We spent today at one of our favorite places, Joshua Tree National Park. The NPS website warned against possible long lines at the Joshua Tree and 29 Palms entrances, so we drove east on I-10 and entered at Cottonwood, where there was no line at all. We stopped at the Visitor Center and took a short walk, then drove north on Pinto Basin Road, stopping frequently for photos.

Three hours later, we left the park for lunch in 29 Palms – Yelp guided us to Andreas Char-Broiled Burgers, which we’d chosen because it offered outdoor dining and bison burgers. The outdoor dining was a choice of picnic tables in the sun – on the other hand, the restaurant itself was air conditioned and almost empty, so we had our first indoor restaurant meal in more than 403 days in what I can confidently describe as “less than splendor”. But the food was OK and the people were cheerful and helpful and it was clean and we’d been vaccinated so it was all fine.

After lunch, we went back into the park at the 29 Palms entrance and drove along Park Blvd to get to the Joshua Tree exit, stopping frequently for photos.

Once we left the park, we drove to Windmill Market in North Palm Springs for a date shake and then back to the hotel – there were no photo stops.

It was a very good day.

The day started early because I was Toastmaster for the Silver Tongued Cats meeting this morning. I had chosen “On The Road Again” as the theme of the meeting, and our Table Topics Master asked amusing questions about road trips (for example, “What would you ask Willie Nelson if you went on a road trip with him?).

After the meeting, Diane and I took a walk through the resort and enjoyed the flowers and birds.

We had lunch at Ernie’s Bar and Grill at PGA West with a friend from trivia, then visited her at her house on the Palmer golf course. On the way back from PGA West, we stopped at Shields Date Farm for a delicious date shake and a quick walk through the garden there. Unfortunately, they’re not showing “The Romance and Sex Life of the Date” because of COVID-19, but it’s available online.

We made dinner in our unit – in previous stays at Westin timeshares, the kitchens have been well stocked with pots, pans, and the like, but this time, we’ve been surprised by what’s missing, like measuring cups, colanders, and wine glasses. I’m not sure what’s going on – I didn’t think the resort’s COVID precautions and closures should affect kitchen equipment.