We departed the Thousand Trails in Palm Desert, California, and headed to Buckeye, Arizona.

Here’s the route map (left to right); 228 miles, a 4 hour drive in our coach:

I picked up Paladin; he looked mildly freaked out by the view out the windshield:

A slow crawl uphill through a pass:

We stopped at a rest stop for lunch:

We had a prefab meal for lunch; Jenn called it Lunchables for adults:

Back on the I-10 freeway:

Paladin snuck behind the driver seat and by Jenn’s feet, which is risky, so I made a barrier:

Date palms:

While on a freeway I use the iExit app to find upcoming rest areas. Here’s a screenshot of it while approaching the California/Arizona border, and the first rest area after the border:

About to cross into Arizona (again):

Welcome to Arizona:

We stopped at that rest area:

Continuing through some hills:

Interesting mountains in the distance:

Cacti:

Once again, Paladin settled down in the safe space next to my chair:

Another rest area exit; it’s good to take a break every hour or so on a long drive; we also stopped here to call our next destination:

Leaving the rest area (yes, we park with the big rigs):

Oh joy, road works:

Our final exit for this trip:

As always, the timelapse video of this trip will be coming tomorrow. Enjoy!