62 and light rain
We have seen a few unusual things on our trip, as we usually do. I find things that are quirky and odd when we are out, so let me share.
Mater Truck
The first thing we saw was a “Mater” (TowMater) similar to the 56 Ford that is Mater’s kind. This was a Chevy of about the same time period in Parker. I had to turn around and get a shot of it beside a retro garage.
What the H...?
The weirdest thing we saw was an old school bus that a hippy-type guy had welded a VW bus to the top of it. Now this is by far one of the oddest vehicles I’ve seen.
We took the back roads toward I-8 and were rewarded by seeing the Mesquite Mine in a desert area that looked like a Lunar Landscape. This open pit mine is one of the largest gold mines in the United States. The massive waste piles could be seen off to the side of the roadway.
I post this for my favorite Geologist in training (she knows who she is). This is the field of boulders that seemed as thought they were dropped from the sky.
Glamis sand toy area is another strange geological feature. rolling sand dunes for miles and miles.
After traversing this area we entered a massive sand dune area called Glamis, and advertising as the “Sand Toy Capital of the World”. This appeared to be a place you could easily, on any weekend, go and kill yourself surfing the sand dunes on the sand toy of your choice.
Does this strike anyone else as funny?
We stopped at a McDonalds and the birds seemed to like their playplace.
The dunes were up on a high bluff that drops into the Imperial Valley. Cotton was being harvested as we went through the area and giant rectangular bales were stacked along the road, ready to be hauled to the mill. They were large rectangular bales, like hay bales the size of a truck trailer, and covered with tarps. White stuff was on the ground, but it wasn’t snow.
We spent the night in El Centro and headed to San Diego the next day. We enjoyed seeing the terrain change from flat rich valley farming areas that looked like a giant had dropped boulders in piles. Then came the Cleveland National Forest, which wasn’t a forest like we know, but some shrubby growth, but still way bigger than the weeds scattered among the Giant’s boulders.
In vain we searched for English-speaking radio stations. Our Spanish is not so good. Tejano music is not our top pick. We are old people and old people like Oldies (in ENGLISH).
When we arrived in San Diego our first stop was to buy the last umbrella at Penny’s, because the weather here is a disappointing cloudy, rainy day. Perhaps no blogs until we get to the Tucson Shows, but you never know.