The drive from Tonopah into California is beautiful. You go from very high desert at 6000 feet all the way to sea level. I got the best gas mileage ever!!!

The view from the valley was just stunning. The Sierra Nevada Mountains were still covered in snow at the higher elevations.

My first stop on this drive was to stay at a little hot springs called Keogh Springs off of Highway 395. It originally was a sacred site for the Paiute Tribe. In 1918 it was turned into a local hot spring by Phillip Keough, a former superintendent of the Wells Fargo stage company. It was very popular in the 1920s and 30s.

I’m not sure when the current building was constructed, but I believe it has been quite some time since it was first built. The current pool is very large and goes from 3.5 feet deep to 9 feet. It was the perfect temperature for swimming.

The pool is kept filled with sprayers at one end. I think this way of adding water to the pool is a way to cool the water before it enters the pool.

At the end of the pool behind the sprayers was a large, covered hot pool. It went from 2 feet to 3.5 feet. It was a nice hot pool – up to 103 degrees.

After a few days soaking in the wonderful hot springs, I continued down the road. My next stop was a Lake Isabella, CA. This was a quiet lake during this time of year. Maddie and I were happy to be the only campers in the park. We took a nice long walk by the lakeside both that evening and the next morning. It rained during the night and there were still stormy clouds around the lake when I woke up.

The drive from Lake Isabella to Bakersfield was just beautiful! I had no idea what was in store for me. Not far from where I camped was a pullout with wonderful views of the lake. It was quite windy by this time but I still had fun exploring the area. There were some pine trees I’d never seen before. They created the largest pine cones I’ve ever seen! Later I learned these trees are Jeffrey Pines.

After you pass the dam of Lake Isabella, you immediately enter a deep canyon with the Kern River. This canyon was just stunning! I wanted to stop several times along the drive close to the dam, but there weren’t any pullouts to do so.

After a few miles descending down the canyon, there were finally several pullouts big enough to accommodate my RV. I think I stopped at every one of them! LOL!

The Kern River is just stunning with all the boulders and small waterfalls and pools.

Eventually I came out of the canyon and into lush farmlands. The valley around the river was covered in orange trees. Just beautiful!

I stayed overnight in Bakersfield as my water heater had stopped working. I’m slowly finding all the things that are old and worn out on my 2011 RV. Thankfully, all that was wrong was a blown fuse. So after a cheap repair, I headed on toward the coast.

Once again, I had no idea what beautiful scenery I would be encountering. I first went through more farmland that was acre after acre of almond trees in full bloom. I just had to stop for a selfie!

Next was the drive from Bakersfield to Morro Bay. I ended up taking the longer route by mistake. But it was a happy mistake! I took Highway 58, which is a very winding, two-lane road that climbs up and over the Tehachepi Mountains. The road got steeper and steeper creating outstanding views. I climbed from 400 feet to 4000 feet!

Many times I had a sheer drop off from the road. The whole time I was climbing this winding, skinny road, I was praying there wouldn’t be an earthquake. I feared if one did occur, I would just be shaken right off the side of the road.

Thankfully I made it up and over safely. It was a steep descent which once again gave me great mileage. The decent was a 7% grade – I had to gear way down.

Finally I was off that scenic drive and headed toward the coast. I was so excited to get my first glimpse of the Pacific Ocean. Ever since I left Las Vegas, NV, everything I am seeing is all new to me.

My first stay at Morro Bay was at Montana de Oro State Park – Islay Creek Campground. I loved this campground. It was right next to Spooner Cove – which I visited every day. Maddie, of course, has never been to the ocean. I wasn’t sure if she would like it because she’s not too keen on water.

Stay tuned to hear all about my stay at Spooner Cove. This area has been my favorite by far on my travels!