After slogging thru all those website updates, it was high time to get out and about. I had planned to take this Presidents’ three-day weekend for a San Diego & L.A. area trip but the weather forecast was crummy (and correct). So, I went last weekend and had glorious sun. I managed to get all the photos up at my website this week.

I have been to the Salton Sea a few times but never explored Bombay Beach — pretty fun. Lots of little art installations include this TV display:

Here’s a sign from the “main drag” (in this tiny town):

I missed the Drive-in but here’s a snip from Google StreetView:

I got a “fruit burrito” at Mary’s Donuts in Lakeside (a fried flour tortilla with fruit inside – I went with lemon). It was a bit overly sweet for me since I rarely eat sugary things these days:

In addition to a giant donut (posted to my Instagram account, with other photos from this mini-trip), Mary’s has a few signs:

The rooftop cow at the Country Market in Morongo Valley has been repainted. That wreath hat must still be there from Christmas:

The former Huish Family Fun Center (now Bullwinkle’s Family Fun Center) in Upland is remodeling and expanding. They plan to have bowling, axe-throwing, a bigger arcade, etc. However, I’m very sad to report that the cute little indoor storybook-themed course from 1972 will be demolished soon for those things:

It was the wrong time of day to shoot this one in San Diego — maybe next time:

The Willcockson House in Indio has been on my to-shoot list for a long time. But it was late in the day and there’s a huge church being built around it with everything fenced off on the gigantic lot. This photo was taken from about a mile away and is best I could do. Maybe when the church is done, I can get closer. Note the concrete parabolic roof:

I posted a shot of the Parkway Bowl in El Cajon over at Instagram but here are a couple of detail shots – the entrance:

And the original lockers inside:

The Mission Bay Visitors Center in San Diego has been restored since the last time I shot it:

This former Dog House restaurant sign is also in San Diego — now advertising for a pet salon and a tattoo/piercing studio. I don’t know if there was a location at this spot or if the sign was brought here from somewhere else.

The chain originated in Youngstown, OH and by the mid-1960s, there were over 220 locations in 33 states. The company went bankrupt in 1968 but there are still a handful of these signs out there. Here are a few vintage photos:

Here’s a cigar store Indian in Monrovia:

I posted a photo of the Dragon Slayer sculpture in Lake Elsinore at Instagram. Here’s a closeup of the guy standing on top of the dragon:

This building in San Diego originally housed the City Dye Works and the arrow sign had text with that name in neon. It originally rotated — I’m not sure if it still does. It has housed a Mexican restaurant since around 2011 and the plastic letters were added then. It now houses the Camino Riviera Mexican restaurant. This paint job was added around 2022:

That’s it for now. I’ll be back with another post in early April after a Central CA & Bay Area trip. Then, there will be a post after another L.A. area & Orange County trip in May. These mini trips are warm-ups for the biggie (five weeks in June/July when I’ll be in the Midwest).

Happy trails,
dj & the dogs

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