GETTING TO GRAPEVINE - Joshua Tree National Park May 4, 2010

I have not been able to come with a good name for our trip to Canada so the next chapter will just be on getting us back to Texas. We left Hemet yesterday and stayed last night in 29 Palms and then this morning we headed for the Joshua Tree National Park.

Upon arriving at the park we discovered that it encompasses two deserts.  The northwest portion of the park sits on the Mojave Desert and the southeast portion sits on the Colorado Desert.

We spent the first part of the day in the Mojave Desert and this is where the tree that gives its name to the park is in abundance. Actually it is not really a tree but a giant member of the lily family. It is all over the northeast portion of the park and comes in many sizes and shapes.

However, the most spectacular feature of the park is the rock formations.  Geologists believe they were born more than 100 millions years ago as molten liquid and over the years became what they are today.  The area is very popular with rock climbers.  There are many different shapes of individual rocks and rock piles.

During our day in the park we took in Keys View which is the highest point in the park at 5185 feet.  After a relatively easy drive up to the viewpoint we had a pretty nice view back towards Coachella Valley and the Indio Hills.  Well today we had a good view as some days the haze is quite heavy.  The view from this point includes Palm Springs, Palm Desert, part of the Salton Sea and of course the San Andreas Fault.

San Jacinto Mountain in background.  Palm Springs is at the base of the mountain.

Coachella Valley

San Andreas Fault

We did spent a part of morning hiking through a small valley.  We thought we were in Hidden Valley and couldn't see what all the excitment was about. It was just a valley.  We never made it to the real Hidden Valley.  However it was nice to stretch the legs for a bit even if it was 90 degrees out.

A few other sites from the Mojave Desert

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The Infamous Desert Balloon Plant

While still in the park we were now leaving the Mojave Desert and entering the Colorado Desert and immediately there was a change in terrain.  Also the Joshua Tree disappearered.

The first stop in the Colorado Desert portion of the park was at The Cholla Cactus Gardens which is dominated by the Jumping Cholla Cactus.  The name is for its tendency to attach itself to the unwary and this you do not want to happen.  It's spines are very sharp and have little barbs on the end which make it very difficult and painfull to remove.

The final stop before exiting the park was at the Ocotillo Patch where there was a group of unusual looking plants that we thought were cactus.  We actually found out that this thorny, multi -stem shrub is a woody deciduous plant.  Unlike other diciduous shrubs, which normally grows leaves in the spring and drops them in the fall, the Ocotillo may actually grow and drop leaves up to five times a year.  The reason is that it's leaves are not season dependent but rain dependent. 

They also look nice.

It wasn't very long before we exited the park and headed the RV park we were going to stay at.  We have been there before and it is called "Fountain of Youth" RV park and are known for their natural mineral spas.

I didn't get any younger the last time we were here so I thought I would give them another change.  When we arrived it was 97 degrees.  How do you spell hot.

We quickly set up and got out of the sun.  Despite the heat it was a very good day.

WINTERING IN CALIFORNIA May 2, 3 & 4, 2010

This will be the last WINTERING IN CALIFORNIA post as today we have officially left Hemet and the Golden Village Palms RV Resort.  It was a good 1st winter as retiree's and we really enjoyed our time here.
I do not believe we could have picked a better park.  The individuals we met, both staff and fellow RVer's were spectacular which just added to the good times.

Sunday and Monday was spent putting the finishing touches on moving everything from the 5th wheel into the Lance.  Monday afternoon we took the 5th Wheel over to the Storage Facilities and bid it farewell for the next 5 or 6 months.  The only enjoyable aspect of the two days was being able to go for a hottub later in the evening.  A good long soak does wonders for aching muscles.

Monday was leaving day.  The Lance was all packed up and ready to go.

So we said goodbye to some of the few people still left in the park including our neighbour Tom who came to our rescue the first day we got here and helped us navigate the 5th wheel into a good position.

We then stopped at the office on our way out to say goodbye.  The young ladies at the front desk were sorry to see us go.

Okay, maybe not all of them were sorry to see us leave.

After leaving the office winter was officially over and we were once again headed down the road.  It felt good to both of us to once again be moving.  We did not plan a long trip today as we are headed to the Joshua Tree National Forest which is on 50 miles down the road.  However to get there you go past Palm Springs and get a chance to view the biggest farms around.  Just don't try to eat this crop.

We decided to spent the night in Twentynine Palms which is at the East entrance to Joshua Tree National Park.  Not sure where it got its name as we counted a lot more than 29 Palm Trees.

Tomorrow we head into the park and will post our activities in the new chapter in our retirement life.  Not sure what this new chapter will be called.

WINTERING IN CALIFORNIA April 24 - May 1, 2010

The past week has been spent mainly getting ready to leave Hemet.  We are putting the 5th wheel in storage and taking the Camper to Ontario for the summer.  It has turned out to be a bigger job that we anticipated or maybe we have left the sense of urgency behind us in retirement.  When it gets done, it gets done.

I still managed to get a couple of golf games in and Kathy continued to ride her bike between going and getting the camper.  Once we had the camper in the park the first thing we did was get it washed and waxed.  It was still covered with bugs from the Alaska trip.  The guys we hired did a great job and it looks like it is new.

Once we had a new and clean camper it was time to start moving over everything we would need on the trip.  It is amazing the amount of "stuff" one can accumalate in a small space.  However, a little sorting, a little disposal and we are almost ready to go.  

We plan to leave here on Monday or Tuesday and our first destination will be the Joshua Tree National Forest and then onto Dallas. 

The park is getting quite empty and today we said goodbye to one of the few snowbirds still left here.  Terry and Joy are from British Columbia and both are quite good golfers.  When the three of us played I think Joy held back so that she didn't kick our butts to bad.  They are both very nice people and we look forward to hooking up with them next winter. 

WINTERING IN CALIFORNIA April 12 - 23, 2010

The last couple of weeks has been spent saying goodbye to people as the park is slowly empting out.  The Canadians have pretty much all left as the weather in Canada is becoming favorable.  Other than saying goodbye to people we have just been relaxing and enjoying the nice weather. 

I have got a few golf games in and Kathy is diligently riding her bike but other than that it is pretty peaceful.

On the 17th of April I celebrated my 61st birthday.  We spent the day going over to Lake Elsinore and meeting up with a friend we hadn't seen in many years.  Kathy and I both worked with Sanjay Choudhuri at GWG and we met up with him and Nancy ( his better half ) at a small restaurant.  We managed to turn breakfast into a 3 hour event and it was really nice to catch up and hear about his future plans.  I unfortuntely forgot my camera but Sanjay brought his and pictures were taken.  I will post them when Sanjay forwards them to me.

The Pictures arrived.

Starting next week we will be getting the truck camper ready for the trip to Canada and slowing starting to move what we need from the 5th wheel into the camper.  We are starting to get itchy feet, the travelling bug is starting to bite, the truck is whining, the north is calling.  It's time to go.

WINTERING IN CALIFORNIA April 10 & 11, 2010

Saturday and Sunday were pretty quiet. The weather turned a little cold, it went down into the high 60’s so we decided to just sit back and enjoy The Masters. So that’s what we did. It was a quiet but nice weekend. Monday we have to start getting ready to pack up and head north.

WINTERING IN CALIFORNIA April 8 & 9, 2010

Thursday was a do errands day but we did it on our bikes. We ended up riding about 15 miles as we had to go to the Post Office, a couple of Drug Stores and the Grocery Store. We also made a stop at Starbucks for a little refreshment. It was a nice afternoon.

The evening did not go as easy as a hose under the sink let go and we ended up with water all over the place. It took quite a bit of work to clean up all the water and it took right up until it was time to go to bed to finish it. The end result being that we had to order a new hose from Mobile Suites.

Friday I had made a commitment to go golfing so that’s where I was headed and it was another beautiful day hitting the early 80’s temperature wise. I felt a little quilty as Kathy was stuck in the 5th Wheel shampooing carpets and cleaning the kitchen floor. I think that must have been than messed up my golf game.

The manufacturer in discussions with Kathy agreed to send us a new kit for under the sink at no charge so not all was lost. It will be here in about a week.

Tomorrow is another day.