BIRDS!

Boy, is Diamond Jack's ever loaded with birds! It's been here quite a while, the trees are very mature -- and the man across the yard has three feeders out. There are at least three kinds of woodpeckers -- the acorn we saw yesterday, a downy woodpecker and red-breasted sapsuckers (another life bird for Forry). We saw scrub jays, Western bluebirds, Oregon Juncos, ravens, an oak titmouse, and a few that we are going to have to watch for a better look to identify them.

We drove down to Highway 54 later in the afternoon to pick up some groceries -- and get a Coldstone ice cream fix. We came back to Diamond Jack's via the direct route -- and I know why they don't suggest that one bring an RV that way! I wouldn't even say they were s-curves, more like J-turns, making a tight turn then immediately turning back the other way!

On the Road

We left Wellton by 9 AM this morning (early for us!) and headed for California. It's quite interesting to watch the scenery change from the cacti and creasote bushs to sand and sand dunes. As we climbed into the mountains south of San Diego, it began to look like someone had dumped out huge bags of boulders.

We cut off of Interstate 8 at the Japatul Exit, turned left at the stop sign; drove 5 1/2 miles on Lyons Valley Road; turned left and drove 7 1/2 miles on Skyline Truck Trail; turned right and drove 4.7 miles to Lawson Valley Road; went 2/10 of a mile and turned hard left back on to Lyons Valley Road; drove 9/10 of a mile to the sign for Diamond Jack's RV Ranch. The direct route down Lyons Valley Road has too many switchbacks to navigate with a 37 foot rig (plus the toad), so they sent us around the back way.

It is so quiet here! After the continuous sounds of trains every thirty minutes plus the noise of the switching as well as the sound of the freeway and of sirens, it's quite a change. This is the closest place we could find to the Dulzura MDS Project Site. We'll stay here this week and commute back and forth.

There is a family of acorn woodpeckers (a new life bird for Forry!) living in the trees here. There are six palm trees in the center area that they are busily rapping away at to find insects. I also watched one retrieve an acorn from a hole in the trunk of a palm.