After waking up the next morning I got coffee and cigarettes at a local gas station and made the 5 miles trip to Keough Hot Ditch for a nice morning bath. Before I left Bishop however I noticed what a unique and strange town this was. they had a Ben Franklin, honest to goodness I thought those were long gone. and some other weird and strange stores along the wild west looking street front. Thing I missed: Laws Railroad Museum , with its stuffed two bodied sheep.

I made it to the hot ditch that looked inviting enough and was beauty in nature underneath the huge powerlines towering 100 feet high carrying the power needed for Los Angeles to continue surviving. It was ironic at the very least. i also discovered that Los Angeles actually owns the land under the lines and allows their use for camping, hiking, swimming and off roading. It was strange being as I was nearly 200 miles away from LA. LA NEEDS POWER and they are gonna get it no matter what!!!!! I donned my birthday suit once again and took my dip in the ditch which was nice and warm, not quite warm enough for me, but refreshing and nice enough. I left the ditch beind and headed further south on the 395 towards home.

I next arrived at Camp/Fort Independence. It was an army outpost originally began in 1862 to battle indian insurgencies and stop attacks on settlers. It was briefly abandoned when hostilities ceased by reoccupied a short time later for another 12 years. There was nothing left of the site except a creek and some sage. I picked the Sage and placed it on the dash of my truck and it made it smell nice. The sage now sits on my window sill at home.

The Next stop was Manzanar. This was a Japanese internment camp during world war 2. I was impressed by the displays and photographs of the culture of the time. It attempted to explain why the United States put japanese americans in these camps and was respectful of their culture, while not holding back on the truth of the discrimination they suffered. the Outlines of the footprints of the building were visible, and the original auditorium had been made into the visitors center. Something I had zero knowledge about, I was truly educated and glad that I had stopped.

Hey! Who let that weirdo in the picture?

After Fossil falls I was bound to find just one more hot spring before finally heading home. I drove up the Kern river valley to lake isabella and the Sequoia National forest. I finally found the Hobo Campground next door to Miracle hot Springs. Miracle Hot Springs used to be a hot bath resort many decades ago. The place was torn down and over the years various groups of volunteers have attempted to replace the pools and piping systems to make them bathable, however its current state is complete disrepair and was unbathable. Disappointed but not discouraged I headed a few more miles further down the road and found Remington Hot Springs. After a half mile hike down a steep trail, I arrived at Remington. I was rewarded with the most precious gem or all the springs I had visited to date. the pools had been poured with cement and inlaid with decorative stone and engraved with encouraging and positive statements. Like "all the earth's children are welcome". There were several pools of varying temperature, they were clean, the pipes had been ran, the drainage and flow were awesome and 2 or 3 caretakers were there lounging in the buff. They made me wash my feet before getting in but then once i was in we chatted about the springs and how to engineer good flow and the need to keep them cleaned and maintained. the volunteers took pride in this spring and it showed. This spring was free, in nature and was a beauty all waiting for someone a little bit adventurous to make the steep climb. At some point i got hot enough to warrant a dip in the 55 degree kern river, when i did take the plunge one of the spring goers handed me his gold pan to dig out some dirt on the river bottom. He never found any gold.

After the hot spring, it was a 3 hour drive back down the kern river valley and through the desert to crestline in the
San Bernardino Mountains.
When i got home, i was happy. She was not foremost in my mind. My heart was still broken, but i felt like i could function and perhaps move on.
It would have been nice if we would have stayed together and I could have taken her along on this trip of a limetime. But, now I know the things to see, the places to eat and camp and the places
I want to not miss the next time.

I accomplished this over 2000 mile trip in six days and spent a little over $400 mostly on gas. The hotels were free using rewards points, but camping would have been much more enjoyable and convenient. It got my mind off the relationship and onto myself. I was able to think clearly about it some, but no solution came for me, except that there were things we should have talked about that we didnt. Truly a happy ending for such a tragic situation. I found what I was looking for, a sense of accomplishment, seeing the beauty of nature, peace and relaxation. I quickly came to the conclusion that there was nothing wrong with me! I had come many many steps closer to forgiving even though I could not forget.

All in All, it was a wonderful day, filled with fun, beauty, and education covering 365 miles in 12 hours.