Today’s stretch was very familiar as it took us through the Anza Borrego Desert Park. I don’t propose to cover all the cacti that we saw – just turn to the Diary reports for 21 February, 1 March 20 March and 26 March 2008, 20 March 2010, 25 and 27 March 2011 for the plants we saw then.
The only exception is that Eunice took us to see Dudleya pulverulenta ssp arizonica. I recognised the spot where I had been in March 2008 because Eunice had shouted STOP, but Cliff, Ian and I had had enough of ‘lettuces’ after three weeks in Baja.
Angie and I had arranged to meet Eunice at the fuel station at the Ocotillo exit on the I-10 and the S2. In the past we had been given a hard time by the members of the US Border Patrol when they came across a UK resident with a Dutch Passport and a British National with a German accent, but today there was no one on duty.
We stopped at some specific Ferocactus cylindraceus plants from previous visits – multi headed plants with heads going cristate etc. When Eunice wanted to show us a plant that she and Alain Buffel had found during their 2012 visit she got a shock: the plant that Alain had photographed and used as his 2012 Christmas card, was no more. It seems that the centre of the multi headed stem had rotten and had broken up into bits, some still alive.
Very few cacti were in flower but plenty were in bud and with rain forecast, the flowering cacti should be spectacular! But Angie will be be back in England by then.
There were some spectacular skies as we drove towards Anaheim where a Motel 6 had again kept the light on for us.
It was unimaginable to head for LA without a visit to the Julian Pie Shop in Santa Ysabel – yum yum.
The Cactus Trip Diaries 
Comments on: "Wednesday, 26 February 2014 – El Centro to Anaheim" (1)
“a UK resident with a Dutch Passport and a British National with a German accent” – ah yes well known terrorist characteristics!