The strong winds persisted all night long and are predicted to be with us until Saturday night. Dave pulled in our slides because the toppers were vibrating loudly and we were concerned that they could rip. Its a bit tight in here, but we're all friends and are working it out!
We decided to drive the length of the valley, from west to east, to get a lay of the land and try to figure out which desert city was which and what order they were in. Each touches the other and are lumped in together in all the guides and reference books as Greater Palm Springs. Desert Hot Springs, Palm Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, Indio, La Quinta and Coachella.
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| This is Dillon Road, outside our campground in Desert Hot Springs. It looks like a giant ribbon as it crosses numerous dry washes. I'm sure you're not surprised that Dave enjoyed driving on these undulations, me, not so much. As you can see, it is very lightly populated out here by comparison to the other cities. |
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| as we approached the east end of the valley, near Coachella, sand was blowing across the road and obscuring the blue sky. We were looking for the Spotlight 29 Casino because Lewis Black will be playing there on November 30. We really enjoy his humor and hoped we would be comfortable enough at the Casino to see him in person. Nope....we'll wait til he comes on tv again. Way too smokey, loud and frantic for us. |
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| we passed a whole grove of date palms, bagged and ready |
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| Yikes, who climbs these high ladders? |
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| we didn't go into the Romance Theatre for this film....to risque for us old folks |
We stopped at a very high-end motorcoach resort and golf course to see what they had to offer, but we couldn't drive in - they only give "tours", so we said thanks, but no thanks and continued on our way. Each community had its own character, but they all had one thing in common - Palm Trees everywhere...
The wind was still blowing hard when we got back to Beluga, so we settled down for the evening. It will be nice when we can sit outside again.
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| I love the first wash of color in the evening, so soft and pastel. see the windmills on the crest of the mountain? |
Hey, wait a minute!! Lewis Black??? Really ...wasn't he your Lewis' namesake?? If only you had taken your Lewis for a photoshoot with the guy...now, that would have been fun!
ReplyDeleteI can see it now...Dave and Sue, dressed to the nines, entering the smoky, frantic area with the black, now-courageous Lewis on his star-studded leash. Prancing mightily by your sides, knowing that he was the REAL star! And Lewis, of course, being courageous in my pipe dream would hop on a chair, sitting gallantly, as if all eyes were on him. This effect,naturally, would cause people to quiet down and just be in awe as he would be so well-mannered and very brave, aloof-like almost. All eyes on the big, black Standard Poodle in the room.
But, then they would notice his eyes squinting, and little tears....maybe he'd even sneeze. And then, being the animal-lovers they are (right, aren't people in the west animal-lovers??), they would immediately put out all their cigarettes and start fans to clear out the smoke ...and the SHOW would go on...with Lewis Black and Lewis!
Yup, that's how I would see it! And the west would be forever changed.... (and healthier!)
Hope you guys have a good day and that those winds settle down. Yes, it's a good thing that you're "all friends and working it out!"