Easin’ Along – El Centro, CA and the Imperial Valley

We departed Lake Havasu, AZ after a very delightful and relaxing few days before leaving Arizona until we visit Page and the Grand Canyon in a couple of weeks. In our mind, the next destination was San Diego but, to stay within my driving limit of four hours, we needed an interim stopover. We chose Palm Oasis RV Park located on the Naval Air Station in El Centro, CA, about 15 miles north of the Mexican border.

Our reservations were for only two nights. Therefore, we looked at this stop as “downtime” and a chance to do laundry, catch up on email and phone calls, and do some maintenance on Lucy.  Besides, we knew nothing about the area and had no plans. On the way there, Helen, as she usually does, did some digging on the internet to see if there are any exciting sightseeing opportunities.

She learned that El Centro is in the middle of California’s Imperial Valley where farms covering thousands of acres have produced a significant portion of the nation’s fruit and vegetables since the 1930s.  When dams along the Colorado River made irrigation possible, farms flourished, and the previously impoverished Imperial Valley inhabitants suddenly had a means of making a substantial income. We decided to drive through the Valley and pay a visit to the nearby Salton Sea instead of doing laundry.

Checking into the Palm Oasis RV Park was smooth and efficient, but the weather was something else. The wind kicked up to 50-mile gusts, and Lucy rocked to them all night.  The next day, the winds subsided, but the temperatures approached 100 degrees. We ignored the temperatures and drove into the Imperial Valley and the Sonny Bono Wildlife Refuge, named for the singer and former Congressman from Southern California.

Along the highway, fields of crops of every variety stretched as far as the eye could see. We spotted corn, onions, sugar beets, wheat, dates, and cabbage. Everywhere we looked, fields of green filled our view. I had heard of the Imperial Valley but thought it was somewhere between Los Angeles and San Francisco, not in the desert region of the state. I was impressed.

We visited the Sonny Bono Wildlife Refuge but saw no wildlife, only some pretty flowers. After a short hike in the 100-degree heat, we thought we might be better off driving to the Salton Sea, a body of water created in 1905 when the Colorado River broke through a poorly constructed dam and filled the Salton Basin over the next two years. We did not know that the Salton Sea, is now considered toxic and that evaporation has caused the salinity to rise significantly.

I later learned that the sea was a tourist hotspot in the 1950s and ’60s, but now is abandoned.  We could not find an access road to the shores but did venture down a trail we thought would lead us there, only to find an abandoned trailer park. This picture shows that perhaps better days for the Salton Sea have passed.

Driving back to El Centro, Helen decided that she had to have a “Date Shake,” a milkshake flavored with fresh dates.  We pulled into the only Date Shake spot mentioned on Trip Advisor. Helen got a shake while I sampled a variety of dates. All were good, and I ended up with two containers. I haven’t had dates since I was a child and my mother always had a box of Dromedary Dates on hand at Christmas. While there we saw signs advertising the annual El Centro Town Festival.  We love Festivals.

Although things were getting underway when we arrived in the town center, parking was tight. We found a spot behind the corner filling station and walked toward the music. Vendor booths lined two streets, and a band was tuning their instruments. The vendors primarily offered local produce, but there was the usual assortment of makeup dealers, jewelry vendors, and baked goods. We purchased some beautiful vegetables then passed by a stand offering pies.  I had to have an apple/peach. One pie went home with us.

The next day promised more 50-mile winds and 100 degree plus temperatures. I was ready for San Diego but glad that we had the opportunity to learn about an essential region of the country.  A note for our Military Living readers—Palm Oasis is a very nice campground with full hookups and offers a variety of recreational opportunities.  El Centro is the winter training site for the Blue Angels, the Navy’s precision flying team, and the full-time RVers told us that the training flights are almost as good as an air show. I’m sorry we missed them.

That’s about it from the Imperial Valley. Thanks so much for joining us. We’re Easin’ Along to San Diego.