3/17/19

Coalinga, California

It was another long day of driving yesterday. We went 340 miles. We wanted a shorter day, but there weren't many places to stay along the way that didn't involve deviating from our path by quite a bit. Coalinga seemed the best choice. We're in a part of the state dominated by agriculture, and so it's unusually remote by California standards.

Before leaving Redding yesterday morning, I snapped this shot of the mountains. We could see this from our spot.


Over my head was this tree. It's hard to tell if these are flowers, or the budding of new foliage.


Yesterday's drive was dominated by fruit and nut trees...mainly almond trees. They are in full flower, and so the beehives were also placed around to encourage pollination.


We stopped at a rest station just north of Willows, California, where I took a picture of this barn.


It was beautiful here...peaceful and serene...and the most heavenly perfumy fragrance in the air. We looked around for something blooming that would account for the lovely aroma. There was one tree blooming overhead, but that wasn't it. The smell permeated the air.


We considered the many eucalyptus trees growing here, but it wasn't that kind of a smell. (That's our rig through the trees there.)


Off in the distance was a blooming almond grove, and that had to be the origin. The wind was blowing from that direction. Lovely. I wish there were a way to communicate that smell with words.


If you've never seen a eucalyptus tree, they are interesting with long flowing tendrils for branches and peeling bark on their trunks.


Back on the road, we passed another two-for-one barn view.


When we stopped for lunch, we let the kitties out of the bedroom. They ride confined to the bedroom now because of the way the new steps come down at the door. It's a bit of a to-do compared with the old rig. With the old one, the steps folded out from below the frame of the trailer. With the new rig, we must first open the door wide and then pull the steps down from the inside. It means opening the door far too wide to contain any kitties who might try to escape. To avoid worry and angst, we decided to confine them to the bedroom. (That's generally where they ride anyway.) And all of that to say that Sadie likes to jump up in the catio when we stop. We stow their kitty pole inside while we're going down the road, and she likes it for her own little kitty fort when we stop.


Okay, so lunch eaten, we were back on the road. We saw the Sierra Nevada range come into view. It looks like a line of clouds in the image below. We'll be traveling on the other side of that range when we head for home.


Oh yes...and some people see quilts in non-quilt-related items. I see cats.


Nearing our final destination, we passed through miles and miles, acres and acres of green, green hills. (Happy St. Patrick's Day, friends!) I took a number of pictures trying to get a feel for it. The next two are the best I could do. These are for you, Gail.


Also, the mustard is in bloom.


Smitty was itching to get out on the catio when we arrived.


Sadie preferred the comfort of their kitty quilt.


Since having our limes confiscated at the state line, we've been looking for more. (How does one make margaritas with out them?) We haven't pulled off the road anywhere to visit a proper grocery store, but there was a small convenience store near the RV park. This required a little bit of walking since we left the truck hitched to the trailer. Along the way, we saw this blooming cholla cactus. Look behind it, and you'll see a blooming prickly pear.


Also, there was an orange grove, recently relieved of its oranges. They missed this one, but there were oranges scattered on the ground as well. Mike picked up a few, and we'll have them with breakfast this morning. Oh yes, and still no limes. We'll get to a grocery store today.


We'll have a much shorter day of driving today, which means a more leisurely morning. We'll be in Acton, California, by this afternoon. We have two nights reserved there so that we can visit the poppy reserve tomorrow. After that, we're kind of on the fence about possibly heading to Borrego Springs to see more flowers in bloom. We'll decide after seeing the poppies. That might fill our wildflower quotient for this spring.

It's Sunday morning, and that means blueberry oatmeal pancakes for breakfast. It's our favorite day of the week. I've linked to the recipe there, but it doesn't include the blueberries. That's my addition. I just add a few as they're cooking.

Thanks to those of you who have left safe-travel wishes and nice comments. It's good to have you along!

11 comments:

Alice said...

Gorgeous pictures. Mr. Witt is reading over my shoulder. He wants his own RV catio. I told him "one day." I thought they only confiscated fruit in Australia. Hope you find your lime. A Margaritas sound really good!!

gpc said...

What lovely greens, and a perfect day for it -- thank you! I had never seen either a eucalyptus OR an almond tree. I can well imagine that the almond blossoms smell wonderful, but had no idea eucalyptus were so tall! Love the blooming cacti, too, and seriously cannot wait to see the poppies. You are adding to my wanderlust, for sure.

Quilting Tangent said...

happy St. Patty's, looking forward to seeing the poppies.

Lee said...

Late winter, nearly spring, is the best time here in SoCal. We didn't start getting our rains until February, and we've certainly received them since, 60% chance on Wed. here in our area. The almond orchards certainly are beautiful when in bloom, and spring is the only time I admire the San Joaquin Valley. My husband headed out, camera & tripod in hand, towards the Bakersfield area seeking flowers. We keep hearing of a super-bloom this year, so I hope the poppy reserve cooperates with your timing, though to me, it seems it might be just a wee bit early yet for a full-on show. It's hard to say, the flowers tend to have a mind of their own it seems. Have fun and safe travels.

quiltzyx said...

Ah, those snow-covered mountains do look familiar! The red blooms remind me of Bottlebrush, but who knows? I do love the smell of Eucalyptus leaves & the sight of them shedding their bark, when it hangs down in long strips. I've not smelled the blossoms from an almond tree - hard to do when you're zipping by on the I-5!
LOL Sadie in her catio fort!! Smitty just needs a Pith helmet to look like a mighty explorer.

Continued Happy Trails!

Cathy said...

I've seen those cat-like things many times, but have never noticed that they looked like cats! We've traveled the I-5 many times since while we're in southern California, we have close relatives in northern California. Enjoy your trip! I hope the poppies bloom enough for you!

piecefulwendy said...

You have some beautiful views on your drive, and I wish I could smell that almond grove! Is it difficult to corral the cats back into the bedroom after you let them out? So cool that they travel so well. Wilbur is currently fascinated with the birds at our feeders, spending quite a bit of time viewing them from the top of his scratching post.

kc said...

What a lovely (if long) ride - thanks for sharing!

I wish you could have transmitted that almond scent, it must have been absolutely heaven. When we were working at the state park in Bradenton, there was an orange grove about 5 miles away. Most winter nights, we'd be blessed with the scent of blooming citrus all night long, and we'd often just go stand outside and breathe it all in. The fruit was just as good, too!

In Crystal River, there is a beekeeper, aptly named The Honey Girl, who rents her bees out to the almond growers out in CA - wouldn't it have been something if they were HER bees out there? She loads up flatbeds with something like 150 hives, and trucks them all out. When they've done their thing, they load 'em all up and truck 'em right back to her!

I don't know what your red flowers are before, but our bottlebrushes are all abloom right now, and that's not them. Bottlebrushes' stems are more cascading and are fully leafed out, and the blooms are always at the ends of the stem. And blooms are long and brushy, as their namesakes.

So, today's a dance day for us, and one more day closer to pickup. Whoohoo, how did you ever stand that last week before delivery?? Good thing we have a whole slew of doctor appointments to keep us busy this week before Saturday's departure. (well, Tentative Departure, might be Monday!) Gots ta go... travel safe, keep them wheels turnin!

Sally Trude said...

Such wonderful pictures and narration to cover up the fact that you are visiting Smitty in prison. What were his crimes and what is his sentence? Asking for a friend. Respectfully, Molly

Kate said...

Beautiful country! It looks like you've got spring there. It's still pretty brown here. There have stories in the news about a super bloom of poppies and the problems the communities near by are having with all the people who want to come visit. Hopefully you are not in that part of the state.

Brown Family said...

Beautiful scenery! I really enjoy the cacti blooming!