Idyllic is the best word we can find to describe the Laguna Mountain Recreation area we just left. Now I think we understand the appeal of mountain cabins. The climate up there (at this time of year) is absolutely delicious. I think it is the combination of high altitude and low humidity. During the day the temperature may climb to the 80s but the air is dry and gentle breezes blow steadily. At night the temperature drops to perhaps 55; great sleeping weather.
Of course the nature and the views are beautiful, but we have seen so much beauty lately. In this case it is the combination of beauty and climate. We could stay there all summer, but only on weekdays before school is out when we are alone in the camp ground. But there are so many places yet to bee seen and some of those could be better than this
Yesterday we hiked to the top of Lightning Ridge, a local peak. We found a new type of giant pine cones at the top that we haven't seen before. The views from the peak were stunning. The only discordant note was some kind of man made structure at the summit. It was a geodesic dome about 40 feet in diameter, opaque, low, with a hatch and a barbed wire fence around it. What the heck? Libby speculated missile silo. A dozen or more other speculations could apply. Pictures later. The point is that we had another great adventure on that hike.
In the camp site we were entertained by a thieving western bluebird. New as bold, attempting to steal food at every change. We accidentally spilled some pretzels on the ground. He flew away with about 6 of them, then stopped. The next morning they were all gone, taken by night creatures.
Last night moonlight lit up the area like daylight. It would have been nice to view the meadows in moonlight from the mountain peak. The sounds of night creatures were sparse. An owl. A single dog bark. Squirrels chattering. No insect sounds at all. The breeze created a background infrasound. Not a single traffic noise penetrated. After dawn we heard a woodpecker very close.
Boy oh boy it is impossible to say too many good things about that place. For San Diego residents, drive west on I8, exit at Sunrise Highway around mile 45 or so, then drive 12 miles north. Avoid weekends.
Today, Mohave Desert and tomorrow a second visit with Mary Ann and John.
Posts
Sounds nice, Dick. As you know, we're off the boat too and in a small place in the Adirondacks. Besides being similar to what you described, I have another- dark!
ReplyDelete