Day 14: Palm Springs!!!

So we arrived. It wasn't easy. But then lots of stuff isn't easy. We were glad that we made the decision to stay in Bakersfield an extra day. Driving conditions were reportedly horrible on Sunday and Monday -- sandstorms reducing visibility to nothing, ice and snow on the roads; people made it through, but why? Anyway, we didn't and we're glad of it. And, as already noted, we got in all that geocaching.

So yesterday we drove on down and it was fine. Windy in a few places, but not so bad. Snow still on the ground in the high mountain passes, but not on the road. And we figured out why all the upended vineyards -- solar farms!!! Passed lots of them on the way out of Bakersfield and in other places along the route. Still lots of wind turbines, but solar farms seem to be the new thing. Rows and rows of solar crops in former agricultural fields, even in the middle of the desert.

Solar farm in desert south of Mojave

Also found a nifty park in Palmdale -- thanks to Google Maps, which, with the satellite photo option,  lets you determine details like where playgrounds are located, how they're fixed for teeter-totters, and what kind of parking is available. This park was a 10/10 for kid stuff and came with a skateboard area with genuine trick-laden skaters for those of us who tend to be impressed by stuff like that.

Domenic Massari Park in Palmdale.

And do they have teeter-totters.

And lots of interesting signs along the way.

Not sure what kind of motel this is . . .

Sign of the times. And the location.

Traffic was quite heavy in places and a bit white knuckly in others, SoCal freeways being what they are, but there were no major incidents and all went well.

Took us a while, but we must be here, there's the sign!

A bit startling to realize that coming into Palm Springs was a bit like coming home. Ain't no way I consider Palm Springs home, but here we are again, and glad to be here. It's still a bit chilly around the edges, but A, H, and I were in the pool this afternoon and enjoying every second of it. The skies were blue, there wasn't a cloud in sight, the palm trees were -- palmy, and we are happy campers.

Nothing like a nice cool scoop of applesauce after a day in the pool.

Last night we went to a favourite restaurant -- Grill A Burger -- home of the famous "What a Friend We Have in Cheeses" burger and other clever dishes, and we enjoyed every cholesterol-filled bite. In the morning, for the fourth consecutive day, H hand-squeezed fresh orange juice for us all with great glee and enthusiasm. We're looking forward to unwinding after all that driving and then revisiting some more favourite places and exploring new ones in the next few weeks.

Happy news today from Kathryn that her surgery came with good news -- still some questions and treatment TBA, but so far, so good. We're thinking of you, K.

And we were also glad to hear that you're recovering from your emergency surgery, Jean. We're looking forward to a visit while we're here.