Over the last couple weeks since my last post the weather has been just super. Most days starting out cool in the 40s or 50s and warming up into the mid-70s, calm and sunny most days. With all the rain we’ve had recently and now the warmer temperatures things have been blooming like crazy. I’ve been busy which short day trips into town, the beach and the parks and a few other excursions that I will highlight here. This post can consist most any of photos which short captions. I think the hummingbirds are working their way back north because I’ve had an influx of many of them. The one day I counted at least eight of them flying around feeding at my feeders. I have to work hard to keep my feeders full. Here’s a few photos of some of them as they feed.
The wildflowers are coming in full bloom. This cactus garden at the local library is my favorite, it’s full of these wild yellow and orange daisies.
There’s these bushes with these blue flowers that you find along the highway and are quite showy.
And you’ll find fields of yellow “I guess weeds” in full bloom.
And I believe these purplish flowers are snapdragons planet in many city lots. I saw some snapdragons at Home Depot that’s why believe these are snapdragons but I may be wrong.
And in the park we get these tiny little purple flowers, they come the bloom in the morning and as the sun hits it just right it looks like purple blankets in the fields. These only last about a day if even but the new ones will come a few days later.
Plus recently one of my orchids came in full blossom, here it is in a new pot I picked up in Mexico.
As you can tell I’m not much of a plant guy, but I enjoy the beauty of them. And as things keep warming up more to see the crop up all over, both planted and wild.
One of the other things I want to highlight in this post is my day trip to the nearby town of Campo. Campo is located 60 miles east of San Diego on Highway 94, about 13 miles east of Potrero. Campo in Spanish means “countryside or open country”. Back in the 1800s and early 1900s Campo was a very important border town. It was one of the main passageways from the US to Mexico. But today it’s just a sleepy little community like so many others in rural California. But because of its location and history it has three kind of very interesting tourist attractions, which are only open on the weekend. There is the Pacific Southwest Railroad Museum, Motor Transport Museum (a Truck Museum) and the Gaskill Brothers Stone Store Museum. All three of these places are very interesting and worth the stop. They are either very inexpensive or on a donation basis to enter. I will highlight with some photos and webpages to check out for more information.
First the Stone Store which was built in the 1800s, originally a wood structure. But later replaced after a fire with this sturdy stone building. They used to carry a little of everything. And it was stated if they did not have it, you didn’t need it. Here’s a few photos from the inside of the store. And you can find more information on their website at http://www.cssmus.org/
The Motor Transport Museum also in Campo, it present is only open on Saturdays. Was founded in 1986, by nine San Diego area old-truck enthusiasts. They have a large selection of trucks from the early 1900s and seem to keep adding more. They work on restoring and bringing these old vehicles back to life. It’s nothing fancy but is a cool place to visit and it’s strictly on a donation basis at this time. They are working on restoring buildings in Old Camp Lockett (a World War II Army base, home of the famous Buffalo Soldiers) and they plan on moving their restored vehicles into these building soon and expander their collection. I had a gentleman give you a guided tour through part of the building of an old mill that they’re use to store and renovate trucks and now. After the tour you can roam the boneyard as you wish. For more information check out their website http://www.motortransportmuseum.org/ Here are a bunch of photos of the trucks at different stages of renovation.
The Pacific Southwestern Railroad Museum is open on Saturdays and Sundays and for a small fee you can even ride on an old passenger train or caboose. They have some very unique railcars in different stages of renovation and a large indoor display of steam engines and other railroad memorabilia. I didn’t get many photos, because my camera battery went dead just as I was starting to see this Museum. But I’ve enclosed a few and if you want more information check it out at their website https://www.psrm.org/
A friend of mine the head librarian in Potrero, we visit every time I go into the library which is a couple times a week. Asked if I had ever been to the Desert View Tower and Boulder Park. I said no and she explained what it was and where. Just off the Interstate 8 between San Diego and Yuma as you descend into the Imperial Valley where the large windmills are. There sits this tower that was built in 1923. It sits on a portion of Old Highway 80, this was the main means of transportation between Yuma in San Diego before Interstate 8 was built. The new interstate was cut right through Old 80 because it was the only place feasible to go over the mountain pass. For that reason this tower has survived and still keeps going today is a roadside attraction. It was basically constructed as a monument to the pioneers along old 80 and a place to stop and rest is you headed across the desert. Here are some photos of the tower.
Here’s the view from high up in the tower looking down the valley.
Also at this stop is what’s called Boulder Park, made by an out of work engineer. In 1933 during the depression he sculptured different creatures in these large boulders adding to this roadside attraction. Here’s a view from the tower looking down at the Boulder Park.
Here’s some of unique sculptures carved in the rocks is you crawl around these piles of large boulders. The mountains in this area look like a giant stacked up a bunch of rocks it’s quite a unique mountain range.
These are all great inexpensive stops that I made in the last couple weeks. I also made a couple trips back to Balboa Park. Where one day they were making these giant bubbles in this little girl was having such a great time trying to catch up.
We also went to the beach again and Maxine did some body surfing. Here’s a series of photos as she headed out in the waves crested she got swallowed up by the waves and emerged victorious.
Just so you realize it hasn’t been all just fun and games, I spent the greater part of three afternoons washing and waxing my RV. Plus been doing my regular duties here at the park and finishing up a few construction projects. In a little over a week Jennifer (my daughter) and her boyfriend (Paul) will be coming for a week and we’ve got all kinds of activities planned. That is about it for now safe travels and best wishes to all, Rick
And I will leave you what one more photo of my shiny clean RV.
On The Road with Maxine & Me 
It was great virtually traveling through Calif. w/you! I have some campground hosts who live in FL and are ‘on-call’ at various places near…info for when your gypsy roots want a break. It was a 2 day sweatshirt winter here…my kinda town. Always fun to hear about your excursions. My brother & I are planning a Smokey Mtn hike in July. Wishing you the best, Patti & Dave
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Thanks much will be done here the first week of April and be moving to the San Francisco area 🙂
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Let me know if you ever want to make a detour to New Mexico to wash and wax an extra RV… I will gladly volunteer ours for the project!
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LOL I will get right on a plan to do that 🙂
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Loved the old stone tower and the flowers. So glad you are getting out and having fun. Jealous of Maxine in the ocean!!
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