Menifee, Jamul CA & Yuma AZ

Nov. 21 & 22 Menifee CA

The weather here has been sunny and nice.  After breakfast we drive to Joshua Tree National Park.  Stop at the visitors center first and decide to eat lunch at the cafe next door before going into the park.  Massive rock formation are everywhere and large boulders are scattered over the landscape.  Rock climbers are repelling down the large rock formations and lots of people are just climbing them.  At one overlook we could see the San Andreas Fault in the valley below.  Joshua trees are scattered over the desert, they aren't really a tree but a species of yucca.  Joshua trees can grow over 40 feet tall at the rate of one inch a year.  The park is a very rugged desert landscape and home to many cactus, birds, bighorn sheep, snakes, lizards, desert tortoise and iguana.  We stopped at the Cholla Cactus garden where hundreds of Cholla cactus are in this small area with a pathway through the cactus. We also stopped at the Ocotillo Patch were this type of cactus seemed to grow. 

Joshua Tree National Park

Rock climbers repelling off this rock

San Andreas Fault across the middle of picture.

Cholla Cactus Garden

Tuesday, Nov. 22nd we drive to San Juan Capistrano where the swallows return every spring.  This is a large mission with lots of rooms around the beautiful flowered courtyard.  The Great Stone Church was built in 1797 and took nine years to complete.  There was a 70 foot bell tower which fell during the 1812 earthquake that struck the area as people were gathering for church.  Forty people died at this mission in the quake.  We ate lunch outside on the patio at a  restaurant featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, Schooner or Later which was at the boat basin in Long Beach. 

San Juan Capistrano

Inside one the the rooms

Courtyard and fountain

Serra Chapel St Peregnine Chapel

Great Stone Church

Boat basin in Long Beach

Nov. 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29 and 30.  Jamul CA

On Wed, Nov. 23rd we move close to Jamul which is just east of San Diego.  We are only 8 miles from the area called Eastlake where there is all kinds of stores.  San Diego is only about 12 miles by freeway from there so it is an easy commute.  We are in the mountains so have no cell phone or Internet service.  Our campground is only 5 miles from the Mexican border.  The Border Patrol is everywhere and even come through our campground. 

Thanksgiving we stay in the campground and in the afternoon go to the cafe in the campground for dinner. 

Saturday the 26th we go to Cabrillo National Monument which is located on Point Loma.  From the monument we overlooked San Diego Bay and the Naval Air Station on Coronado Island.  The monument is named after Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo who arrived aboard the flagship San Salvador in Dan Diego Bay in 1542.  He was captain of the first European exploration of California.  We also visited the Point Loma Light Station.  We ate lunch at Blue Water in San Diego, another DDD restaurant.  That restaurant was so busy the line went out the door and down the street.  We both had fish tacos and got to pick the kind of fish in them.  After lunch we went to Old Town San Diego which is a series of shops on both sides of the street, a farmers market on a side-street and a courtyard area with shops.  We finally found a place to park and enjoyed visiting the many shops.

San Diego Bay

Point Loma Light Station

Old Town San Diego

Monday the 28th we go to San Diego Zoo.  We arrived at the zoo about 8:45 in the morning that opened at 9.  The weather was beautiful, sunny with a slight breeze.  We started the day with the guided bus tour in a double Decker bus around the park.  Our first stop after the bus ride was the Panda exhibit.  There are three giant pandas in the park a male, female and a 2 year old male.  They are solitary animals so they were in separate enclosures.  The young one was very active, turning somersaults, climbing trees, going in his pond and just putting quite a show.  The mom was sleeping when we got to her enclosure but she woke up and moved around a little waiting for her lunch.  The male was not on display that day.  The pandas were my favorite exhibit in the zoo.  We spent the entire day at the zoo and left at closing time. 

Two year old Giant Panda

Momma Panda

flamingos

Giraffe family

Kolas

Gorilla having lunch

sleeping Polar Bear

Wednesday we drive the jeep up a narrow road that climbs up the mountains behind the campground.  We came upon a Border Patrol that was parked watching the border below.  We stopped and talked to him.  He told us they are only catching about 8 Mexicans a day trying to come across the border and they are mostly people who have been deported and have family in the US.  We could see Tijuana in the valley and the wall the US built to try and keep people from illegally crossing.

View from the top

Tijuana Mexico from the top of mountain

Dec. 1 through 31st. Yuma AZ

Thursday, Dec. 1st we arrive in Yuma Arizona and  will stay one month.   We are in a real nice resort, Araby Acres.  There are many activities here and the people are very friendly.  There is a four wheelers group that go out on trips in the Yuma Valley every Wednesday and we are going to go with them.   The weather is a little cool here, hopefully it will warm up soon.  Happy Travels, Barb