cazalea
[Seiko Moderator]
19659
A White Van Man Has Some Ups and Downs, Part 7
In case the title of this post worries you, I am referring to using the White Van to change elevation, and not to any other activities (quiet, you lot who are sniggering in the back). Despite my sore throat, we continued our stay-cation. First we checked to see if the neighbor's 7' 4" surfboard would fit inside - it did. He pronounced the White Van "surfer appropriate". Although better if it came with AWD, to escape from sandy roadsides along the shoreline.
Then we went off and refilled the White Van (regular petrol, $2.59/gallon, 10.7 gallons, 270 miles=25.3 mpg). Those were hard mountain and desert miles, moderated by the long downhill from Shangi-La.
We hit the freeways for a high-speed run Northwards, hoping to beat the predicted storm. The cloud formations were awesome. Particularly for Southern California coast, where we usually live under a blanket of marine moisture, or hot clear skies.
I think that pinkish tone in the picture below is a reflection in the windshield or some bug's vital fluids on the glass...
As we climbed up into the foothills, we passed miles of citrus and avocado orchards.
We veered to the left and started to climb more aggressively. I have to comment at this point that today's drive was the first time I've ever driven sanely up this mountain. All previous drives were in various Lotus cars at maniacal speed, hoping my brakes wouldn't catch fire or the car blow up or sail off into the hillside below.
In fact we even stopped to do a very UN White Van Man thing, to smell the flowers.
We looked out over the edge to see the beautiful valley beneath us.
And to read some more of the signs posted by our nanny state.
Just to show how windy the road is, how often do you actually turn the wheel of your car this far (apart from being in a parking lot). You can get dizzy or worse on this Palomar climb.
More than a mile high, and colder than we expected. We did a quick hike up to the dome and marveled at the 200" mirror (that's 16 2/3 feet in diameter, and it was hauled up this same road back in 1939 without breaking!). A large and noisy group of middle school boys (future White Van Men) made us cut our visit short, and we beat it.
We saw some more nice flowers around the observatory.
On the way down we saw what looked to be a teary-eyed biker mounting his Harley and putting slowly off.
Mystified, we wandered around until we found the reason for his demeanor... as I said, this mountain road entices us to drive more quickly than we ought, especially bikers.
Well, shaking that off, and driving conservatively down the mile-high mountain, we passed the avocado consultant (who knew?)
We looked for the lowest place around, which turned out to be Hellhole Canyon.
As the clouds were continuing to threaten us,
and lunchtime was upon us, we sat and enjoyed a meal amidst more wildflowers.
Then hiked a couple miles and headed back to the White Van. We beat the rain by 5 minutes.
On the way home we thought "What a Day". Little did we know ....
(to be continued in Part 8)
Cazalea
This message has been edited by cazalea on 2016-04-10 12:21:27
A White Van Man Finds Signs in the Wilderness, Part 1
A UNPLANNED EXCURSION Last year we got a Fiat 500 electric, as I've written about before. One of the benefits of the lease is a $500 credit each year to hire a larger, longer-distance-capable car. As our first year is rapidly coming to an end, we decided ...
A White Van Man Finds Signs of Wilderness, Part 2
In the first episode, I told how we came to have a small white van, and how it could help me fulfill the fantasy of being a "White Van Man" - a reckless, selfish, aggressive driver. It seemed like a good idea, as I already have the coffee cup: We headed o...
How brilliant is that!
The choice of vehicle, the decoration, the story theme, appropriate food (although not looking greasy enough for a WVM), the travel writing... Keep them coming, please!
How can Americans have any fun with so many signs that say NOT?
Caz, That is a whole shxx-load of signs that say NOT! I like the idea of a middle-eastern carpet in the van. Benignly, visions of Scooby-Doo and friends. More risqué would be my imaginations of...well..."love mobiles" That's a staycation I can empathise w...
A White Van Man Finds Rams in the Wilderness, Part 3
We left today on the next leg of our vacation close to home. As hard-working white van men always do, we raced out before dawn, in the rain. We brought along a small icon, the Archangel Michael, as our guardian for the dangerous journey to the wilds of th...
White van man a vegetarian?
Surely not! I hope you get to keep the van, the stories are an absolute success
Not a vegetarian van man; that would be an oxymoron
just a brief reduction in red meat intake, which conflicts with my assumed persona of WVM.
A White Van Man Finds Blooming Monsters in the Wilderness, Part 4
The great thing about a driving vacation is that you never know what you will find - USA, England, most of Europe, Russia, Japan, etc. I've driven through these countries and always been surprised. But not so often as in this episode of the White Van Man....
Road trips are always full of surprises :)
Need to show this to my wife - you are right, watches are such non-items after this
A White Van Man Finds the Wilderness by Looking Down, Part 5
My last report in the White Van Man series touched on discovering wild desert sheep and metal monsters in the Anza-Borrego desert. As we finish up this trip report, I will reveal some of today's horticultural (green stuff / plants) action. REPORT: I confe...
Epic landscapes and wonderful flora
Not your typical WVM hunting grounds but one ought to spread the concept beyond the M25 Wonderful post - hope the series continues!
The latest episode is inside the M25; even under the arches ...
No more wilderness for a day or two. Mike
Can see why you decided to move on
Think I'd have felt like I'd have got out wrong side of bed too. Can't believe the number of prohibitions - almost might have stayed at home! Cheers JML
A White Van Man Avoids the Wilderness by Staying Home, Part 6
Unfortunately I have been grounded today by the Missus, due to a throat infection I\'ve picked up. Maybe it was all the shouting (shooting) at Prius drivers? Or the desert dust storms? (Thanks Dr. MTF for diagnosing my illness as a particularly virulent s...
I was wondering...
What kind of engine it gets for the US market (not sure if it is in the table but cannot scroll in it on my phone)? They do have tons of advantages, as you pointed out, even if prestige is not one of them Thanks for continuing and I hope you get better so...
2.4l Chrysler engine with Fiat MultiAir injection system
And a 9-speed automatic transmission is standard in all variants in the US. It seems perfectly adequate with a moderate load, even over 4500 ft passes. Mike
An engine not used here...
In Europe it is almost exclusively diesels. Sometimes I wish for more petrol propulsion here
A White Van Man Has Some Ups and Downs, Part 7
In case the title of this post worries you, I am referring to using the White Van to change elevation, and not to any other activities (quiet, you lot who are sniggering in the back). Despite my sore throat, we continued our stay-cation. First we checked ...
I think it's slowly time...
For the White Van Man to get one of those grey link buttons to related posts at the bottom
Only $150 a week
I\'m only signed up for 10 days, so using half my credit or so. I haven\'t bought it but I\'m sure I could find one from the rental pool if/when I need another vehicle. Mike
Unbelievable, the rental rates in the US...
Sooo cheap Looking forward to the remaining installments!
There are SO many things to do here, when people think only of Disneyland
But for French people, we have special treats - things you can't get at home. Like warm sunny days in the middle of winter, to taste wine Finer artwork than you would see in the Louvre. Souvenirs made with fine hand craftsmanship High-end cuisine and Amer...
A White Van Man Finds A Heck of A Lot of H's, Part 8
Today I really am sick, so have not gone anywhere in the White Van. My wife however , has really grown fond of it, so she is out shopping with it. Yesterday I ended the episode before we got home, so if you don't mind, I will tell you what really happened...
By all means continue!
I had a feeling that you already bought it off the rental company but be that as it may, a continuation is in order as far as I am concerned
A White Van Man is Banned, Part 9
I can't drive the White Van. It has been prohibited. I have to get well first. But how? The world-famous Mayo clinic says: " You don't need to feel miserable while you're toughing it out. Drink plenty of fluids. Try chicken soup (or Jack Daniels). Rest as...
Nice MIH!
To go with your white van Those graphic enhancements under the hood - priceless!
Yes, and I learned when Sharpie says Permanent Marker, they mean it
It took a pile of aggressive cleaner / wax to get the "WatchProSite Official Vehicle" off the radiator support.
LOL :)
PuristSProMobile, eh? 1001 nights of the White Van Man? Hopefully at least close!
A White Van Man Around the Harbourside, Part 11
If you have been following along on the first 10 episodes of my tale, you will know I got a free "useful vehicle" rental as part of the lease on my fun, but marginally-useful Fiat 500e. We started out expecting to go to Arizona in a shiny new Mustang conv...
A White Van Man Gives Up His Ride, Part 12
OK, it's time. My rental contract specifies that I will take the little White Van back to the rental company. It's pretty much cleaned up and ready to go home. As I am driving back, I can't help but notice there seem to be a lot of small White Vans roamin...
Thanks for sharing your White Van Man series with us!
I think another white van in is in your future!
I vote for another round at least during your 500e lease! :)
Such a great collection of stories around it - would be a shame if it does not continue at some point. But first things first, hope you have fully recovered in the meantime or are at least close to it!
What a fun journey, Mr White Van Man...what a fun road trip.
Thank you for sharing these new places. Rgds Raymond