Bakersfield, California: We broke every road-tripping rule we have today. We drove over 400 miles (our usual limit is 250 miles), we rarely stopped to rest/eat. DT just drove. We didn’t even stop to see family in the San Joaquin Valley. With his massive head cold, it was best to avoid sharing the germs, so he just drove south on I-5 (we usually travel down Highway 99 to visit family in Sacramento and Merced). Rare territory for us today.
Our only excitement were a few quick breaks to refill coffee cups or grab a bite to eat, and I was able to refresh our long-ignored dash satellite radio via my cell phone. Too much of life can be controlled from a phone in a purse/pocket these days, am I right?
Dave drove for eight hours. Straight down I-5, over sometimes rough roads, one car on fire, many Duck fans giving us a friendly honk, and increasing temperatures, until we pulled-over for the night to a very familiar campsite along Highway 58 (just east of Bakersfield), the Orange Grove RV Park.
After setting up camp, we moved outside to enjoy our cocktails because it was 87 degrees! What a wonderful change from the icy-cold conditions in Oregon over the past few weeks.
Here is your faithful correspondent, martini-in-hand, cooling-off and relaxing from a long saddle-sore day in the motorhome.
#camping
While we were in Eugene (was that just two days ago?) we stopped by Market of Choice to buy fresh foods for our trip south. Instead of making a fresh pizza dough while on the road, we tried this:
Ya know what? It wasn’t half-bad! I topped it with my usual pizza sauce, cheese, and a can of sliced black olives. Along with a tossed salad, a quick (12 minutes in the oven) and easy dinner.
With enough left-overs for lunch on the road to Indio tomorrow.
Until my next update, hopefully from Indio, I remain, your orchardist correspondent.
RV Park: Orange Grove RV Park – we have stayed here countless times, most always as an overnight because it is about 250 miles from Indio. Long gravel pull-through sites set inside an orange grove. When the fruit is ripe, campers are encouraged to take all the fruit they want. Pool, wifi, bathhouse, laundry, rally facilities. We paid $50 with our Good Sam discount.