Blog 165 Banning to Box Canyon

19th March

Banning was not having its best moment. Bail bond stores, 99 cent thrift shops, law centres and local shops mostly empty. On the high street there was Ramsey self storage, Ramsey towing, tires and mufflers, it was not shopping heaven.

The retro Fox cinema appeared as a bright spark in a town deadened by the I-10 taking everyone past to another place far from here., Still it was downhill out of town and I’d got away early. Except I couldn’t leave town. My satnav took me to the gates of the Morongo Indian reservation and they didn’t want anybody they didn’t know passing through. The security lady at the gate said, "they don't like just anyone you know," and I can sympathise with that sentiment. She also described a way to exit by going under the freeway and winding through the back lanes but in a haze of small engineering works and transportation I couldn’t make sense of what she said and I thought I'd end up having to live in banning all my life, when a guy was walking a horse. We chatted. He’d just sold his small plot of land for $2.9 million, gets the cheque at the end of the month - that was a free nugget he felt inclined to tell a stranger - and he said to go back and ride beside the railroad and I’d come to Cabazon and then there’s a route to Palm Springs.

No Roads Lead Out of Banning (for cyclists)

He was right and beside Family Dollar I had gravy and mash and a coffee for $5.40 at Circle K. A guy turned up and said he was retiring. Inheritance from his grandfather and was going fishing every day - another nugget - and he said there was a motel at Desert Centre called Moodies, I reckoned not and carried on.

Breakfast - yummy!

Palm Canyon Drive and onto Palm Springs. I did not know how beautiful this small desert city was with its fashionable stores and laid back nature. I saw the names; Phylum, Trina Turk, a la mod, Christopher Anthony, the Shag Store...what! A tad outre, if you don't mind my saying.

At Starbucks a tall cyclist called Dave bought me a coffee - now he anchored a major TV show and was a real big hitter in business consultancy, bought out for millions and a little later a lady called Samantha gave me a hug. First time I’d been touched by a woman in 7 months. Excuse me wife!

Portrait of a Bike - the Wabash RT, coming to a dealer near you later this year

Soon I’m in Mecca on Date Palm Drive - it’s all date palm forestry in these parts. Roads are named after what you see - Desert Bloom, Canyon Way, Up a Gum Tree and that's where I turned left at Don Carlos’s Meat Market and before I got lost in the wilderness checked my emails online at the library.

On the road you need to know the location of your services, but moreover I couldn’t face another night ride so set up camp hidden away 15 kms further on in Box Canyon, the half moon lighting up the rocks like silver.  

Map of the Day

I finally made it out of Banning - no hard feelings to the lovely folks in Banning, CA but I need to get New York, NY in this lifetime ... hello I-10!

Postcard from Home

My wife - who I have actually forgotten what she looks like I've been away so long, sends me pictures of my doggies - I have three Border Collies born in a small local farm in mid Wales where I live. The eldest one is the grumpiest called Cadi aged 13 years. Middle one is Tegi aged 6 and is very neurotic and I guess quite a mess if you had to live in her head - some people say the same about me...how cruel:) but her baby is called Pip and a right bundle of fun.