The Epilogue part 1:Desert...

We consider we have now earned a day off and so pedal locally, taking in fabulous Balboa Park. Not just pretty gardens but museums of all sorts, with the star of the show the buildings. These were nearly all built for a big exposition in 1915, in a grandiose Spanish style, with plenty of shady colonnades and fountains.


The best of the attractions for us are the Desert Garden, Timkin Art Museum and the Botanic Building, a shaded pavilion full of exotic ferns.
With almost 2 weeks before we are due back in LA, we head off east into the desert. At 4000 feet we camp in the tiny village of Live Oak Springs, spooked by the coyotes calling in the night. We spot our first White-breasted Nuthatch near the tent.


Next morning we are alongside the Mexican border fence at Jacumba, with border patrol vehicles nearly the only cars. We stop frequently to photo the granite craggy mountains.


The owners of the cafe at tiny Jacumba photo us to put on their website! We cycle through Plaster City, and find it to be just a large plaster-of-Paris factory.


Tour miles to date: 2,796

Location:San Diego to El Centro