A Long Ride Through Amazingly Beautiful Countryside....

Although not new to us, the desert always offers so much newness as one travels in and around it.  Jeanette and I both marvel at the beauty.  It is always changing and offering new perspectives.

The wonderful friends we met here in Fortuna de Oro RV Resort invited us to join their mid-week motorcycle ride.  We could not resist.  We rolled out of Yuma by 9:30 am, Tuesday.

A Yuma family gathering...

My brother Bernie and his wife Rita - long time winter snow birds in Yuma - joined us on Monday afternoon and evening.  We hosted dinner.  Although there was a slight cloud cover, the temperatures hovered in high 70's - low 80's.  

Further to our previous blog when Jeanette met school friends from 40 years back, another long lost friend walked up to our site.  Elaine, who was not along on the Sunday motorcycle ride, had heard from husband James about meeting Jeanette.  They rode the same school bus together as kids.  Elaine was excited about meeting Jeanette once again.  

Just like old home week...

Talk about reunion fun!  These two talked about common stuff in their youth.  Laugh we did!  Elaine is not only engaging, she is funny.  It was another impromptu visit that reconnected Jeanette with her childhood community.

After Elaine left us, we returned to our visit with Bernie and Rita and dinner preparations began in earnest.  

We moved indoors to to ward off the desert cooling outdoors.

By 9:30 Tuesday morning, we were fueled up and ready for a fun motorcycle ride with our new found friends. 

Heading north on Highway 95 to Quartzsite

The ride was to take us slightly over eight hours.  Our first stop was in Quartzsite.  Topped up with fuel, we then rode west on I-10 to Blythe.

Kofa region, south of Quartzsite

Rolling out of Quartzsite

The group chose to take a break for lunch in Blythe.  Only a few miles further west on I-10 was where we turned off the interstate for a secondary highway that would lead us through some of this areas cotton fields.  Nice to see.  There were huge bales of harvested cotton waiting for transport to markets world wide.

Our ride leader, Roger.

Roger, in the photo above, was one of those guys who rode the school bus with Jeanette in their school days.  An avid motorcyclist, he took us through areas we had not been in before.  

We stopped to caucus whether to head south towards I-8 or head further west on Highway 78.

It was only 1:30 pm when we arrived at the cross road that would return us south to I-8 and back to Yuma or to continue west towards the Imperial Sand Dunes and into Brawley on Highway 111.

 No one was in a hurry to get back to Yuma so further west we rode.  We rode up to the highest point in the Imperial Sand Dunes - the Osborne Overlook.  From up there, we could see the Chocolate Mountains to the east and could almost make out where the Salton Sea was, north from us.

Although a paved road at the top, the wind blows hard here and we threaded carefully to turn our rides around in the soft sand.

On top of the world at the top of the Imperial Sand Dunes in

A popular recreational activity

Jeanette enjoyed playing in the sand.

Jeanette would have enjoyed having all three of her grand kids playing in this enormous sand box. Our son and son in law would love to ride their off road quads and enduro motorcycles in this gigantic sand box.

Impressive vista.

Rolling further from the Osborne Lookout had us roll further west to the small city of Brawley. 

Heading south on Highway 111 from Brawley led us into El Centro.  Our ride leader, Roger, a fan of  Cinnabon World Famous Cinnamon Rolls, led us to a large, modern mall just south of I-8.  We enjoyed a well earned break and some fun banter.

Roger then led us further south of I-8 to a secondary highway that eventually returned us to I-8 only 15/20 miles west of Yuma.  We rolled back into the RV resort as the sun was setting in the western sky.

Rolling back into Fortuna de Oro RV Resort.

Jeanette and I reveled about our day so well spent with like minded folks.  It was a  long but very satisfying ride.  

By 7:00 pm, Jeanette was busy on 'Face Time' with one of her sisters in Calgary, Alberta.  Having spent so many hours breezing through the southern Arizona and California countryside had me yawning earlier than normal.  It took little effort to fall asleep.

As I prepare to post this blog, this Wednesday morning, the sun is out, the temperature is rising and we look forward to another great desert day.

Thanks for dropping in.