Palm Springs, CA
Within the first day of arrival, we had already experienced a crash course about some of the less-desirable aspects of life in SoCal. Here are the bullet points:
- In a lot of places, people are packed in like sardines. Navigate carefully.
- Lock it up or lose it (or so they say). The rangers expressly told us to keep everything of value under lock-and-key. That was a first for us.
- Everything costs more. Especially fuel. (OH MY WORD, THE FUEL PRICES!)
- Add a minimum of 30 minutes to your travel time if you want to arrive on time. We later learned that could be an hour or two, depending on traffic and accidents.
For us, it was a lot to digest in 24 hours. Like, you hear about the crowds and the traffic. But it takes you a minute to understand how that's going to affect your daily plans, and to adjust your habits. By the end of our stay, we had it figured out and really loved the cheerful uniqueness and fun vibe of Palm Springs. And we all decided that we were going to ignore the bad parts of this area and soak up the good. So that's what we did!
There's nothing like the feel of Palm Springs at sunset. Jeff and I loved taking walks at dusk. The heat subsiding, the wind kicking up, and the palm tree silhouettes and color-streaked sky were everything you need a place to be. So relaxing!
The RV park was actually in Palm Desert, but we got to spend time in most of the surrounding towns. I never know what to call those towns because they really don't seem to be towns in-and-of-themselves. I feel like they should be called "hamlets" or "outposts" of Palm Springs. Anyway, they all seem to flow seamlessly and form one large desert community.
The thing about Palm Springs--the famous Palm Springs--is that it's just as beautiful as you think it is. Not nature-y per-se, not city-like either. But there's something about this place that is so comfortable. Palm trees caught in the wind and hazy purple mountains for a backdrop. Desert with cacti and tumbleweeds and rocky hillsides, but also bright, clean-slate homes that continually remind you that you're in Palm Springs.
My favorite were those amazing mid-century homes, each one more stunning than the last. I loved driving through the neighborhoods, seeing how the homeowners had given face-lifts to each place, careful to keep it recognizably Palm Springs-y. That's a thing, right? ;) One of my Palm Springs regrets is that I was the one driving when we did our tour of the neighborhoods, so I didn't get any pics! If you're interested, you can check out the pictures on this page to see what I'm talking about.
Excluding the things listed above, there were two main things about Palm Springs that were not my cup of tea. The first was the dust storms. I had to cancel a few of my morning walks because the sandy dust was blasting my eyes and going into my lungs. So that was a thing.
The second was that it was in the 90's for most of our stay, and over 100 degrees for several days. I had done my due diligence before booking and learned that early April average temps are low-80's, so this was an unwelcome surprise.
If you've never RV'd, you might not know how much being in an RV makes the temperature a bigger deal than being in a house or hotel. Especially when you're parked in a spot with no shade and you've got one A/C unit that's fighting the good fight and it's really like a toddler trying to race Usain Bolt. Futile. I don't do well in the heat, but I really am trying to stretch myself past my comfort zone so that we can enjoy hotter climates.
Folks, those days were hot. Sticky, sweaty hot, with no ability to cool off. At the RV park, the pool was heated to 80 degrees and filled with 100 people. The air conditioned rec room was reserved for private parties, and those retirees will straight kick you out into the 103 degree heat, even if you're just sitting quietly in the corner.
Anyway, after tolerating a few days of that, I told Jeff I just couldn't. I needed a reprieve!
So my dear, loving husband took me away to the mountains. We drove to Idyllwild for one of the hottest days of our stay in Palm Springs. The drive took us through a canyon that I will never forget. We cranked up the music and the AC, got out on the road, and ooh-ed about everything we saw for the hour it took us to get up the mountain. Idyllwild is home to the San Jacinto State Park and reminded me of home.
There is another Thousand Trails up in Idyllwild, so we decided to get a day pass and have a picnic up there before exploring the mountain. It was 98 in Palm Springs and 58 in Idyllwild and friends, I got a little emotional because the coolness on my skin felt like heaven.
I have to laugh at some of the pictures I took because we were all dressed for hot weather, but had brought a sweatshirt "just in case." That wasn't much of a help for poor Jeff! He's apparently turned into some kind of reptile and now loves hot weather. He was freezing in Idyllwild, and he just looks so pitiful in a few photos! Haha. He got out of the truck and then back inside within two minutes. Whatever will we do, with me loving cool weather and Jeff loving hot?
After lunch, we drove around and checked out the area. Being a weekend, the community in Idyllwild was hopping. There are so many vacation homes and rentals, and we got a sense that this is a popular retreat for SoCal residents. Parking for the trails was jam-packed by that time, so we decided to look for a hike a little farther out. We headed back down the mountain and found this trailhead, which is part of the Pacific Crest Trail. This was a GREAT hike!
I love these colors.
Lucy and her boy.
The kids decided that they missed having houseplants, so we gathered some things and they created these cute succulent pots. From left to right, these are Jackson's, Jordan's, and Megan's pots. They sat them in the window, on the dining table, so I get to enjoy looking at them in the mornings.
The next week, we had another super-hot day that was 103 or something, so the kids and I trucked it back up the mountain. I know how wimpy I sound, but it is what it is.
This time, we stopped to investigate a few of the pullouts. There were signs that said to watch for bighorn sheep, but we didn't see any. We did get to look out over the entire desert, which was cool.
This trip to Idyllwild was really relaxing. There were only a few people milling around on this weekday, so we got out and walked the town, checking out shops.
We stopped at Idyllwild Bake Shop & Brew for breakfast tots and treats. While we waited for our order, I visited with three hikers, who stopped in Idyllwild to recoup after grueling stretches on the Pacific Crest Trail. There is a hostel in town with a big sign welcoming hikers, and the three of them met there. All three had leg/ankle injuries and needed a little extra time to heal, so they had been keeping one another company. I thought it was cool that the hikers have developed a community!
I know the picture above is poor quality, but the food was not. My mission is to recreate this dish at home. Crispy tots, quality cheese and bacon, wowza-flavorful pico...this was so good. We felt guilty enjoying this without Jeff, so we grabbed a mini apple pie to take home to him. He said it was good. (Actually, he jokingly said it was "decadent," but then told me to change it. Haha!) It looked like something from a Food Network baking show.
The last week that we were in PS coincided with the Coachella Music Festival, which draws 50,000 people to the area each year. This year's headliner was Beyonce, and I heard lots of buzz about that. The festival didn't really affect us at all, but one funny thing did happen. As we were trying to leave the RV park, we saw an RV and a group of people obstructing the exit. We stopped and waited to see if they were going to move. Just then, a woman in a business suit walked up to us and said, "Hi, We're filming a scene for a reality TV show, so can you guys go the other way?" We laughed about that and said, "Only in SoCal!"
And that's all I really have for Palm Springs! We don't do zoo's, so we skipped that big attraction, the museums were $$$ and $$$$, the old mercantile store was in the busiest part of town and we couldn't find parking, so we gave up and got ice cream from the grocery store and went home. Just a lot of things that came up and prevented us from doing some of the most popular touristy things, but we loved the things we did see!
Anyway, this stop was really just a place to buy time until the big surprise! We were counting down the days until our next stop, which proved to be a great one! More on that next time!
Love and miss you all!
💜
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