Left Desert Hot Springs for Tulare, CA

We left Desert Hot Springs, CA after 3 days of visiting and one day of WIND!! We are not very good at remembering to take pix of our friends. I guess we were too busy yakking. We had nice visits and lunches with our friend and past Coachella Valley Nature Preserve boss Ginny Short, as well as fellow volunteers Donna and Dave. Unfortunately our Preserve co hosts Bob and Barb were ill so we had to make do with a short phone visit. On Wed. we drove to Riverside for lunch and conversation with Duane's high school buddy Danny. We met at noon and left at 5! All our visiting done we were forced by high winds to relax a day at home before we were able to continue our journey. As we left the valley I couldn't resist a pic of the windmills twirling in the breeze. Past the windmills we headed up the Sierra Madres through the Banning Pass. All went well until we stopped for lunch and fuel in the Tejon Pass. We came out to snow! Fortunately this all stayed in the pass and 5 minutes later we exited into sunshine. The truck performed admirably, the transmission doing its job on the mountain grades.

We made it without further incident to Tulare (Toolaree). After setting up we headed over to a local nursing home to say hello to a friend and past coworker of mine (Louise). Unfortunately her dementia was sudden and swift. She appreciated my visit, but didn't remember me. However, she was welcoming and we had a nice visit. Back home we rested up for our trip to Sequoia and King's Canyon. Unfortunately for us, we are a bit early for touring these parks. Most of the roads are still closed. There is enough snow in there for this area to be considered free of a two year drought! We did have a nice scenic drive to Hospital Rock.

The road we took is very squiggly and beautiful with spring flowers. It runs along the river and we kept getting peeks at it as we drove or stopped at the many scenic pull-offs.

There are other things to see besides the river. Lots of huge rock formations like this tunnel rock. Of course if the draw is to stand under a huge balanced rock, someone must be on top of it. That tiny dot on top is the head of a visitor!

Hospital Rock got its name from someone with a leg wound being given care there. There is a nice picnic area and restroom there, along with info boards about the Koweah village that used to occupy the area. A short trail leads to some pictographs and a longer path leads to the river's edge. At this time of year the water runs swift and clear green. Beautiful!

Snow on the upper peaks reminds us why the inner roads are closed to anyone without tire chains. There are several places to rent chains for the more adventurous who don't mind the cold, but this is as far as we were willing to go.

We were content to enjoy the rushing waters, the springtime colors, and the giant rock formations.

This one was especially heavy and I had to rest after my labors.

After our wanderings we enjoyed a picnic lunch--in the warmth of the truck then headed back down. We had to make several more stops for scenic views and pix. I added quite a few to my phone wallpaper. Once out of the park we beat feet back home to rest up some more for tomorrow we travel.

Basta por hoy,

Louise and Duane