"What are the poor people doing tonight?"

 8:15 am - Wednesday - May 4th - Likely, CA - 47° F, 42% humidity, wind 2 mph out of the southeast....crystal clear, blue, sunny skies today with a forecast high of 76° F...wait, what?  14° warmer than yesterday?  On this date in 2013 we were dry camping at a Walmart about 30 miles from Gettysburg, PA....what an amazing day we spent touring the battlefields at Gettysburg......↴

From almost the first day we arrived at LPRV&G we have wanted to take a day trip to Cedarville, CA on the other side of the Warner Mountains to check out the Surprise Valley Hot Springs facility, so with the rain, snow, sleet, and wind behind us Tuesday we decided to make the 42 mile drive over the mountains, and through the woods to Cedarville.....

Heading up to Cedar Summit (6,350')

Heading down a 6 mile 6% grade to Cedarville, and Surprise Valley

....we arrived at Surprise Valley Hot Springs (6 miles east of Cedarville) around 11:30 am, and took a quick tour of the hot springs facilities......the view back to the west from the lodge is stunning....you can see steam coming up out of the ground in the distance....

.....there are Standard single rooms, Deluxe rooms, as well as one and two bedroom suites.....all have kitchens, and each unit has its own private mineral water hot tub.....

Internet photos from Yel;p

.....there are no communal hot pools at this facility, but TLE and I liked the private nature of having our own hot tub.  Now that we know more about the facility we will make future plans to spend a couple of nights there.

On our drive back over Cedar Summit we caught a fleeting view of majestic Mt. Shasta.....

.....as we approached Alturas on southbound US-395 we decided to stop at Rubio's Taqueria for some street tacos.  The locals rave about this place, and Yelp gives them 4.5 stars on 18 reviews....I know, 18 reviews is not many, but most of the local restaurants have very few reviews, and finding the wife (Kelle) of your boss (Dennis) there picking up lunch kind of clues you into the validity of the 18 reviews, and we were not disappointed.  I ordered two Asada Tacos, and TLE two Pollo Tacos.....my only regret is that I ordered only two....OMG!  This little taqueria has no ambiance, and is no more than a 'hole in the wall' place, but our decades of experience tells us it is in these little 'hole in the wall' places where you find the most amazing, authentic Mexican cuisine.....

Yelp photos of Rubio's Taqueria

....on top of all that they do provide three picnic tables outside to satisfy the alfresco need if you are so inclined.  Most of their trade appears to be 'take out'.

After a brief visit to Holiday and Dollar General markets we were home before 2 pm unloading our purchases. Good news....Holiday Market carries 'Peppered Bacon', so I will not have to go without one of my favorite food groups this summer.  I was getting a little concerned as we were down to a pound, or two in our freezer.....no more worries for me....lol.

I headed over to the driving range to hit another bucket of balls, and was pleased with my consistency with all my clubs, and my putting is improving each time I spend time on the putting green.  Wednesday promises to be our warmest day since we arrived on April 12th, so I plan to play the back 9 holes then.  My lower back is steadily getting more used to the twisting motion involved with hitting a golf ball, so that is also encouraging.

I was back from the driving range/putting green by 4 pm, and headed directly outside to sit in the sun reading.....TLE joined me shortly thereafter.  Around 5 pm she prepared a charcuterie tray for our dinner fair, along with a 'Screwdriver' (vodka, orange juice) to chase it.  We, as you might guess, are not rich, but on nights like this I feel rich....I often turn to TLE and repeat a phrase my father used to speak to me when I was young when we were visiting a beautiful place....he would say...."Clarke, what are the poor people doing tonight?"....my family was not rich either, but on occasions like years ago, and last night I felt rich.....I possess all that I need....I have a wonderful wife, great children, good friends, and I get to live where I wish to live, and move when I wish to move....does it get much better than that?

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