These next four posts are all the result of my being there for Aram’s 24th birthday.  As he  “grows up”, and the Navy calls his tune, I cherish any chance I can get to help him celebrate one of the happiest days of my life.

I set out around 9:30 A.M., and made the drive to Blythe in little more than 2 1/2 hours.  It was lunch time, so I went looking for the desert town’s best kept secret, after a photo shoot of the Colorado River, from the AZ side.

Once across, a quick drive down Lovekin Boulevard led me to my goal:

This fine little place does BQ the right way- slowly.  It offers St. Louis-style ribs, and a nice variety of other styles, all in a tiny storefront that seats about 25 people indoors and four outside.  Best of all, this is a sign that Blythe is coming back to stay.

I did my usual blaze across the desert to the Riverside area.  This time, I chose to head down Hwy 79, from Beaumont, through Hemet, and the back country of San Bernardino National Forest, to Oak Grove Campground, just outside Aguanga.

In Hemet, I spent about an hour helping a stranded motorist, near a spot often mentioned by a friend who lives in the town.

Stranded in suburbia shouldn’t happen to anyone.  Once he was safely on his way, so was I.  There were some fine orange groves, and wild back roads, waiting.

I was delighted to find Oak Grove Campground, right off Hwy 79, just east of Aguanga.  Here, I was lulled to sleep by the nearby crickets and not-so-nearby coyotes.

At 6 A.M., Saturday morning, I was up and ready for a day of celebration.