Palm Springs week 2

Well- after being bagged Sunday with my cold, was eager to get going on Monday. However, I managed to get in only a hard run. It was a cooler, windy day here as well. Obviously, warmer than Calgary; the wind was strong and in the desert strong winds are not a good thing. So I toured around and did another short hike which led me to an area I needed to bike. Thus, my ride on Tuesday was the Palms to Pine Highway. Unbelievable! I wish I had my camera but no I did not lug it with me. As such, I pulled these off the Internet to show what this road was like.



The road starts at 458-foot-high Palm Springs and reaches the summit of 10,804-foot San Jacinto Peak. I climbed to the Coachella Valley Vista Point. I would love to ride this entire highway. Next time I will have to start at what is called Sugarloaf Cafe which sits over 3,000 feet above sea level. You can ride from there and continue along Highway 74 through the spectacular Garner Valley. Then you can climb to the mountain village of Idyllwild. The route climbs to an altitude of over 6,000 feet in Pine Cove before descending towards Banning. That route is about 100km one way.

I stepped into El Paseo on my way back. What a cute little place this was. I liked it more than La Quinta. Great main street with more high end shops and restaurants.

I have two more days in this area before I head to Phoenix. I plan on riding Joshua Tree and Box Canyon. I let you know all about it.

Just back from my ride in Joshua Tree. What a beautiful place. I have been here before but in a different part. I did more climbing today and it was crazy windy!!

On my drive out I saw for the first time the thousands of windmills that are pasted on the landscape just before you enter Palm Springs. The last time I saw this many windmills was on the Austria-Hungary border. What a site. On my way back into Palm Springs from Joshua Tree I learned exactly why they are situated where they are. It was so windy I could barely keep my cheap rental on the highway!



Some pictures of Joshua Tree: