Another long gap between posts....this time it is more down to the shame of stupidity. After seemingly taking forever in San Diego to find a gas bottle for our type of stove, we headed out toward the desert at about 2pm on Sunday afternoon. Stopping at the Desert Tower - where you get views out across the Anza-Borrego - we met the owner there who recommended a free camp site out at a hot spring near Brawley. We wanted to get out that way to go to Salvation Moun...

We drove from Oakland to San Diego in a day and arrived late at night at Ted's. Ted was our second HelpX host and we were going to work with him helping with odd jobs around his house like painting fences and putting up guttering. We were so lucky, Ted gave us a self-contained studio for the first few days. His house was in a great area, North Park, and it meant that we could explore San Diego on public transport rather than hiring a car. While we were there C...

Well this visit to Oakland was a whole new experience. We contacted Christina on HelpX (where you work for room and board) and she invited us for a visit for us both to check we were the right fit. Walking down 18th Street was an experience in itself with a clear indication that we were not in Kansas anymore. There were lots of run down houses and gangs on the street. However, turning on to 19th was a completely different story and the houses were well maintai...

We headed from Yosemite towards San Francisco. We stayed in Oakland just over the bay at a place we found on AirB&B. Andy was our host, along with his 13 year old dog Stevie. Andy was a great host and we had the run of his home. We stayed in his spare room and it was great to chat with him and find out about the local area and where was good to go. We were in town for Brett's solar conference and Stirling had flown over from Florida to see us for a few...

Leaving LA after only a day or two was tough as there is always more to do, but we do love a bit of nature and we had been told Big Sur was going to satisfy that craving for us...we were'nt disappointed! The area up this stretch of California coast has barely anyone living in it as the terrain is so dramatic that there is little for people to do here apart from a bit of foresty and tourist stuff at pit stops. Photos don't really do it justice, but the views of t...