Happy Howl-a-ween

We drove here five days ago after spending three days in Los Angeles. We coughed in LA, we wiped tearing eyes in LA, we tried like hell to breath in LA. Finally we gave up and decided that leaving LA was the only solution to surviving. So for three lung-numbing hours we drove East through a thick cloud of smog. Street signs, only blocks away, were too dirty to see. Buildings, both new and old, looked ancient, as if a millennium of filth had painted them grey. We drove and drove and drove. The city limits seem endless.

We took The 10 (all highways here are preceded with the word 'The') and instantly learned the meaning of California driver. We were swept into a rush of traffic. It was pick up the speed or die here. We passed two accidents, must be a light day. John did most of the driving and I watched for crazies, people darting at warp speed from one lane to the next. With six lanes to watch, I was more than kept busy. The accelerator-happy Californias endlessly passed by us.

Finally we pulled onto Highway 62 and left behind the stream of traffic and the curtain of grey. We arrived at Joshua Tree after dark and set up camp in a wind storm. A pack of coyotes howled us to sleep. In the morning, after breathing a night of fresh air, our lungs felt almost normal. Before we set off to explore the park, two desert rabbits hopped to our tent and welcomed us to the area with their rabbit dance.

Rattlesnake Canyon

Joshua Tree is known for its rock climbing. John and I don't climb, but we do love a good scramble now and then. Rattlesnake Canyon filled the bill. We began at the Indian Cove picnic area and stepped, crawled, jumped and shimmied our way up a tower of boulders. Some boulders seem to be balanced on others, supported only by a area as big as a dinner plate. Others were worn smooth by flowing water and wind, and tucked in their worn bowls, small pockets of water had survived the desert heat.

Mt. Ryan

Today we hiked to the highest point in the monument, Mt. Ryan. It felt good to be hiking again after a week of city life in both Salt Lake City and LA. The hike offered views of cactus and Joshua trees and the peak displayed a 360 of the rocks and mountains.

On the way down, we met two travelers. One had traveled extensively in the South Pacific, and the other, a German visitor, was on his way from here to Peru. We spent a while talking with them and then hustled back down to the car for lunch.

Terry and Edna and George

We met Terry and George near the telephone at the visitor center outside of 29 Palms. George spends his life traveling. Terry and Edna are friends of his from way back. Each year they meet each other somewhere out in the California desert.

It was an absolute pleasure to meet them. They saved us a camp site across from theirs and after we set up, we joined them at their camp fire. It was an evening filled with the best conversation and some of the most interesting stories we've ever heard. George loves to talk. "Now this is true, this really happened," he'd begin. And we were swept into the 1950's, the end of World War II, Gustano's office in Mexico just as the Feds were surrounding the building, the back alley office of Marco's rival in the Philippines and the inside of a Mexican jail.

George has been everywhere, and done everything. In World War II he was a ship musician. He's played a variety of instruments with the big bands. For 27 years he owned a seafood distributor and that job took him all over the world. He's seen it snow in Death Valley, been camping in Yellowstone during the great fire, Experienced one of the coldest winters in Boston (where the car engine froze while it was running), and played camp ground host where a group of Hells Angeles decided to spend the night. His stories are endless and we were captivated.

Terry and Edna live in Downey. They've been childhood sweethearts since the age of 14. They seem like the perfect couple and two of the nicest people we've met. They invited us to stop by before we leave for Hawaii and if we have a chance we definitely will. I wish we had the time to spend another week in Joshua Tree National Monument. It is so peaceful here, we feel so relaxed and we wouldn't mind another night of fascinating stories. But for now, it is back to LA. My parents and Grandmother have flown in to bid us farewell and I am excited to see them. We will send Terry and Edna and George a postcard from a far off land. It's the people that we meet on this trip that make up the times we will never forget.