back to baja day 5: Nov 4 - Sacramento Valley to Rancho San Diego, CA

Today's journey through the valley to the City of Angels was smooth and flat through miles and miles of a variety of orchards.

As we approached LA, the weather turned to a soaking rain and we drove into a significant downpour. We followed our friends through a traffic jam, then skirted LA to the east in darkness, over miles of flyovers and endless merging lanes. With maps, GPS and walkie-talkies at the ready, we traversed up and down through twists and turns with our eyes peeled for the mylar-covered back window of R&B's trailer reflecting light like a beacon.

Our stop was situated in a courtyard mall parking lot which served us as the trailhead to the border crossing in the morning. The VON's grocery store chain where we stocked up is owned by Safeway, so the Club Card works there and being close to Starbucks was a plus. We could have spent the winter there as all required services were in the mall from a gym with showers to medical care, a vet, nail salon, hardware store, fast food restaurants and a lovely second-hand clothing shop. There was no problem to staying overnight thanks to the VON's clerks in the beautifully landscaped parking lot. Life is different in California!