Reflections

Went for a bicycle ride the other morning and it was just great for pictures. I started through the new housing development they are building around some manmade lakes. The water was still and the reflections of the palm tree and a snow covered mountains beyond was outstanding. I was lucky to have my point and shoot camera in my bag so I could stop and take some pictures.
The rest of the ride was uneventful. It is nice to have all the new development because it means new roads. There are not any real hills and traffic is sparse. The other nice thing about having so many houses being built is the new shopping center they are building. We now are less than two miles from about anything we need and you don’t have to fight traffic.

COD Street Fair

We went to the College Of the Desert Street Fair to get a new tennis banner to display on our shed. Just like Alice’s Restaurant you can get anything you want at the COD Street Fair. We usually make at least one visit to the fair each year and have gotten a number of different items.
We have gotten sunglasses, hair extensions, hats, shoe cleaner, clothes, and even food on previous visits. This trip was to replace the old banner but we spent time wondering the grounds to see the people, sale items, and dogs that were at the fair. People/dog watching can be fun anytime and COD provides a great diversity of people to watch. I even found a belt I have been wanting to wear with my Levis so it was a good trip.

Take a Hike

We took a day to get out of the park and go on a hike with the RCB Hiking Club. This hike was at Anza-Borrego Springs state park which was about 60 miles away. Even with the long drive 37 people showed up for the hike, so we were off in eight cars for the hour and half drive. Our friends Jaak and Barbara joined us for the drive. This was one of the largest groups they have had with the hiking club.
After a quick rest stop at the Visitor’s Center we went trhough the campground to the trailhead. The hike was up a canyon to a small oasis. It was not a big climb but some of the trail was over rocks along a stream. As we got higher the dry stream began to have some water but it was never a large flow that can occur during rains. The large logs that were placed high on the stream banks were and indication of just how much water can flow down this canyon. Although some of the other groups we met said they had seen mountain sheep on the hillside, we did not see any.
After reaching the oasis we took a short break before heading back to the cars. We then proceeded to a Mexican restaurant for lunch. The big excitement for me was when we got to the restaurant I realized I did not have my billfold. A quick search of the car and I was sure that I had dropped it on the ground as I got out of the car at the trailhead. I got it out when I paid the entrance fee and left it on my lap. So when I got out of the car it fell on the ground. As luck would have it, I had parked between two cars that were there when we got there and still there when I returned so the billfold was not out in the open and nobody and taken it. With it safely back in my pocket I returned to the restaurant for lunch.
After lunch we went back to the visitor’s center to look around and take a few pictures before slowly driving back to RCB. Along the way we stopped to look and some of the dessert badlands we had passed as we rushed to start the like. We also drove into some of the development by the Salton Sea.