Long, long day on the road. The drive today was from Tucson, Arizona to Poway, California (near San Diego) – a little over 400 miles.
We had breakfast at the Best Western, which was very good. They had different cereals, waffles (make your own), muffins, breads, eggs, sausage, potatoes, gravy, coffee, tea, and juices. There were plenty of tables in which to sit down to eat, both inside and outside.
Scrambled eggs, potatoes, sausages, biscuits and gravy, and juices.Coffee and tea.Fruits.Waffles.Pastries, breads and bagels.
It looked like it was going to be a beautiful day as it was already quite warm when we left around 9:30 AM.
The deep end is 8 feet deep, unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to partake.
Huge oleander.Communities seem to be dictating the appearance of chain buildings rather than their cookie cutter buildings.
The ride was long and the landscape was very varied. We didn’t really stop (even though I saw several fun places to explore but knew we didn’t have time) until we got into Yuma.
Artistic overpasses.
The Arizona Highway Patrol was busy today.A rain storm in the desert.We are in saguaro cactus country.
The desert disappeared and irrigated land showed up.Solana generating station. Generates 280 megawatts. A parabolic trough system heating salt to molten temperatures.Scattered palm trees.I think they get 12 cuttings a year.
Once we got into Yuma, we got gas and then headed for the very last Cracker Barrel. There aren’t any in California, even though they think they will eventually be there. I sure hope so as we love the store and the restaurant. Michael and I both got the chicken and dumplings. So yummy. Just like Aunt Merle used to make. Michael enjoyed the turnip greens with his.
Got a little gas.Arizona prices are better than California prices.Artful overpass.Lunch in Yuma.Colorful cactus outside Cracker Barrel.We are going to miss their country ways.Chicken and dumplings, corn, beans and…Turnip greens with corn muffins. They were excellent, my favorite of it all.Edie opted for biscuits.She never stood a chance. She got about half way through it all. Fried apples, pinto beans and broccoli.Had to admire the blossoms on the way out. We decided we like the brief spring glory in the desert.
We are back in California!
Once we left Yuma, the weather and the terrain got interesting. There were huge areas of sand dunes, huge areas of rock mountains, beautiful farm land, and just a lot of different landscapes. Also, the weather was weird as it went from about 80 degrees down to 47 degrees. We went through sun, rain, gray, and some really thick fog. Exciting!
Church on a hill.Imperial Dunes, location for the filming of the sand scenes of “Return of the Jedi”.A barren place.Desert rat running a rail.
Then we came upon a hoard of giant windmills.This has to be a class 5 wind site. They were going fast and we were getting buffeted right and left.They are pretty to look at and watch in motion.The boulder section.
The GPS took us the long way into our hotel, but it was a lovely drive on the back roads. I really enjoyed it (especially since I wasn’t driving in the San Diego Friday night traffic).
We left 8 headed to our hotel.The tall trees below remind me of Athens, looking down from the Acropolis.Nice neighborhoods with pretty landscaping.A different steeple.Wildlife drama. We stopped without flashers on. The raven on the left was swooping in because he wanted a chick.We yelled at the crow, the mom and chicks kept going.The crow stayed close, under the car. We hoped for the best and kept going.
We got to our hotel at around 5:30 PM. It’s a lovely place, spacious and clean, comfortable bed. There is a small child next door that is running around but we’re hopeful he’ll settle down soon.
Tonight’s home.Pleasant place.Pleasant lobby.Pleasant water fountain.Pleasant breakfast area.Dynamite cookies.Nice room, comfortable. Plugs on every lamp and extras in the walls.Nice room.Nice bathroom.
