Visalia, CA Saturday Jun 11, 2011<\/p>\n
Yesterday I headed west from Yuma, AZ,\u00a0 in a heat that is hard to describe, even to those accustomed to HOT.\u00a0 There were times when it was uncomfortable to breathe through my mouth, like the air was just too hot.\u00a0 I kept thinking, \u201cThis is the stuff that can kill you.\u201d\u00a0 The world was beautiful in addition to being hot \u2013 mountains, enormous rock formations, rolling deserts.\u00a0 There were also stretches in which I could see the wall stretching along the desert, a wall designed to separate two countries.<\/p>\n
Too soon I was in the hellacious traffic of Southern California.\u00a0 I\u2019d much rather sleep in a room with a boa constrictor than ride through that!\u00a0 At times there were 7 \u2013 9 lanes in each direction.\u00a0 As you follow my journeys, you\u2019ll realize I\u2019m directionally challenged.\u00a0 Add to that inconvenient reality the fact that generally I can\u2019t see the screen on my GPS because of sun glare; I wear a full face helmet with ear plugs (plus I\u2019m hard of hearing), so there\u2019s no chance I\u2019ll actually hear it.\u00a0 Ergo, getting around can be a bit messy.\u00a0 Wrong turns are not much fun in Southern California.\u00a0 But I finally made my way down to the first of four corners \u2013 San Ysidro, CA, at mile marker 1A.\u00a0 And I have a picture to prove it.\u00a0 Then I gladly headed north on I-805!\u00a0 The traffic remained impossible for several hours though I opted for I-15 to bypass San Diego and Las Angeles.\u00a0 I stopped at Rainbow, CA for a very late lunch and decided to spend the night next door, in the village of Fallbrook.\u00a0 I woke this morning to a heavy mist that was cool enough to require a long sleeve shirt and jacket liner \u2013 a great change from yesterday.\u00a0 I rode through hills and traffic, and then I missed my western turn to Pearblossom.\u00a0\u00a0 When traveling long distances like this, it often doesn\u2019t matter which road I take so long as it\u2019s heading north or west.\u00a0 So I turned left\/west at Victorville on Hwy 395 and soon found myself in the Mojave Desert.\u00a0 It was a delightful \u201cmistake\u201d –\u00a0 though I had to shed my long sleeves.\u00a0 Boron, CA, on Hwy 58 is home of the 20 Mule Team Borax.\u00a0 What do they use borax for now?\u00a0 I climbed out of the desert at Tehachapi and the world changed again.\u00a0\u00a0 I passed several semi\u2019s pulling mesh trailers loaded with garlic and rode through mile after mile of grape vineyards, fruit trees (apricots, peaches, olives, oranges, cherries) nut trees (walnut), onions, and garlic.<\/p>\n
I stopped for the night and set up John\u2019s tent.\u00a0 Tomorrow I\u2019ll head up into Sequoia National Park, and stop for the night close to Sacramento.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Visalia, CA Saturday Jun 11, 2011 Yesterday I headed west from Yuma, AZ,\u00a0 in a heat that is hard to describe, even to those accustomed to HOT.\u00a0 There were times when it was uncomfortable to breathe through my mouth, like … Continue reading