Harold’s Thoughtful Person of the Day: The waiter at Shoreline Cafe!

 Santa Barbara to Joshua Tree via LA

Before leaving Santa Barbara Harold, Susan and Steve had a delicious lunch at Shoreline Cafe.   After originally thinking we had to get our food and eat out near the parking lot, this waiter went out of his way to inform us we could sit out on the back deck (we did not know there was one), and told us they could clear room for Harold and his chair.  It was clear he was a very thoughtful young man, so he gets Harold shout out for the day!  We then picked up Izzy from her final class before a 4 day weekend, and headed to LA to pick up Steve’s son Chase.  

Instead of fighting LA traffic on the night before Good Friday, we decide to have dinner in LA, let traffic die down, and head east 3 hours to Joshua Tree National National Park.  We loaded up the MV1 and were on our way!!

What starts out as a fun road trip usually turns into Steve driving and everyone else napping!!  Especially Susan!! LOL.  You will see this as a common Thoughtful Traveler theme as we continue, and we will always have proving picture documentation!

Airbnb – You need to try it!

Our accommodations for the desert was booked through Air B&B.  For those of you who have not yet tried this  type of lodging, you must try it.  The concept of the site is that “regular” home owners rent out parts of their home or the entire home to travelers.  We have only rented out full homes, and we enjoy the space, privacy, and ability to stay in and cook meals.  For us, cooking is something we all love doing together, and so for us Airbnb works well.   For example, click here to see the exact place we stayed at in Joshua Tree.

As you can see we found a wheelchair accessible place.  Note the huge roll in shower!  In addition, we had spacious accommodations with a private back patio area, and a separate spare guest house as well.   We have had several experiences now with Airbnb, and we are fans!

When searching on their site, under “more filters” and “Facilities” you can check off Wheelchair Accessible!  This has been incredibly helpful for us, and we will continue to post our little tips and tricks about planning and booking travel.  Our place was amazing.

 

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Joshua Tree National Park

The National Park web site, is a great place to visit and research the various facts of the national park you might be visiting.   Also remember that those with a permanent diability get a lifetime free pass to all National Parks!  For more information on Accessibility and the National Parks Service, click here for a brochure.

For Joshua Tree specifically, check out their accessibility page here to learn about all the different areas within the park that are perfect for normal wheelchairs.  If you have a racing chair like Harold’s, you can definitely handle some of the other “off road” type trials.

Our first stop at Joshua Tree was to the Visitor Center which has a great accessible shaded area and gift shop as well as a walking path.  We took advantage with Harold and took a relaxing stroll.

After the visitor center we set out to explore the park, and hit some of the more scenic areas.  Pictures are worth a thousand words, and will let them do the explaining. Just be sure to have plenty of water and a full tank of gas when you head into the park.

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Susan, JUST SAY NO!!!

So Susan went with Izzy to spot her while she did some bouldering, a form of rock climbing.  Steve won’t be taking up the sport anytime soon, as standard equipment are what they call “crash pads”.  Yup, as in pads to support a potential crash landing!!  Izzy shared a few crash pads to some of the others who were climbing, and afterwards as a thank you, asked Izzy and Susan if they smoked LOL.  Of course they said NO, but it does make for a funny story.   Check out Izzy below!

 

Lastly, Chase and Steve drove out into the park on the last night to get a great look at the stars without all the ambient light of the main roads and houses.  The stars out in the desert are simply amazing, and makes you feel really small.  God’s creation is truly immense, which makes it all the more amazing that he chose us and loves us unconditionally.

He counts the number of the stars; He gives names to all of them (Psalms 147:4)