We left the Sands just after 9am Sunday morning intent on taking a long hike along a trail that ran in the opposite direction to the one we took last week along the Hopalong Cassidy Trail. We expected to be hiking until around noon but after only a hour we were stopped in our tracks by a sign proclaiming Dogs Prohibited – end of hike.
Rylie is looking none too happy about this ‘Dogs Prohibited’ sign
On our way back down to the parking lot we ran across a woman with a dog just like Molly and she told us the reason dogs weren’t allowed on that portion of the trail was because there were Bighorn Sheep in that area and dogs interfered with their ecosystem. We understood and accepted that with no argument whatsoever. There are lots of other beautiful dog-friendly trails here for us to go hiking.
The ‘bump and grind’ trail went straight up this mountainside
Still, we did enjoy the first hour of the hike and managed to get in a good workout before turning around. In the photo above, you can see the line of the twisting trail called the ‘bump and grind’ that goes up to the mountain ridge. It looked pretty steep so maybe we dodged a bullet with the no dogs allowed.
Our Molly (left) meets up with Luke on the hiking trail
It was sunny again with beautiful, clear blue skies although the temps are at least 20 degrees below normal for this time of year. Even so, I’d much rather have the sun and blue skies with cooler temperatures than a howlin’ desert wind any day!
This beautiful home was nestled up against the mountain base
When we got back to our truck, we decided to keep heading south along one of our favourite drives – the Palms to Pines Hi-way that leads to a spectacular lookout over the Coachella Valley. At the lookout, we pulled in and decided to have our lunch there.
The Palms to Pines Hwy. looks more like a roller coaster ride
In the photo above, you can see the black pavement marking the Palm to Pines Hi-way. This is a very steep grade with all kinds of serpentine twists and turns. It’s a real roller coaster of a ride – especially going down the hill.
After our Egg Salad sandwich lunch at the lookout it was almost noon so we elected to just drive back to the Sands and take it easy for the rest of the afternoon. We are on holidays, after all, so there’s no need to overdo work or play, right
Last night we watched Episode 2 of Season 3 of Downton Abbey which is fast becoming our favourite TV show. While watching that I recorded the 3 hour long Golden Globes Awards and we got through that in less than 2 hours by fast-forwarding through all the commercials, annoying acceptance speeches and other non-essential stuff that always clutters up these shows.
Have a great Monday, and thanks again for visiting!
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