This one started out with a small disappointment: Barstow’s Route 66 Museum was to be our big thing, but it was CLOSED on Thursdays…surprise to us. SO, nothing else to do but drive.We left for Arcadia, California, where we reserved our hotel for the night. Mike mapped out an exciting route, taking us through some twisty mountain roads. Yay!
First, we drove the freeway toward Los Angeles, then we ended up running the Angeles Crest Highway, which twists, turns, dips and climbs through the steep canyons and cliffs of the San Gabriel Mountain range. It is one of the mountain ranges guarding the Los Angeles area: you have to go past them, or over them, to get to LA. Arcadia is near LA, so we got to work. All three cars were made just for roads like this, there was almost no traffic, the roads were well-paved and maintained, we were well-rested and alert. So, it was the recipe for a wonderful driving day!
The first half of our fun mountain road adventure went well, but we needed to rest from all the excitement, so pulled into the small Post Office parking lot at Valyermo. A huge shade tree sheltered us from the hot bright sun, while we saw SNOW on the tops of the San Gabriel mountains in the distance. Cool contrast. Rest awhile, then take off again for Arcadia. Mike, Mitch and I got separated on the road: I made a wrong turn and Mike had some eye problems, while Mitch went on ahead. Usually, we would keep in contact via cell phone, but on this trip, I can’t hear anything inside my car because driving the Aardvark is kind of loud! We eventually got back together after individually working our way into the busy Los Angeles area traffic pattern. We made it to our motel, where the manager asked us to leave our cars under the shelter at the front door, so all guests could see them. GREAT! We may have some new donations to our charities if folks see the stickers on our cars!
Unloading the cars, registering for the room, and hauling the stuff up to our room, didn’t seem too hard. BUT: when I walked back into our room about 1/2 hour later, it looked like Mitch and Mike had both joined the ranks of the dead from the excitement of the driving day!!! YIKES!!! They both eventually regained consciousness, returning to what some folks would describe as “normal”. Whew! What could I have told their wives??? Then we were hungry…
Supper at a local restaurant was fine, and we are now getting an early sleep, ready for tomorrow’s adventures. Thanks for following along.
