San Diego was lovely as usual and Ron, Loretta and I spent several days driving the city looking at possible homes to purchase. Whew! Did you know a million dollars might buy you a fixer-upper?
We took in a movie, and if you want to feel depressed, sad, and mournful be sure and see "Jackie" followed by "Manchester by the Sea." Not the best holiday fare.
Ron and Loretta wanted to go to Palm Springs for New Year's Eve. I struck out ahead of them and chose the back roads over the mountains to get to the desert.
What an utterly spectacular drive.
It was twisty, windy and at times....
...very steep.
...but Spirit performed like a champ.
Clouds were gathering everywhere and rain was expected but not until NY Eve. Snow was accumulating on the mountain tops.
The valley floor is a 'rift valley' caused by a major fault line (San Andreas?) and is filled with lots of dry lakes (according to my map), lots of sand, natural hot springs, and is surrounded by high peaks.
The views at every turn are spectacular, and in the center of the valley is Palm Springs with some very pricey real estate. Palm Springs is still a favorite escape for the traffic weary from L.A. and the famous names from Hollywood.
Here is one car that didn't make it to the valley floor.
If you look above the wreck you will see the vehicles on the curve he didn't make. It is sobering to see something like that and it always makes me slow down.
Did you climb down to look for survivors or at least call 911?
ReplyDeleteThe wreck was not new. Other people standing around me had seen it there for some months, there were weeds growing around it, and the two yellow X's on the bottom are usually applied by rescue people.
ReplyDeleteThere are a couple of cars hanging in the trees on the treacherous road into Waipio Valley on the Big Island. They have been there for 20 years at least. They remind people to be careful.
ReplyDeleteI'll call soon. Looks good for a meet-up.
Aloha,
Marianna
I don't know what it is with the west-coast and the real estate prices, but wherever you look, from Alaska to San Diego it is "out-of-budget-pricing" for most people. If you factor in that all of that is vulnarable to severe earth quakes you might reconsider to settle there. Personally, I find the east coast much more safe and reassuring. And it looks like we are getting the mild winters now. And much less natural disasters. Be safe and enjoy the desert!
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