FROM YUMA TO BORREGO SPRINGS

DRIVING THROUGH THE IMPERIAL SAND DUNES


Another bonus morning with bright sunny sky's & no wind. What a treat the desert is without the winds. Short doggy walk & back to the rig. Figured on getting an early start because it was going to be a travel day. We had decided on going to Slab City but as so often happens with us, we changed our plans at the last minute & decided to head off for Borrego Springs instead. We'll do the Slabs on our way back through on our way over to Blyth & Quartzite maybe in the next week or two.

As usual, I felt sad leaving our little campsite that had been home for the past couple of weeks. Lots of nice memories again. Trips into Yuma, rock scrambling, theTumco ghost town mining site, morning desert walks, Gold Rock Ranch, Bluebird Hill, the abandoned campsite & tent in the desert on Indian Pass Road, the whole day spent inside on a rainy day, Fillmore & his Mom & Dad, the homeless persons belongings, Wally-World meeting, getting lost in Yuma, & the list goes on & on as it always does when your enjoying yourself doing things you love to do.

We had the car hitched up & the big wheels rolling by 9:20. Nice morning for a drive. Hardly any traffic & we were traveling roads we had never traveled before, seeing things we had never seen before. One of my favorite kinds of days. Rolled west through the Imperial Sand Dunes & a place called Glamis with all it's thousands & thousands of off road vehicles, RV's, trailers, tents, & circus like atmosphere. I will post some pics that I took from the window of the RV as we passed through there in last night's web album entitled, "We Waved Goodbye To Fillmore This Morning." Just west of the Imperial Sand Dunes there is a water canal running north & south. On the east side is scrubby desert shrubs, rocks, & sand. On the west side of the canal some hundred feet away are palm trees, tall green grass, & endless lush green fields of lettuce, cabbage, & a whole bunch of other vegetables we didn't recognize. Quite a contrast in such a short distance.
LOTS OF OFF ROAD VEHICLES IN THE DESERT
A CIRCUS LIKE ATMOSPHERE OF RV'S, TRAILERS, ATV'S & DIRT BIKES


A few more miles west is the bustling California town of Brawley with it's Spanish architecture, manicured lawns, & large stately palm trees. We had been here a couple times last year for groceries & things while staying up at Slab City for a few days. Eight miles north of Brawley is a free water & dump station so we zipped up there, did our business & then doubled back through Brawley & continued our northwesterly journey up to Salton City where we turned left onto S22 & headed for Borrego Springs about 20 minutes away.

Borrego Springs was a little bit like coming home again because we had spent a couple of memory filled weeks here a year ago at this exact same time. And would you believe that after we pulled off into the desert at the Clark Dry Lake bed we ended up in the exact same spot as we had last year. Hadn't planned that but while setting up we realized we were in the same place. The desert is a little scruffy here but the surrounding mountains are totally beautiful & at night you can see the twinkling lights of Borrego Springs about 5 or 6 miles away. Felt good to be back.

A year ago when we first arrived here we were just setting up when a pick-up truck rolled up & two fellows jumped out & unloaded a bunch of firewood for us. They were both members of the Escapee's Explorer Boondocking Club. We got to know one of the guys (Butch) over the 2 weeks we were here & he took us on several hikes in the area including Palm Canyon & The Slot Canyon. You can see the photos from those 2 days here-http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/40DEC2122HIKINGPALMCANYONATBORREGOSPRINGSCALIFORNIA
http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/41DEC23BORREGOSLOTCANYONHIKE
Butch has been coming here for years & knows the whole area. He usually co-ordinates the sight seeing ventures for the Escapee members when they come to his area for their rallies.

Ever since leaving a year ago we often wondered how Butch was doing because he lives alone in his 5th wheel trailer here all winter & further north in the summers so as we approached the boondocking area alongside the highway be began looking for his rig & sure enough there it was. He had returned from Riverside to spend another winter at Borrego Springs. As soon as we got set up the Bayfield Bunch walked over to Butch's rig & surprised him. He was sure glad to see us again & vice versa. Didn't take us long to all pile into our car & head into Borrego Springs to our favorite little Mexican restaurant that we all liked so well last year. Jilbertos (sp) prices are really great & so is the food. Kelly & Butch like the Mexican stuff & I really like their grilled hamburgers. Nice to sit around & get caught up with each other's lives & what's been happening. It was dark by the time we all got back out to the desert but Butch knows the roads so it wasn't long before we dropped Butch off at his rig & we were back to ours about a quarter mile away. There are about 20 other boondockers scattered around the area plus one large group of rigs from a Jeep Club.
BUTCH, KELLY, & AL FROM LAST YEAR'S SLOT CANYON HIKE

Another beautiful stellar night with a quarter moon in a star studded sky. Kicked back in my lounge chair & marveled at the shadowy outline of the majestic mountains surrounding us. As I looked almost straight up at the Andromeda Galaxy with my binoculars I was reminded of our own Galaxy & our place in the Universe. Our Galaxy has a center like a pinwheel & we are on one of the arms called, the Sagittarius Arm & if you know which way to look in the night sky you can see in what direction the center of our Galaxy lies. There, I have just given you a clue as to where you can find the center of our Galaxy............yes, really:))

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/