Wild Anmal Park

Most of the locals remember the “San Diego Zoo Safari Park” by its original name “The Wild Animal Park”. A Google search will take you to the same home page.

aka Wild Animal Park

February is for seniors in San Diego, and entrance to the Wild Animal Park is FREE to seniors all February! Not the $76 required the rest of the year! Our first choice is to ride the tram around the African Savanna exhibit – the tram is included in the admission and will develop long lines later in the day.

Tram is down there

Fran and I are seated on the right side of the tram. Not good as the tram runs in a counter-clockwise direction. The exhibit is enclosed by trench (if San Diego still had water this would be a moat). Inside the moat is a fencing, although it does keep the the display animals in, barbed wire was added to keep the local predators out. Shortly after it opened the local mountain lions enjoyed the buffet.

The pond provides water for the permanent residents and their guests. The White Pelicans are migratory, but why leave?

There are lots of long legged, fast running folks on the Savanna tour.

And some with shorter legs

Some are close, but most are further away.

The balloon ride is not included with admission. It is tethered and only goes up and down.

The little white blobs in the previous photo are these fellas. Their horns are so symmetrical in profile they look like a unicorn!

On TV shows the Savanna appears to be flat grasslands, however here there are some small rolling hills.

After our tram ride, we took one of the switchback trails back up. This allowed us a bit closer view of some of incarcerated animals. Check out the camouflage

The male ostrich picks out the spot where all his harem will lay their eggs.

The flowers/shrubs/trees are all well maintained, I often enjoy them more than the animals.

Ah but what's this?

Gorongo Cycad ???

I'm not sure if he's ugly or cute. But I'm sure he's unique.

Hornbill

I missed the picture of him standing on his hind legs to enjoy a few leaves.

Impala

One of Fran's favorites, an Okapi. A zebra, gazelle or a critter still in his pajamas having breakfast?

Okapi 

Beautiful slim fast critters

Gazelle 

Here's the only gorilla on display. It looks like he's thinking about something.

And my favorite! Two fruitless trips to the Salton Sea searching for the Borrowing Owl, I coulda just visited the Wild Animal Park!

Borrowing Owl

Not only are seniors FREE at the Wild Animal Park, resident seniors also receive discounts in Balboa Park.  I have a signed copy of Coast to Cactus, the San Diego trail guide that updates the Jerry Shad (RIP) 'bible' of local hiking “Afoot and Afield". And The NAT is having a Coast to Cactus exhibit!  So we're off ...

Alongside the museum is the massive Morton Bay Fig. I think the one in Santa Barbara is larger, but this one is huge! It is now protected by a fence. I'm sure kids Kami and Michael were the last generation allowed access to play/climb here.

Nephew Bobby works for the City doing pool/fountain repairs. Nice job Bobby!

The NAT never disappoints.

Four floors of exhibits

However the Coast to Cactus exhibit was a bit under whelming .

We saw a Golden Eagle while hiking in the Ramona Grasslands.  Fran and I both think the Golden Eagle should be our state bird

Golden Eagle

But alas the California Quail, and I do like the quails, has that distinction.

California Quail

Now how cool is this Halloween mask?

Horned Toad

We stopped for tostadas at El Indio on the way home. And that closes out February. Stay tuned for March ...

Valentines Day - camping in Anza Borrego

The San Diego County Parks are raising their amping rates to $45/nite from $38.  With that in mind I booked a couple nights at Agua Caliente on S2 in Anza Borrego.

It’s been a couple decades since we were last here.  Since that time the park has doubled the number of sites and added cabins. But has not added cell service.  If you decide to go be sure to print out any information/maps beforehand.  And no bats this trip!  Last time we had bats!, and staying still they came in close.  So cool!

We headed out on a gray morning with a prediction of RAIN!

The draw of Agua Caliente is of course the hot water.  The outdoor pool (is new to us) maintains the spring temperature of 90+ F.

While the indoor spa is bumped up to a constant 102F.

We had company every morning and evening as this pair of roadrunners had a route they seemed to follow.

Morning heading out

And heading back home

The San Diego County Library has partnered with the County Parks to create Story Book Trails.

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Our trail was a variation of the tale of Stone Soup. 

The trail is easy, and welcomes kids of all ages to enjoy the tale.

And Whoopee!!! Rain did come. The first rain in 364 days (a new record) but only measured 0.33” in Borrego Springs.  Not much but any helps!

Valentines Day dawned with clear skies.

For our special lunch we chose Julian over Borrego Springs.  A beautiful rainbow, ensured we made the right choice.

WRONG!  It was 43F, with wind and pouring rain!  At least parking was easy and we walked across the street to the Julian Pie Company for a slice of Cherry Pie and a slice of Boysenberry Apple.  Both good, but Apple Mountain Berry remains the favorite.

We left with dessert, but no lunch.  We stopped at the Farmhouse 78  in Santa Ysable for lunch.  I experimented with the Hog Wild Burger (wild boar) with Apple Kale Slaw.  It must be the Kale, but I spent much of the night in the bathroom!

I don’t want close with that thought.  So here is a nice capture of a SpaceX daytime launch from my neighbor, Michael.

Good shot Vecino!

Balboa Park

It's been a few weeks since my last update. As mentioned in my last post I picked up some severe congestion in Borrego Springs. Very aggressive, and passed it to Fran. For almost 2 weeks we traded it back and forth …

At least my testing showed it was not Covid!

So mid-Dranuary/January we ventured out. Our destination was some fresh air and a walk in Balboa Park.

It was a chance to saunter in the sunshine to the remodeled Botanical Garden. We parked near our 5^th Ave outside the park and meandered to the Laurel Street Bridge.

At this entrance is the Founder's Plaza. Last time I passed this way George Marston had construction tape wrapped around his neck. I have to admit that I consider him as 'Mr. San Diego' for the dedication, commitment and sacrifice he personally made for the city.

Nice to see the the construction tape has been removed from around his neck and his wishing pond restored.

Marston donated his property for the construction of the Laurel Street Bridge. Sauntering across the bridge I knew to look for the construction inscription.

top center of the arch 
19 0n the left 13 n the right

The Botanical Garden Exhibit was also built for the 1915 Panama Exhibition. A complete total renovation was completed last month.

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The building looks great, but is missing the mature botanical displays. I guess the new plants will continue to thrive and in future visits they will mature.

The flags are at half-staff in honor of President Jimmy Carter, who died the previous week. 

For our own tribute to our 39th president we walked to Jimmy Carter's Mexican Cafe.  Our first time here we walked over from the Marston House with Joe and Gay last January.

Certainly no relation to our 39th president, but it just seemed appropriate. Fran is sticking to her 'Dranuary' (Dry January) resolution and had a soda, but I had a Margarita with my tostada.

I do audio books, a lot of them! But I'll share this one with my readers as we are all RV'rs. “Three Years a Traveler” is just a laugh out loud read! If I made that many impulsive, dumb, and expensive mistakes in 3 years I'd not be writing a book about them!

On the local front:
1.  Amazing how fast our new President has all but closed the San Diego to Tijuana border crossing. With nearly 2000 National Guards sent to the area, my next dentist visit may be delayed.... ARG!

2.  SpaceX had an early morning launch,  It was overcast when my  morning alarm went off.

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My first thought was that I caught the 1st stage separation...
But no, the exhaust burned off the clouds to reveal what appears to be
Arcturus and Denebola

3.  The east side of Mission Bay (my side) is now locally called “Quartzite on the Bay”! Our current Mayor and City Counsel decided not to enforce any parking or occupancy regulations. Meaning any RV, car, or tent camper can select a prime spot on the bay with no ramifications!  and stay until the city changes its mind.

His slide extends into the Bike Path

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A school bus converted on a budget

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At least his slides or only part way out.  Atho parked in front of the Mission Bay RV Park, it looks like he could easily afford a site in the park

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At Mission Bay Golf 

All pictures of the RVs are from De Anza Cove.  There were many many more along East Mission Bay Drive.  Why can't our current leadership deport these?

4.  And best of all, RAIN! Whoot! Whoot! a measurable amount of RAIN!