LAST COUPLE OF DAYS                                      All the wires plugs etc needed to keep
                                                                                   telephones, computors, cameras etc going

Tuesday 10thJuly

Well we really are down to the last few days. Yesterday we travelled out of the heat back to Los Angeles base for the electrics and aircon to be sorted. A lovely little run via interstates 15, 91 and 5 oh such fun again on some sections two lanes for fast traffic with two or more people in the car- no one in those lanes rest of the interstate solid with single person traffic.

We are now camped at Anaheim Resort Rv Park within a couple of hundred yards of Disneyland, I think the original version. Now John in particular will appreciate this our van is separated from interstate 5 by a nine foot high wall and 50 yards of ground. A quite spot, actually the site is bright and clean, the traffic noise constant day and night.

We had a firework display courtesy of Disney at 9.30, it lasted 15 minutes. I've seen fireworks like it on TV but never in the flesh so to speak, spectacular describes it .

Its quite good, the fireworks drown out the road noise and even the aircon so really one is getting a symphony of noise or maybe a cacophony would be a better word.

We chose the site to enable us to get to the centre of LA, when we asked how to get there at reception the reply was 'what on earth do you want to go there for, Hollywood and Universal studios are the places to go' an over exaggeration perhaps but I think there is in fact no proper centre. Looking up, with difficulty, metro times we found there was a metro at 9.20 one at 12 and one at 3, lousy service every one is on the roads, chicken or egg situation. The people at reception were amazed that we would think of going in by train, no we have never done that and virtually never go in anyway.

Scrap that one then.

We drove off instead to see Queen Mary, ship, at Long Beach but got waylayed en route.

We went and stopped at Huntinton Beach more by luck than judgement and now I have to give credit to the Beech Boys if they were singing about this area. It was wide open with huge beaches stretching along the coast as far as you could see, shore development was restrained, nothing tacky anywhere as has been the case with all other seashores visited. In fact with the huge beaches with lawns behind and trees, hedges the whole effect was rather refined. The beaches had lots of people on them but did not seem overcrowded, volley ball and surfing was the main occupation after sunbathing. I do not comment on the Beach Boys 'California Girls'.

On one section of a beach they were setting up a surfing village, literally a village for the American surfing Championships to be held over 9 days at the end of July. 800,000 visitors are expected.

Thought of rounding off with thoughts from America but connections so annoying having spent over two hours trying to get this blog off I have given up, bit like that with America or this area,  been there done that  I will not be back.  Not fair I know but that is life! I'm getting or have got intolerent and grumpy.

                                          All photos are Huntington Beach

Onwards towrds the end via lake Elsinore

Thinking back to Julian for a second it is the first time I have seen the local dust cart and also the sewage disposal truck shinning and gleaming in procession along with carnival floats.  Shows how the local communities value all their amenities.

From Ramon we travelled around a bit for one day somewhat aimlessly, saw some large orange orchards alongside the route 67 to Escondido.  Same route next day but from Escondido up route 6 to see the radio telescope at the Palomar Observatory, world renowned for is 200 ft lens and for the work it does.  Not too much for visitors to see but the figures a beyond comprehension.
Briefly our galaxy, we are sited towards it's outer edge is about 100,000 light years wide, a light year being many thousands of trillions of miles. Each star in the galaxy is a sun and there are multi millions of billions of them all with there own planets. The Universe, whatever that is is made up of billions x trillions of galaxies most bigger than ours.  Where are we in this, less than an atom  in the panoply of things.  Other life almost certainly, where, who knows.  When you start thinking of infinity one just goes round in circles and it becomes a useless notion.

The road to the observatory on the map seemed ok but it rose 4500ft in about 7 miles so the hairpin bends were numerous, it is easier driving uphill than down though we managed it.

The whole area hereabouts varies between virtual desert and normal looking cultivated areas.  There is no doubt that virtually all of southern California and the states to the east are carved out of desert
and exist in a desert climate with all that entails.  No rain unlike UK at present, in three months we have had about three hours of rain.

Today Sunday 8th July we have temp 96F no air con as our main power circuits have blown and we have to report to Los Angeles on Monday, all closed Sunday. Hiding under trees at campground with permission to move where we want on the site to maintain shade, site quite empty, perhaps  people know it will be hot here at this time of year.  Forecast here for 100F tomorrow and 106F on Tuesday

Here by the way is Lake Elsinore, Lake RV site reached after the observatory by going up the interstate15. Friday 3pm four or five lanes solid for 30 miles travelling 70mph or stopped.

FLOWERS

                                         Flowers too few really Judith tok as many as possible
                                         though perhaps I did not stop for every one of them.
                                         Wild flowers only there were flowers in gardens.

Monument Valley

                                             Amazing zig zag colours in rock faces of hills
                                              double click to enlarge.

                                                    First view of Valley

                                                       Mexican Hat

                                         All well known lumps of rock from a variety of films

                                                  View from RV window.

                                             Last rock going south

Mesa Verde

                                           Housing built under overhanging rock

                                         Ceremonial underground circle used by the Indian
                                          villagers in around 1180AD

                                             Showing overhang of rock plus Judith blue hat.

                                                      Uninhabited

                                                      quite complicated structures

                                              Access not too easy from above.

CANYON LAND and ARCHES

                                                 En route to Moab on back road

                                             Canyon Land two day off road track both foreground
                                             and in the distance

                                            An arch in Canyon Land

                                          Through the arch. An arch is caused by erosion and a
                                          bridge by a river or stream.

                                                        Pop in the Isle of Wight

                                            Tken from 1000ft above showing the different levels and drop offs.

                                             Balancing roch in the Arches park

                                                       Arches

                                                              Arches

                                             Goodness knows where all the other rock went

                                           Arches again in different form almost house window like.

                                            Still arches park showing just how crazy erosion
                                               can make things, impossible really I think it
                                             was all little green men with a sense of humour.

Rockey Mountains Colorado

                                          Rocky mountains Colorado  we were camped in the tree
                                          to the left of the white spot in the valley 4500ft down.

                                               High Cafe Coffee, sorry no accent on this key board.

                                                           Elk at roadside.