1963 FAMILY TRIP TO CALIFORNIA-part 1

      In the summer of 1963, my mother, my younger sister Deborah, Sandi Ferguson my finance, and myself headed to California in the family's 1959 four door hardtop Chevrolet. I really do not remember every leg of the journey in detail, but, would like to point out a few memories that for some reason stood out with me.

       The interstate system, to some extent was completed by then, but, really do not remember to much about it. One area that I first recall had to do with the leg of the trip from Flagstaff to Phoenix, Arizona.

      Our Chevy did not have air-conditioning like a lot of cars at the time. Once we descended from Flagstaff, it became extremely hot as it was Arizona, in the desert, and it was summer. I remember trying to open the front window and it didn't help and neither did opening the air vent as it just let in more hot air that felt like pins hitting you. But, somehow we survived.

       We stayed in Phoenix at this motel with an outdoor motel and then got up during the evening to cross desert and heading then on to the San Diego area to visit an Aunt of my mother's. It was a much cooler trip, obviously, driving during the night .

      We had heard that we needed to be careful in low lying areas driving, due to  possible flash flooding from time to time. I remember driving and hearing this buzzing sound and I thought it was a flash flood coming to wipe us out. No! It was some type of regional power station and the generator's were just making the sound.

      One other thing that impressed me was in the early morning on our way to Chula Vista from Phoenix was seeing these huge sand dunes for the first time in the desert area east of that part of California. Quite impressive indeed!

------------------to be continued.