At first, I wondered what we would do here. After three days, it was all about the Ocotillo. Find photos from this trip here. This was our second time out. The first time, the bartender at The Old Highway Cafe, in Ocotillo City, served Shellyeah a glass of tap water instead of bottled water, subsequently ruining the whole trip. Plus, at the very same cafe, I discovered I’d left the battery to the camera at home. “I thought the camera felt light.” What do we know.

Before arriving at Anza Borrego this time, healthy with two camera batteries and a charger, we checked out Mount Palomar Observatory. It was a bummer because we couldn’t get inside like we could at Mount Wilson, you know, and touch the Hale 200-incher. Yes, Mount Wilson spoiled us. Instead, we had to look at the massive telescope through glass like it was a coral reef at an aquarium. Lame. The tours weren’t running the weekend we were there. We plan good.

We rolled in to Anza Borrego in the afternoon and checked into the Borrego Springs Motel. The motel manager, Kenny, walked into our room, sat down, and had a chat with us…in our room. Try getting Motel 6 to do that. Later that evening, a handful of birds sang outside our window for about an hour. I recorded most of it: