The Reno!

It is finally done, we were in Santa Clarita for a week and pretty much locked out of the RV while the floor was replaced, but worth it as you will see in the pics! We love it, the floor, the new ultra leather headboard and valences in the bedroom and the cabinet beside the door when you enter to stash leashes, walkie talkies, sunglasses etc etc.

The RV Park was one that I would not wish to return to, best part was that there was a decent sized dog park but the rest was rustic to be kind. There was a big dog park in Castaic for small dogs so Karl got his fix daily as we rented a car for that time. Great town to live in, we really liked the area, hills, sun, nice outdoor shopping malls and good food. We met a couple there, Larry and Rose and enjoyed a barbeque at their Fleetwood RV with a large turnout of friends and family. We also drove to Lancaster to meet up with another RV couple, Carla and Virgil, whom I had met online at an RV Reno posting. So it was not so hard to put up with the reno at all.

We are now in Pismo Beach and will stay for 2 nights and then on to Carmel by the River RV park for 2 nights, slowly leaving California.

Karl is anxious to get to the beach so I will get off the PC and take him!

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We left Borrego Springs on the 11th and we sure miss it !!

We arrived at Valencia Travel Village within 6 hours of leaving BS as it is near LA and Magic Mountain, we shopped at Costco in that time too. Wednesday the floors were torn out of the RV and yesterday the sub floor was put in, so by Monday we well be out of here with new floors, Karndean wood-look rubber planks, very hardy and good for dogs! Here is the website. Highly recommended for wear and tear, this is commercial flooring and it looks pretty authentic.

http://www.karndean.com/gallery_previews.asp?main=residential&sub=living_dining%20room&type=pvc


But enough about that, here are some photos of the Palm Canyon Hike in spring bloom taken last Saturday when we were still in BS. Us gals, heretofore to be known as the Borrego Broads, Susie, Brenda, Joanie and myself did this Palm Oasis hike to see the flowers amongst all the rock and it was a gorgeous day, like all Borrego days! There are more hikes than days of the year to do in Borrego Springs and the surrounding Anza Borrego Park, this one is one of the shorter ones, about 2 hours up and down. Unless you are taking a hundred photos and then it gets a bit longer! We hiked up the alternated trail to the Palms. Even though we left at 8 in the morning it was already very warm so the Palms with the water running through them was a great respite from the sun. There was a very large number of people on that hike as the desert flowers of Borrego had been on the San Diego news and in the Wall Street Journal this week. The town was full of cars, we actually had to look before crossing the road! Hope you enjoy the photos that I have selected out of over a hundred that I took on the hike!
And this webpage tells more about this hike.

http://www.americansouthwest.net/california/anza_borrego_desert/borrego_palm_canyon.html



I will update next with finished photos of the RV and a collection of shots I took while driving out of BS next post.

Can you see Susie at the bottom of the Palms, she looks pretty tiny at their base!

There are 2 people sitting on the top rock at the base of the Palms if you can see them!

So beautiful isn't it?

We have so few days left here in Borrego Springs!

Here are some shots from the last few days, you can see it is a good way to live through winter, we are loving it so much here!


This is the mound on DiGiorgio Road, just down from us where the hawk count takes place with volunteers every Sunday! I think they have moved on north, not one was spotted when I rode my bike past them on Sunday. On Sunday I went to check out the new flowers in Borrego with Joan and Bob, we went to the Visitor's Centre and these are pictures taken there in their very lovely desert gardens.This one was taken out in the desert near Font's point Joan and Bob checking out the flora near PeglegI took dozens that day that are beautiful, it is hard to choose which ones to put on this blog, if the download was faster I would probably put tons more!And this is what so many places are named after, the Ocotillo cactus, which there are many of. They get red flowers in the spring but so far I have not seen too much red! But I love these tall cactus! This morning at the dog park, Karl is there somewhere!

And this afternoon we went to Casa Del Zorro for lunch, Bob and Joan and Barrie and Brenda and us! It is a gorgeous resort, I could put pictures forever of the flowers and grounds, they are beautifully kept.
We sat at the outdoor fireplace waiting for our reservation, I would love to have this patio!
And the entrance was alive with geraniums and other colour!


Boy we are going to hate leaving here on Tuesday!!! Where did the winter go! We are coming back next year to be camp hosts from November to the end of April and I know we will have a great time doing that. I hope we can get some of our Canadian family and friends to come down during that time for a game of golf, good eating and just the most peaceful sunny spot on earth!

The Anza Borrego Desert is beginning to bloom!

I cycled down to the end of our road, DiGiorgio Rd., to see the start of the spring bloom. There was a fair crowd down there to see and photograph the first of the colour. It is primarily a purple and white show right now but the start of yellow is there too! The prediction is that the next 2 weeks will be an unforgettable show!




Lots of people with cameras!

Up close macro shots of the white flower that I think is the primrose

And the desert dandelion

The purple sand verbena is plentiful right now.

I am going to take the Overlander trip in the next week. They take you in a big open army truck into the desert for 5 hours. Here is their website to get a look at the vehicle! My cycling shorts with the padded bum may be a good fashion choice for this ride. More photos to come!

http://www.californiaoverland.com/