Anza Borrego Desert State Park (San Diego, California)

I love to hike! Finally being back to the places that literally beckon me to don my hiking boots, grab my walking sticks, and set out on the trail has done wonders for my spirit. From the coast to the desert, San Diego seems to have it all, too, with no shortage of scenic hiking trails to discover and explore. On Tuesday April 9 Dan, my sister Jennifer, and I set out for the Anza Borrego Desert State Park located within the Colorado Desert of Southern California, about 90 miles northeast of San Diego, but still within San Diego county (that's one big county!). Often notable for the lavish displays of wildflowers this time of year, we were disappointed to find just the opposite to be true. Two years in a row of below average rainfall was to blame for the lack of color in the park, but we still had a very satisfying hike on the Palm Canyon trail which winds back into the hills to a hidden oasis. Here we were treated to waterfalls, trickling streams, a stand of palm trees, and patches of greenery you normally don't expect to find in a dry desert setting. We kept an eye out for the native longhorn sheep that had been sighted along the creeks recently, but didn't see any that day. Below are some pictures from our hike.

Torrey Pines State Preserve (San Diego, Califorina)

Friday April 5th, and we're finally back in California! San Diego was our first destination in our wonderful home state, and here we spent a week visiting with my sister Jennifer. Since she has lived here for over 20 years, Jennifer is well acquainted with this part of California, and does an excellent job as travel agent and social activities director each time we come to visit. J San Diego is a beautiful city and I always wish I could spend more time here. We really enjoy hiking in the Torrey Pines State Reserve when we get the chance, a coastal state park within the San Diego city limits, and bordered immediately on the south by the Torrey Pines Municipal Golf Course. This is a rugged and beautiful part of the Southern California coastline, with eight miles of trails within the park. Many species of wildlife and flora are found within the reserve, including bobcats, foxes, skunks, raccoons, coyotes, rabbits, cacti, coastal chaparral, and the rare Torrey Pine. From the cliffs it is possible to see La Jolla to the south and Del Mar to the north, and during whale migrations, it is sometimes possible to see whales from the cliffs as well. On Saturday we packed our lunch and took the hike, and we couldn't have picked a more perfect day to do so. Here are some pictures of our outing.

USS Midway, San Diego, California

While we were in San Diego, Dan, my sister Jennifer, and I took the time to tour the USS Midway Museum, a retired US aircraft carrier docked in the San Diego harbor. Although the Midway was involved in many wartime activities, I was surprised (and pleased) to learn it was also involved in some humanitarian missions as well (rescuing 1800 Americans fleeing Mt. Pinatubo’s eruption in 1991; rescuing 3073 Saigon refugees in two days in 1975). In addition to the myriad aircraft on display, there were scores of other interesting details to the ship and how it operated. I seemed most drawn to how a crew of 4500 (including 2 doctors and a dentist) lived in this floating city. I found the logistics quite fascinating – where did the crew sleep, what did they eat? What did they do for entertainment? What did the captain’s quarters look like? Here are some interesting daily living facts: 10 tons of food (13,500 meals) served daily; 3000 potatoes daily; 1000 loaves of bread daily; 4500 pounds of beef when served; 500 pies when served. The chapel, the brig, the post office, the laundry room, the sick bay, the library all intrigued me.

The first thing that hits you about the Midway is how huge it is. It’s hard to imagine something this large and heavy can float. Obviously, I’m no engineer! Here are some numbers that help paint the picture of the sheer magnitude of this ship: 1,001 feet long; 4.02-acre flight deck; 18 decks; 18-foot tall propellers; 20-ton anchors; 2000 feet of anchor chain; 2000 compartments; 2000 electric motors.

Some other interesting facts… The USS Midway was in service for 47 years stretching from the end of WWII to the liberation of Kuwait in 1991. No other aircraft carrier served for the United States as long. It was the first carrier homeported in a foreign country, calling Yokosuka, Japan home for 18 years. The average age of the 225,000 sailors who served on the Midway was 20. The on-board library held 5000 books. From the deck of the Midway, you can look down into Mole Park and see the of “Unconditional Surrender”, a 25-foot, 6000 pound statue commemorating a famous World War II photo of a sailor kissing a nurse in Times Square, new York City, on August 14, 1945. I’ve included a photo of this taken from the flight deck, as well as various shots of the aircraft. Note the Coronado Bridge over San Diego Bay in the background of the helicopters photo.

Flower Fields (Carlsbad, California)

It’s been just over six months since arriving in Sacramento, and our time there (this time around) has come to an end. I know it’s a cliché, but it really is hard to believe that the time passed so quickly! We enjoyed spending time with our family, welcoming a new grandson to the world, volunteering at the Yolo County Grasslands Regional Park, and reconnecting with our friends. It took a little effort to “unspread” ourselves – after lighting somewhere for six months, you have a tendency to not only collect more than you need, you also spread out. So the last couple of weeks before we hit the road were spent sorting through everything, getting the rig ready to roll, getting rid of what we didn’t need.

We left Sacramento on Tuesday, March 17th on our way to San Diego. We stopped overnight in Bakersfield, and arrived in San Diego on March 18th (Dan’s birthday!). We were expecting some nice warm weather, but it was actually foggy almost every day we were there, except on Sunday, when it rained! But we managed to get out and do a lot of things during our five days there. We spent time with my sister Jennifer, visited the Flower Fields in Carlsbad (about 25 miles north of San Diego), ate at some nice restaurants, took a 5-mile run on the boardwalk in Pacific Beach, and toured the USS Midway (a retired aircraft carrier docked at the Navy Pier on the Embarcadero in downtown San Diego.) Our visit here was kind of like a mini-vacation, and a great way to start our Spring 2009 road trip!

I’ve attached pictures from our tour of the Flower Fields - 50 acres of extraordinary color in bloom on a hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Check out this link for the history of the Flower Fields: http://www.theflowerfields.com/index.html.