Wrightwood and the Angeles Crest Hwy

Sept 27^th

Another beautiful day with the temperatures expected to get into the mid 80’s. I spent the morning replacing the GFI outlet only to not correct the problem. We had this happen once before in Florida and I knew there was a simple solution but no amount of dredging our memories told us what it was. None of the operating documents for the coach showed us where there might be a circuit breaker panel with a switch to throw. In fact the owners manual says there are four different circuit panels then identifies only three.

After tearing out what little hair I have left, I called the Fleetwood service department. They were at lunch so I left a message. Not really expecting a response from Fleetwood I finally called the office and got the name of the local mobile RV tech and called him. He was actually on his way here and promised to see me in 20 minutes. Three minutes before he arrived Fleetwood called and told me to check the circuit breaker on the inverter. One of the two was tripped so I flipped it back and came into the coach. Tina said the microwave was off. Ahah! Wrong switch.

I went back outside just as the mobile tech arrived. I told him the problem and he said to reset the switch. I did and he said “…no charge” and drove off. I went back in the coach to check the circuit and I couldn’t get anything to work in the outlet even though the TV’s came on. That’s when Tina asked me if I reset the GFI? Ahhhh, no I hadn’t. So I did and everything worked. Finally. It only took another 30 minutes to stuff all the wires back in the wall and button everything up.

Don and Diane arrived around 10:30 AM and after taking a shower, getting the dogs and their gear stowed, cameras, sunglasses and water in the car we headed for I-10 E to drive out to I-15 towards Las Vegas. Sixteen miles further on we exited I-15 to Pine Canyon Rd for the drive to Wrightwood.

The Mormon Rochs sandstone formation

Everything is very dry and dusty and there’s not a lot of green anywhere. But on our right are some spectacular sandstone formations called the Mormon Rocks, named for the Mormon pioneers and freighters who would camp near here after completing their trip across the Mojave. These structures sit atop the San Andreas Fault which has two major fault zones in the area. The Mormon Rocks are the direct result of stress from the fault causing various structural deformations of the stratigraphy: faulting, fissures, folding, and tilting. The area stratigraphy records more than 14 significant earthquakes over the past 1,500 years.

Lunch at the Grizzly Cafe

We stopped to take a few photos then continued on to Wrightwood where we stopped at the Grizzly Café for lunch. This was a really nice lunch stop – we were able to order and eat out on the patio with the dogs having their own grassy area and water bowl. The food was very good and the service excellent with a smiling waitress. The town started when the brothers Sumner and Buford Wright eventually acquired over two thirds of the land in the valley and created the village of Wrightwood.

Can you spot all the bees?

Leaving Wrightwood we started along the Angeles Crest Highway. The Scenic Byway runs 66 miles from the Mountain Top junction at SR138 to La Cañada-Flintridge. Our drive from Wrightwood was only 56 miles. The concept for "the most scenic and picturesque mountain road in the state" was developed in 1912, and the funding allocated beginning in 1919. The construction, piece by piece, started in 1929 and continued until 1956, with the exception of the years 1941 through 1946 during WWII. The scenic byway ascends up and winds its way through the Angeles National Forest, through chaparral, and montane forest habitats, along the highest and most scenic ridges of the San Gabriel mountain range.

Hey, we're having a good time!!

Some of the many antennas on Mt Wilson

Nearing the end of the drive we took a side trip up to Mt Wilson Observatory. The facility is only open to  public viewing on weekends so we weren't able to go inside the observatory but the site with all the communications towers bristling across the mountain top were pretty impressive. Founded in 1904 by George Hale under the auspices of the Carnegie Institution of Washington. In that year, Hale brought the Snow Solar Telescope from Yerkes Observatory in southern Wisconsin to the sunnier and steadier skies of Mount Wilson to continue his studies of the Sun. With a small cadre of Yerkes scientists and engineers accompanying him, Hale started what would become the world’s foremost astronomical research facility.

The skyscrapers of LA sticking out of the smog 50 miles away

With many stops for photos, including LA sticking up out of the smog, we made the drive in three hours reaching La Cañada around 4:30 PM finally returning to I-10 and heading for Pomona to have dinner at Joey’s BBQ. We got to downtown Pomona and parked in front of Joey’s only to find that they are only open until 2:00 PM on Tuesday. Dang! Oh well, it wasn’t meant to be. So we went two doors down to the Bistro, sat out on the sidewalk with the dogs and had another great dinner!

After dinner we drove back to the coach and bid our friends adieu until the morrow!

To see all our photos, go to:

http://picasaweb.google.com/mjdolanski