California is a really big state. Well, duh! It took our small caravan three days and two nights to transverse the state, heading for Oregon. Sweetie Pie and I in the big Budget truck following Chuck in his truck pulling a small enclosed trailer. Somewhere near Los Angeles, Chuck calls to say he needs to pull off Interstate to refuel.
Since we had just been inching along in late afternoon California traffic, it was time for a potty break too. We exited into a business area that had seen better days. By the time Chuck found a filling station that sold diesel fuel too, I had changed my mind about leaving the truck. Potty time could wait.
He pulled into a very small station and Sweetie squeezed the truck past a woman sitting in a car blocking most of one side who glared at us. We had to wait for a pump, so Sweetie tossed me the keys and told me to move the truck when the pump was available. Yikes!
I jumped down and dashed around to the driver's side. A bevy of young men standing behind the small store were yelling at someone, hopefully, not me. Since I couldn't understand yelled Spanish, I sat there and waited to inch forward so we could fill up.
Sweetie came out and motioned to me to go around the building. The young men had been trying to tell me the diesel pump on the other side was open. Ohhhhh! Boy oh boy, was I embarrassed by my instant, wrong judgement call. Proves the point that people are nice just about everywhere, if you pay attention. I smiled my best and charming, little ol' Southern lady smile as I waved and backed the big truck up and pulled on the other side.
We finally made it through suburban Los Angeles and headed North on Interstate 5 where we stopped for the night at one of the nicest Ramada Inn's I had ever stayed in. Comfy mattress, nice, thick towels, and a working television. What more could I ask for?
Day two in California found me amazed, simply amazed at the vast agricultural acreage that stretched for mile after mile. I had forgotten that California produces a lot of the fruits, vegetables, and nuts we see in our Kroger in Georgia. We also followed the aqueduct system that serves most of Southern California as we headed North.
I love farmland, farms, and anything to do with farming. I guess that's why my major at the University of Georgia was Agriculture-Journalism. I bet y'all didn't know that about me! There is something about freshly plowed dirt and acres of green pastureland that speaks to my heart. Can't explain it. I was not raised on a farm, so no one can explain why I can get teary when I drive past a beautiful farm.
Later that afternoon, we took a slight detour and drove toward San Francisco. We followed Chuck across a bridge as he called back and told us to look to our left. The Golden Gate Bridge in the distance was on our left. The thing was, well, it was foggy that day on the water, so we didn't really see it. I guess we took about an hour or two and who knows how much fuel to not see the Golden Gate Bridge, but that's alright. It was fun seeing how the houses seem to grow out of the hills and mountains around the city. There were lovely flowering vines spilling over walls and down the mountains as we rumbled past.
We made it back to our planned route and kept truckin' on North. The landscape had changed in the course of two days from the arid, desert area of Southern California to a lush, green, heavily wooded Northern California. It was breathtakingly beautiful!
We finally stopped for the night in Yreka which is almost to Oregon. It was FREEZING. Literally. The small swimming pool at the motel was frozen over. We were in the mountains, dark, looming mountains that I knew were right outside of our motel window, but I couldn't see in the darkness. Then the motel clerk said they were expecting snow in the next few days. SNOW!
More to come...
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