1st time camping/riding bikes with my friend, Tony Annunziato.
/ 3rd time biking/camping along the Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail (SHOW THE 2ND)
FUN FACTS
Anza-Borrego Desert State Park takes its name from 18th century Spanish explorer Juan Bautista de Anza and borrego, a Spanish word for sheep. With 585,930 acres that includes one-fifth of San Diego County, it is the largest state park in California and the third largest state park nationally.
The park is an excellent location for a bicycle touring adventure! Cyclists from all around the world come to Anza-Borrego to discover the wildflowers, palm groves, cacti and incredible desert scenery.
I drove with my friend Tony, and we arrived Saturday 18th, at Tamarisk Grove Campground – Campsite – TG Stan Dev 27. He hadn’t been camping in over 25 years!
I made him promise me that he wouldn’t help me setup my tent. He didn’t realize I take a long time to get my camp setup. He was patient with me.
NO COMMENTS about my butt hanging out, and my big gut, and my grey hair….. in fact, say nothing about my looks at all!
While I struggled for 45 minutes setting up my tent (need more practice), Tony built a fire.
Dinner was great, Tony and I had nice bottle of red wine. We stayed up and talked until the campfire died out.
The nighttime weather was bearable (44F overnight low). Got up the next morning, broke camp, loaded everything into the car. Driving 20 miles to Borrego Springs; we had hot coffee and breakfast at “Red Ocotillo”.
But, the best part is that Anza-Borrego Desert has 130+ giant metal sculptures that dot the landscape near the city of Borrego Springs. So next, we rode our bikes to see those sculptures.
Beautiful views of the mountains…..Wonderful experience. I will go again.
Lessons Learned: Having friends along is great, just don’t be self-conscious.
Ranking of this Trip: #1 Expanding FUN possibilities.
P.S. The day after returning from the trip, I decided to practice raising my tent…. I slowed down, thought about each step, and raised it on the first attempt. I don’t do well with an audience.
