We have been camped in the same spot out here in the BLM at Anza-Borrego California for three whole weeks. That’s definitely a record for us. After our crazy traveling this summer, it feels good to stay put for a while. And we’ve certainly kept busy.
When Ray and Pam left, our group was down to two rigs – us and Rick and Janet nearby. Which was nice because it gave us a chance to get to know them better. Sometimes it’s easier to have a more intimate chat around the campfire. Tami was the last rig left from the Xscapers group next door, so we invited her to the campfires as well (it was nice of Ray to leave all that wood!) Then even Rick and Janet and Tami moved on and it was almost lonely.
Tom saw (on Facebook of course) that some new Xscapers had moved into the neighborhood, so we walked over to meet Ted and Jan Kolb, who ‘accidentally’ parked not far from where the group had been. We got on well with them around some more campfires and found out they’re going to the Big Bash in January as well.
In the days that followed, we joined up with Ted and Jan to go hiking. We drove out past Ocotillo Wells to a place in the state park called The Slot and had an amazing hike down into the canyon.
There were some spots that were a pretty tight squeeze, and we even had to walk sideways through one part, but it was really fun – especially with friends!
Then we drove out a ways down a wash to hike up to a place called the Wind Caves. We were happy to have the Jeep Trailhawk to get us to these out of the way destinations. It was a bit of a hike up, but pretty cool to see the eroded rock formations. 
One rainy day, we took a drive up the mountain to a town called Julian that is known for its apple pie.
It looked like it was a really charming town, but the clouds were so low that most of it was fogged in.
It was a drizzly day, but we’re glad it wasn’t snowing – as we did pass a couple of snow plows on the way up.
We spent some time in the touristy town’s museum, had lunch, and then of course sampled the pie. Yes, it was really good. And no, I didn’t take any photos of any of it!
The last week we were there, the town of Borrego Springs was having their big grand opening for a new library; San Diego County’s latest. We went to the event (and saw Ted and Jan there) and were amazed by the state of the art library in this tiny out-of-the-way town, population of just 2,000. 
We found out it cost fifty million dollars to build it, and they hurried up to finish it before the councilman who spear-headed it retired after twenty years. I guess he wanted to leave quite a legacy. We listened to the dignitaries give their speeches, and for that, we got free water, fruit, and T-shirts. Plus we saw some interesting stuff:
This was the first time we’ve hung around a town long enough to really get to know it. Which was easy in this case because the town is so small. I’ll be kind of sad to leave. Although I’m ready for a normal grocery store!
When we got here we had no idea where we were going next or what we were going to do for Christmas. After our long drive to California and back last August, we told the kids not to expect us back for the holidays. But now that we’re so close, we just have to make it up to see the kids at Christmas.
But first we have some time to kill, so we’re going over the mountains to stay at our second SKP park; Jojoba Hills.
Happy Travels,
Peace & Love, Joy
Rightlaners 