Melanie and I traveled just north of Pasadena to visit Descanso Gardens on Thursday of this week. Descanso has, among other things, the largest collection of Camellias in North America and, lucky for us, they were blooming.
Within its 150 acres are a Rose Garden, Japanese Garden, Oak Forest, Ancient Forest, the aforementioned Camellia Garden, and some great hiking trails to traverse. We spent most of the day there taking lunch at their on premises restaurant. Nice way to spend some time.
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It's Friday. Not just any Friday because it's Valentine's Day. To make things worse, it's also Presidents' Day Weekend, meaning a three day weekend. We need to move camp, but don't have a reservation. Oops. Flying by the seat of your pants is great, but sometimes..., you need to pay closer attention to details.
I ask if we can stay on where we are, but no, they're booked. Sorry. My bad. The ranger does, however, give me a sheet with other regional parks on it to check out. The first on the list besides one that's closed is Orangeland RV Park. I call them and, yes, they have an opening. Whew, we're in for the whole weekend. Orangeland is close to Disney Land, Los Angeles Angels baseball and Anaheim Ducks hockey. It's also within blocks of the Santa Ana River Trail that runs west for 14 miles to the Pacific Ocean. Orangeland is well-maintained. The sites are asphalt and pretty close together with strips of grass between them. There's a pool with a hot tub close by. The showers are very nice and spacious. The laundry room is more than adequate for a park this size. There's a camp store stocked with incidentals. You're also within walking distance to a number of restaurants and a movie theater. We've very much enjoyed our stay here. Oh, and there's free fruit for the picking. Oranges, lemons and limes. Well- maintained regional park near Santa Margarita, O'Neill Regional Park is basically dry camping with some sites offering water. Clean showers, gravel pads, fire rings, picnic tables, and freshly paved roads. Nice spot for $20.00 a night. Verizon coverage was spotty for streaming video, but good enough for calls, texting, etc.
Rancho Jurupa Regional Park is located in Riverside, California. Choose the Cottonwood campground. Near a portion of the Santa Ann River Trail for cyclists.
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July 2024
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