Swimmin' Pools, Movie Stars

7/17

Palm Springs Aerial Tramway was our must-do today.  We woke up early to ensure getting on the first tram up Mt. San Jacinto.

We drove up the mountain to about 2000 feet then the tram took us to about 8600 feet. What a wonderful journey!  The aerial tramway ride takes about 10 minutes to climb the mountain.  As we ascend, the passengers stand.  The tram had a rotating floor so you could see every view possible.  

The top of the mountain is a state park.  There were backpacking trails, rustic campgrounds, day hiking, and shorter trails.  We opted for the mile and a half trail.  On this journey, we were able to see various views of Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley.  It was breath-taking!  

Fun fact:  there are many very large Jeffrey Pines that call the mountain home.  When you smell the bark, it smells like butterscotch and vanilla.  Nature rules!  

The tram ride down was just as pleasant.  Then off to lunch in downtown Palm Springs.  We ate outside at Tacos and Tequila, right on the main strip of downtown.  We had beverages at the Starbucks Reserve, which is an upscale SB with a huge selections of fancy coffees. Most of the outdoor cafes and shops use misters, which emit a very fine, cool mist of water; quite refreshing.  They actually had vegan tacos!  

Liberace's front gate with Grand Piano mailbox

Walt Disney's Palm Springs home.

Elvis and Priscilla's Honeymoon Hideaway

For fun, Dan & I comprised a list of all the past celebrities whom have made Palm Springs their little get-way.  Using Google, we were able to find about 20 addresses.  So we planned a route and drove around finding them all.  Here is a partial list: Elvis & Priscilla’s Honeymoon Hideaway, Lucy & Desi’s, Liz Taylor, Clark Gable, Liberace (complete with piano mailbox,) Debbie Reynolds, The Reagan’s, Marilyn Monroe, Bing Crosby,  Nat “King” Cole,

and my favorite, Walt Disney!  That was a lot of fun.

We dined downtown at the Blue Coyote, under the stars and palm trees.  A delicious mix of Mexican and Southwest foods. It was a great way to end a wonderful day.  We both truly enjoyed Palm Springs!  

Our campground for the night is the Happy Traveler, literally 2 blocks from downtown.  It’s hidden away behind shrubbery so you would never know it’s there.  It was a nice place to stay! Now tomorrow, we leave the desert temperatures of every day in the 100-teens and head up to the mountains.   Our destination: Big Bear Lake.

Remember there's lots more of our adventure to see on our YouTube Channel:

"The Ramblers 88". https://www.youtube.com/c/TheRamblers88

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