Tuesday February 26, 2008
Anyplace
can be my backyard. As I travel, I find different
places that have different and unique aspects to it
that I find myself wanting something from there at
some point after I have left. It's a matter of miles
to get there and yesterday proved it.
I wanted to get the van checked in Oceanside, CA. There is a specialty shop there and if any work needed to be done, I'd rather do it all there than have labor in one place and shipping costs to include in the overall repair cost. Since I'm heading north to Seattle soon, it seemed reasonable to detour there on my way. Afterall, when you are travelling more than a thousand miles, what's a few more? so...
I started the trek to Oceanside from Las Vegas, Sunday night. I had to contend with SoCal travellers returning home so traffic was thick. It was also late because I climbed in the VRG (about 2 hours northeast of Las Vegas) earlier that day and didn't get into Vegas until late afternoon. I originally planned to drive to the repair shop, sleep in the van and drop the van early the next morning. But, while driving, with traffic and my increasing apprehension about the situation I was about to put myself into, I changed my mind. I was still headed to Oceanside, but I detoured to Joshua Tree to spend the night. It was a place I had been to before and I knew I would be safe there.
For the time it took me to drive to JTree, I could have been at the repair shop. Detouring through the Mojave Desert cleared traffic, but left me with reduced speeds and somewhat windy roads. The jog through the less preferred roads and the additional 3 hours I added to the overall drive took a longer than I would have liked but in the end it was worth it.
I had to get up early the following morning to make my original planned drop off time at the shop in Oceanside, so I was up early and greeted with a beautiful sunrise. The drive to Oceanside was uneventful, but very scenic. The change in landscape as you come through the San Bernadino 'pass' was awesome. Sunny clear skies were fading behind me as I headed into stormy skies, but I never had rain and as I veered south towards San Diego, the clouds seemed to remain further north. There were signs of rain all over, but I didn't see a drop fall from the sky.
Once
in Oceanside, I dropped the van for inspection then
proceeded to an internet cafe down the street only a
few blocks from ocean beaches. I did some internet
then got the call the van was in fine working
condition and no work would be needed. I could pick
it up, and I did. I lunched on the beach before
driving back to Las Vegas where I made arrangements
to climb for a few days more.
The drive back was uneventful, and more suburban for longer than the drive out so I wasn't as impressed by the surroundings. I was listening to an audio book all the way and somehow managed to get back to Las Vegas, pick up my friend (Kenny) and drive to the VRG to rest for some climbing today. As I reflected on the long drive, I remarked on what a day I had. I saw sunrise in JTree, lunched on the Pacific in Oceanside and took in the lights of Las Vegas. That's some backyard!
