bright spot above the moon is a planet, but I don't know which one, maybe Venus....
I zoomed in on the moon in this photo..
Ok, let the flower photos commence!!! (Just so ya know, I'm keeping your attention span in mind by not posting all 90+ photos I took of cactus and cactus flowers)...
These pink beauties are blooms on the "Beavertail" cactus. It's just WRONG that I'm a Duck and my favorite cactus ended up being the "Beaver" tail! But the cactus was shaped like hearts!! And I love heart shapes in nature!!
These blooms lasted only one day.
A type of Spineless Prickly Pear
This Saguaro (pronounced: Sa-gwar-o) in the park was named Methuselah. It was the largest Saguaro we saw on our trip.
It had at least a hundred birds living in it and I took a short video of the birds flying around it and into its holes....
One morning on a bike riding - photo taking spree, I spied the shape of the bird nest hole in this 20'+ Saguaro.
And I zoomed in to capture...... yup! ;-)
Another Saguaro in the neighborhood.
Santa Rita Prickly Pear.
On a morning walk with Ione, we picked an orange and grapefruit from trees of her friend.
The grapefruit wasn't quite ready, but the orange was yummy.
Engelmann's Prickly Pear.
Saguaro
Check back here later for more... I'm going to keep editing this post and adding more onto it so that the whole trip is in sequential order... It will make for a very long post, but I think it will work best that way for me.... I don't know, we'll see, hahahahha
*****Continuing.... Part II*****
Wayne and Ione have a neighbor named Harvey. He had these beautiful Bougainvillea growing in his yard, so as we walked by one day I asked if I could take a photo of them. This led to getting to meet a very interesting guy with a lot of great interests....
This is Harvey.
This is a 1/2 ounce bottle half full of gold that Harvey panned this Winter.
He collects these "Sunstones" in Southern Oregon and he had a canvas bag full.
Then he had a smaller bag filled with the same type of stones but polished.
He had a variety of these stones, and when he wet them in a tub of water they were beautiful. I can't remember the name of them.
Then he showed us a collection of what are called Herkimer Diamonds. They are only found in New York, in the county of Herkimer. They are actually quartz crystals. They form in a pocket in a rock, and just pop out of the hole they form in.
A Herkimer diamond in its rock pocket.
Here is information about these gems, if you are interested. You can click on the photo and may be able to read it.
Harvey also had a Mesquite tree growing on the back of his lot. I had only heard of Mesquite, so I had to take a photo of it.
This was a nice landscape display at one of Ione's neighbors lot. The plaque read: "Freedom, for those who have fought for it, has a special meaning the protected will never know."
On a road trip, we stopped at an overlook to see North Ranch in the valley below. Here are Wayne and Ione.
Larry and I.
We drove to Yarnell to have lunch at a cute little shop.
Here we are waiting for lunch, except Wayne picked out his dessert and brought it to the table before our sandwiches were brought out. I found out why later! Turns out I had my eye on a dessert but someone came in and bought it before I had the chance. It was pretty funny actually. It's a very small town, but this bakery has wonderful baked goods so if you see something when you first walk in, you better grab it!
I liked the name of these baked sweet rolls.
And the kitschy decor.
The phone works, I asked. But only for incoming calls!
The big reason we went to Yarnell was so Wayne could show us the hardware store. This place is the ultimate retail "man cave." It was SO stuffed with merch! They had everything... I even saw aquarium fish food...
I mean EVERYTHING! Rows and rows of it. Ione and I decided that doing year end inventory would take at least 6 months!
On another day, the 4 of us went to Phoenix separately. Ione had an appointment and Larry and I wanted to tour Taliesin West in Scottsdale, the architectural school of Frank Lloyd Wright. So we all met for lunch later in the day.
While waiting for our 90 minute tour, we shopped. All those books about FLW wanted to be taken home with me, I had to fight them off.... We escaped with only one of them... "Frank Lloyd Wright, Prairie Houses." Yum!
FLW's office.
The front of Taliesin West. It's called Taliesin "West" because the first Taliesin built is in Wisconsin. So architectural students would go to school in Wisconsin in the Spring and Summer months and at Taliesin West Fall and Winter.
FLW compared the Arizona landscape to the sea floor. The cactus reminded him of coral.
Walking past the design classroom on the left.
Partly underground, this is a theater designed so well that when the tour guide stepped behind a large poster on stage and talked we could still hear her in the back of the room like she was standing next to us.
I'm going to take a break here....
Thanks for reading!!
Flojo
1 comment:
Enjoyed the pictures of Lodi. My family and I spent quite a bit of time there growing up. My folks would attend the Lodi Grape Festival every summer and us kids would spend time at Lodi Lake as well as Micke Grove Park and Zoo (also in Lodi). We had friends who lived on a ranch in Acampo, just north of Lodi. It was a cute town for many years (in the 70's and 80's). Fond memories.
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