After Hearst

While we had a parking spot for the Airstream, we decided to take a drive up the justifiably famous California Hwy 1 along the coast.

One last view of the castle from down below....

The first point of interest was the elephant seal viewing point.  The numbers were impressive....

as were the individuals.

The coast line was lovely as expected.

An interesting juxtaposition of dry and wet....

then back to the park to prepare for traveling back to hwy 101 N.

Grandeur, California style

Following our visit at Carpenteria, we headed on up the coast to Hearst, San Simenon.  We stopped at a state park.  It had no services, but plenty of space and it was convenient.
On the way, we stopped in the Danish town of Solvang, CA for lunch.  It was a fascinating stop.  

We enjoyed a Danish lunch

did a bit of browsing, visited Hans Christian Andersen

and the little mermaid

then drove on to the aforementioned state park.
From there we visited the Hearst Castle the next day.

Grand does not begin to describe the place.  I did find it a bit dark and foreboding.  The grounds however were magnificent!   The outdoor pool must be second only to Balmorhea....

The indoor Roman pool was also fine.

We enjoyed the statuary on the grounds

then headed down the hill to the village of San Simenon and a wonderful California style lunch.

Back to the state park for rest and readiness for the next day of travel.

Finally....

Long time......
First there were friends to visit, then no power connection, then no internet connection, and it just went on and on.
Yesterday, we drove over to Coos Bay to the closest Verizon store seeking assistance.  I guess we got it, but not exactly what we hoped to get.
Long and short, today we do have connection abiet slooooooooow.
I have a lot to catch up on, so plan to do it in sections.
After leaving Quartzsite, we moved on to Carpenteria, CA to visit with folks we met last summer in Oregon.  They live on an avocado ranch and made us most welcome.  Judy prepared a lovely dinner which we enjoyed on the terrace, followed by drinks by the outdoor fireplace.  It was lovely.
Hobbes loved getting to be off lead and playing with Boggie.
Next day, Don gave us a tour of the farm and taught us a lot about how avocados are grown.  It was fascinating.

I had no idea how prolific avocado trees are.
We went down to the shore for a lovely lunch al fresco.

It was a beautiful setting....

We followed lunch with a drive up the coast to Santa Barbara.  It made for a great afternoon.
We each had a nap, then headed off to a local brew pub and to dinner.
Next morning, we enjoyed coffee and a brief visit before stopping traffic for the Airstream so that we could be on our way.
Hobbes had a great time with Boggie....

Thanks so much Don and Judy......it was a lovely visit!!!

Serendipity

Left Hueco Tanks and headed across New Mexico.

Along the way, enjoyed watching the dust devils play across the desert.

The winds were just right for their formation.

We drove all the way to Kartchner Caverns State Park.  I have been reading about these caverns since the time their discovery was made public.  The caverns are live and every precaution has been made to keep them so.  We arrived at the campground and made our way to the Dicovery Center at 2:45.  There was a tour available at 3 p.m.  One enters through a series of four air lock doors.  The formations are colorful and active, making yet another cavern stop worth the time and money.
Next morning, we were up early and made a stop for me at the gift shop.  We were there at 8:30 and told it opened at 9.  No problem.  We explored the most interesting exhibit and learned more about bats and a lot about the construction of the public access to the cave.  At 9, we were told that the gift shop opened at 9:30.  With an unusual show of patience for my shopping habit, Jim declared, "No problem.". Meanwhile, he made a phone call to our resident mechanic in Rocky Mount, VA and acquired some good advice and enjoyed a visit.  I got on my phone and called the Strouds to see where they were at the moment.   Good luck, they were involved in moving a park model to Utah and were still in Arizona.  
We set our sights on Quartzsite and headed west.  The drive through the desert was interesting.  There were lots of saguaro cacti to admire.

Arrived in Quartzsite late afternoon and enjoyed a good fish dinner with Cal and Anita.
Stayed overnight at their almost deserted rv park.  Next morning, we took a drive around town and the surrounding desert, then headed down the Colorado River toward  Lake Havasu City.

The atttrraction at Lake Havasu City is the London Bridge.

Good of Cal and Anita to suggest this outing.  It is something we would not have experienced otherwise.

 Thanks guys!
We enjoyed our lunch at the base of the bridge....

 then back to Quartzsite for a nap, trip to the "naked man" bookstore, pizza dinner and visiting as the sun went down.

We had a wonderful visit and are so grateful for good friends!

Life is good!

Hueco Tanks Guided Tour

Not much sleep last night, tour planned this morning, so we decided a good plan would be to stay here at Hueco Tanks another night.  After our tour, we made a run into El Paso for eye drops and provisions.  Ready to roll again tomorrow.

The 2 1/2 hour tour was fabulous.  Jim Bailey climbed and scrambled up rocks he would never have done had his guide not out aged him.  It would have been just too wimpy to say, "I'd better not!"

There was just too much interesting rock art to post all, but I will include a sample.

This fellow looks serious--whatever he may be communicating.  This particular site has a lot of "over ride" graffitti.  It also hosts a very large snake.

He is too large to get his entire body in one photo, but his head is impressive!

Jim and I were at this location yesterday.  I was amazed at how many more figures I saw today.

Our next stop required a bit of maneuvering.

Who would have imagined that this would be a good place to paint?

We did see a few masks.

There are many lovely figures that span a large amount of historical time and exhibit many artistic styles.

Some "bragging rights" never change.

Maybe a fertility dance?????

Imagine grinding your corn or mesquite beans in these mortars, protected by a cooling overhang and looking at this view:

Wonderful, no?
Readers must think I have posted every photograph I took this morning, but I have not.  This location is just a mecca for rock art.  Jim and I thoroughly enjoyed our morning scrambling up, over and through some of the rocks at Hueco Tanks State Park.  

Start of Summer Travels, 2013

Finally, cataract surgery complete, crown for tooth retrieved, and almost everything we will need for six months packed!

Departure, May 10.  Long drive to first rest at Garner State Park near Concan, TX.

We toured the buildings at the park that were constructed by the CCC,

enjoyed a walk along the Frio River,

and did a little dancing on the patio of the pavilion on Saturday night.

Generally, we just enjoyed the area.

This was relaxing enough to prepare us for the drive on Sunday to Balmorhea State Park.  This is one of our favorite stops.  The 2 acre swimming pool fed by natural spring water is fabulous.

This is another CCC project.  One has to wonder why we cannot think on this scale today when folks are in need of work.

The water ranges from 3 feet to 25 feet in depth and is crystal clear.

Jim really enjoyed his swim.  I couldn't indulge this trip because of the eye surgery, but I enjoyed walking the perimeter and looking at this beautiful location.  It is amazing that more people have not discovered this site.  It is so close to the interstate highway.

Monday morning we were on the road once more.  Enjoyed a Mexican lunch at Chueys in Van Horn.  Our destination for the day:  Hueco Tanks State Park, just east of El Paso.

This is another new park to us.  It is wonderful!

Along our route we passed El Capitan, tallest point in Texas, and the salt flats east of El Paso.

Our first view of Hueco Tanks was intriguing.

Our campsite is pleasing.

We enjoyed sitting outside and watching the sun set and the stars come into view.  Tuesday morning was spent hiking around the north mountain rediscovering pictographs and petroglyphs.  

Here are a couple of handsome fellows we met along the path.

Overall, a lovely day.  Looking forward to tomorrow's guided hike and hoping to see more of the mask pictographs for which Hueco Tanks is noted.

A good start to summer 2013!