BIW Performs ! 2,721 miles in 5 days - We're Home

Hard to believe that less than a week ago, we were having lunch at the Polo Club Tack Room on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.  As all of the COVID-19 news continued to intensify, we started talking about heading home early.  By the time we biked back to Lake Cahuilla Campground after a 26 mile bike ride, we both decided we needed to leave in the morning.

So Sunday morning, we left.  Our week planned in Sedona, and some interesting stops on the way home will be rescheduled for next Spring.

Five days of driving, got us home before dark.  Ruthie shared much more of the driving of our motorhome......we couldn't have made this drive so quickly without her. 

We knew we had made the right decision, as we continued to listen to the news.  Stopping the second night at Walmart in Amarillo, Texas really opened our eyes.  The shelves were bare as panic has set in all over the U.S.

We'll all survive.  So glad to be home and well stocked so we can stay in our local town and enjoy the beach, biking, and walking on the boardwalk.

Our travels are cut short

The world tossed up a curve ball.  The Corona Virus (COVID-19), which originated in China has traveled throughout the world.  Hoped to be contained near its origin, this didn't happen.  Being faced with continuing our travels with uncertainty for the near future, we  have decided to head home.

So we drive back to the East coast, 2,800 miles.  It has been a great trip....now it's time to be home.

Palm Desert.............for the Rich & Famous?

We're staying warm and sunny in southern California with a couple of weeks at Lake Cahuilla County Park on the shores of  "Lake" Cahuilla.  What could be better than high 70s, lots of sunshine, and all of the flowers and magnificent landscapes along the housing and golf resorts.  Makes for great biking down the paved roads.  And all of this with our fellow RVer friends.

Biking to downtown La Quinta for a great bagel & lox at the local biker(pedal) restaurant, then a nice walk through the Celebration fine art show at the civic center.. all on a nice 18 mile round trip bike.

                How about a Polo tournament on a Sunday afternoon?  Pretty impressive horses and riders, and some serious competition.

Then a day trip out to Joshua Tree National Park, amongst the rocks and Joshua Trees...….a very magical place...………..Wish we had decided to camp here for a few nights!  There's even some free transportation to get around the park.






Then back to our campsite in La Quinta.  Lots more biking and eating.  Every street we bike has such beautiful landscapes, and all of the flowers!

We had a surprise, a large rainstorm with thunder and lightening.  Everything flooded, but hours later only the plants knew it had rained.

  

Adventures at Anza Borrego Desert State Park

We have had so many great adventures here in the desert!  After setting up camp 

surrounded by mountains, cactus, shrubs, and flowers; we headed out to explore and experience this incredible area. Sharing all of this with our friends, the Feesers and the Cousins.  

First a bike to the desert sculptures and then to a location recommended to see all of the many desert blooms.  How enchanting. Over 30 miles of biking, lots of stops to check out the art, and wow....the flowers!

 

The SLOT...………..another adventure.  This time we biked 16 miles to a very sandy road, then attempted to bike the sand...….not good for us,














so we locked our bikes to a very spikey Ocotillo and walked the rest of the way to the trail head.

Meeting up with our friends at the trailhead, we headed to  The Slot.  Very narrow in spots, cool in the shaded area, and overall a lot of fun! More steel sculptures on this ride too!  

For our final adventure here at Anza Borrego, we took the hike along Hell Hole Canyon to a Palm Oasis, that surprised us with the size.  Six miles of hiking on a gradual up grade trail, with the Oasis in sight, we started to scramble around the rocks.  Lunch among the palms.  Then we backtracked admiring all of the incredible desert landscape, and again all of the blooms!

 

Stocking up for our Desert travels

The next 3 weeks will be in the California desert and we need to get ready for this inhospitable environment.

The Left Coast............San Diego, California

We finally were able to coordinate our calendars, and we were able to visit some good friends from our former Bridgewater days, Ron and Judi.  First we spent a few days at their beautiful home in La Jolla, then we pulled our motorhome out of short term storage, and set up at Campland at Mission Bay.

We picked a great time with great weather and all of the flowers blooming.  Took walks in Pacific Beach along the ocean.  Great to check out the California action.  Then we took a few days to bike around Mission Bay on the many bike paths.

Wow, our bike ride to Coronado Island was intense...…..Biking on bike lanes to downtown San Diego, then along the harbor, and then the ferry to the Island.  At one point, we saw and heard, a plane taking off at the nearby SD airport, a commuter train crossing the road with the crossing gates ringing, and the traffic on the road we were riding on zipping by.  But we made it to the Coronado Hotel, and the then to Mootime Creamery for ice-cream inspired by Elvis - GOOD!



We ended our time here with a trip to Cabrillo Point.  Tidal pools to check out and great views made this a special day.  Our special thanks to our friends, Ron & Judi.

 

 Almost failed to mention our bike by of the iconic San Diego monument................... 

2 weeks is not enough at Catalina State Park, Tucson AZ !

Where have the two weeks gone?  We've been so busy hiking, biking, and socializing with our friends (who are now also our RV friends), Ray & Ann, and Dave & Nan.  We also met up with our Ann Arbor friends, Mike & Vicki who live here in Tucson.  But first, we must mention what a wonderful park Catalina is.... great campsites, friendly staff, programs including "music in the mountains", hiking, and biking.

Our highlight here has to be the easy access to "The Loop", a 51 mile loop ride on paved bike trails encircling Tucson.  And then there are a number of side access cycleways including the 10 mile Canada Del Oro that heads out from the State Parks entrance.  We logged over 80 miles of wonderful biking...……and there's more to this story!

On our second day out on the Loop, Ruthie's EBike lost its power assist, and we were stuck 10 miles from our campsite.  Morey biked back and got our rental vehicle, which just happened to be a pickup truck...(phew), and brought home the bike and Ruthie.  Unable to reboot the motor system, we found an authorized Bosch dealer, where her bike is awaiting repairs.  Not wanting to miss biking more of the Loop, we rented a road bike...……….What a superwoman!  Ruthie rode the next day, 46 miles on the unpowered road bike, while the rest of us powered through the ride with our EBikes.

Sad news......kind of, as we had to cancel some of our plans on camping on the way to San Diego.  But we were able to get a campsite at the "Overflow-overflow" area, and so we stayed a few more days at Catalina.  We added another Music in the Park, some more trails to hike, a ranger lead hike, and a photography class.

Other great happenings...……..  The Gem show is in town, and Mike & Vicki took us to check out a few of the many exhibits.  Amazing; you can purchase a Tyrannosaurus Rex for your very own living room!  Then there are all of the gems, rocks, and you name it...stuff.

Another highlight was our 5+ mile hike up to Romero Pools where lots of water was filling the pools.  Dave & Nan joined us and successfully climbed the 1200 foot over the many rocks.

We took our rental truck to Mt. Lemmon.  Such an interesting drive as we saw the Saguaros, then the scrub desert, and then pine trees as we reached over 9,000 feet.  A nice lunch at the Iron Door by the ski lift where we stayed warm with some good soup and hot sandwiches.

We almost forgot to mention the Farmers Markets... and then even the easy access to Walmart and the movies...………...it's all here!

So yes, two weeks is not enough...…….we just booked next year, same time, same place...and another week in the Tucson area!