Not a bad drive 01-28-20

Didn't get away until about 11:30am and still had to stop for gas.  I always wait until I am on the road so that I have every drop the tank will hold and I can make it all the way to Santa Nella on one tank of gas.  So, I had two potty stops and a gas/potty stop.  A bit more than average.  The weather was nice, the traffic was light, but there were millions of big trucks, mostly in the right lane allowing the cars to fly by.  

No blossoms to be seen.  One very small patch of wild mustard was it.  But the almond trees are showing green tips, so it won't be long before the trees will bloom. 

I need to try harder to arrive here in San Juan Bautista before dark.  Too hard driving into the headlights going the other way.   But there was a lovely pastel sunset so it was almost worth the glare.  

Hope to visit Pacific Grove and Back Porch Fabrics tomorrow.  

A tree full of blackbirds at the gas station in Santa Nella.

Heading up CA 152 past the San Luis Reservoir - into the sunset. 

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Driving home from Empty Spools 03-07-13

It was a beautiful day to drive home on I-5.  Mostly sunshine, but little rain showers near Coalinga and for some miles south.  The speeds were pretty average, although there are always some drivers who go as fast as they want - guess they can afford hundreds of dollars to pay off their tickets! I just get out of their way as quickly as possible!

There were very few wild flowers either direction, possibly because the drought continues.


I spent last night at HIE in Santa Nella on I-5.  Not the best of the 'breed', but clean and quiet.   Directly across the street is this field of wild mustard, the only one I saw on the whole trip.  Again, possibly lack of rain fall.
 

In some places the highway is higher than the surrounding farmland, which gives a nice view of the tops of the blossoming almond trees. All one sees is pale pink "foam".
 

When the  highway is on more of the same level the almost black trunks contrast nicely with the fluffy pink "foam".
 

On the left a fully blossoming almond grove, on the right a newly planted one.  Although the spacing makes me wonder if these might be grapevines!
 

I don't know what kind of tree is in the foreground, but more almonds behind.  At the rest stop just north of the Buttonwillow turnoff I pulled off for a little nap.  Only 15 - 20 minutes will give me a second wind.  The rest area is surrounded on three sides by almond groves - the fragrance is lovely.
 

Looking down rows of almond trees - the fallen petals are like delicate pink snow on the ground.