I gave Megaweapon some Christmas lights today. I decided to use battery powered lights again this year, that way I can keep them on when the vehicle is parked if I want to:






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My wife and I recently took another overnight trip to the small, former mining town of Julian, CA to
celebrate my birthday. It was raining and windy much of the time but I managed to get in a couple brief
flights of my Mavic drone.

Our first stop was near the ruins at Buckman Springs. Mineral water from the springs was bottled here
many years ago:







Here's an aerial view of the trees in the canyon near Buckman Springs:






These next three shots are screen captures from 4k video. (I haven't had time to edit the video yet). These
are aerial views of Julian. The Mavic handled the wind and light rain remarkably well:










We stayed in the "patio cottage" at the historic Julian Hotel:




Relaxing on the cottage's porch:





We had an early dinner at Romano's, an Italian/Sicilian restaurant:












Late that evening there was a lull in the storm... no rain, no wind. I took the opportunity to fly my drone
up and down the deserted main street of the town:







Sometime after midnight the main storm moved in, bringing powerful winds and heavy rain. We could hear
small branches cracking and things bouncing off the roof of the cottage. The wind and rain was still going
when we got up in the morning. Here's the view from the cottage porch, and from the hotel's front porch:






Megaweapon in the rain:




We had lunch at the Julian Grille before heading home. Here's the view from our table in the sunroom at
the restaurant:





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Here's the video...

It's early January in the former mining town of Julian, CA. A light rain is beginning to fall as my Mavic Pro
drone flies over this peaceful mountain village. Later that night there's a lull in the weather, as we drift above
deserted streets. By morning the town is hit with high winds and heavy rain.



Enjoy!

Wednesday night I went out to the desert east of San Diego, camped out over night near the tracks of the former San Diego & Arizona Railroad. Got a few night photos:











I got up right around sunrise and hiked along the tracks, which pass through an incredible area known as Carrizo Gorge. I was hoping to make it to the famous Goat Canyon Trestle (roughly 700 feet long and 200 feet high), however I didn't get that far. Still got some neat pics though.

Here I am standing in a culvert made from large blocks of local granite:







Here's Tunnel #21, the last tunnel on the line but the first one you'll come to when entering the gorge from the north:




The tracks still have the original rails from when the line was first built. This rail is dated 1913:




I flew my drone a few times and got some interesting shots:






Some aerial views of Tunnel #20:








Looking south from above Tunnel #20:




Looking east from above Tunnel #20. This area contains traces of the old railroad construction camp:




On the ground, looking south towards Tunnel #20:




The other end of the tunnel:




This was as far as I got. Unfortunately I crashed my drone pretty badly when I tried to fly it through the tunnel. When it lost the GPS signal, it started to drift. I tried to back it out but it drifted into the side of the tunnel. Good thing I paid for the first year insurance on it.

On the way back out I shot a few pics of Megaweapon on the trail:








I still have to edit the video, so I'll post that later.

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What a coincidence, yesterday I was watching TV about abandoned structures (it was the translated version of an american series) and guess what, they went to this exact amazing place. Where did you start your hike?
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I went out past the old water tower at Dos Cabezas siding and drove to the end of the trail:

https://www.google.com/maps/place/32....1689636?hl=en


BTW, in the satellite view you can see a trail that crosses the tracks a mile or two west of the water tower, and goes all the way over to Tunnel #20. Unfortunately the park service closed this route several years ago.

Today is Megaweapon's second birthday! It's been exactly two years since I bought it.








They grow up so fast!

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Couple weeks ago I went out to the desert and hiked along the old railroad tracks, part way into Carrizo Gorge.
Didn't get very far that day, and crashed my drone too.

So last Wednesday night I went out again. Spent the night at trail's end next to the tracks, near the north end of
the gorge. Got up just before dawn, shot a few sunrise pics, and then started hiking. This time I made it to my
goal, which was the famous Goat Canyon Trestle at approximately the mid point of the Carrizo Gorge route.

I'm still working on getting the pics posted to my website, and haven't even begun to work with the video yet.
But for now, here are a few shots of Megaweapon in its natural habitat:









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Thats is a fantastic rig! Looks like a lot of fun to drive, enjoy!

Great! Can't wait to see the video. What was the round-trip hike length?
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Thanks guys! The round trip hike about about 11 miles, maybe 12 tops. Took me nine hours from when I left the 4Runner until I got back, including time spent flying the drone, snapping photos, etc. I was carrying about 25 pounds of gear.

I kind of overdid it on this hike. I've had severe bursitis in my heel since the end of August, and have only recently been able to do much walking. So I'm pretty out of shape (more than usual), plus my foot's not completely healed up yet. By the time I got back I felt like I'd been worked over with a 2x4.

Megaweapon took a bit of damage too. On the way out, there's a steep, pitted drop. It's not bad if you hit it at the right angle, but I miscalculated this time. The passenger side corner of the rear bumper scraped going over the drop, and the part that comes around to the wheel well popped loose:




I'm hoping it can just be popped back in place, so I won't have to pay for a replacement. In the meantime I've used the "handyman's secret weapon -- duct tape" to keep it from flapping around.

I took Megaweapon in the to the dealer today to have them check out that detached bumper. The guy tried to push it back in place but had no more luck than I'd had. He thinks the mounting points at the rear (below the tail light) may be damaged. Also, one of the tabs for the fender screws is definitely broken off.

He sent me to a body shop, the body shop guy said the same thing and gave me an estimate of over $1300 to fix it, including a new bumper cover!

Sounds way too high to me, and so far no one has actually pulled the bumper cover off to find out for sure what damage, if any, there actually is. So I'm debating what my next course of action should be.

IMO I dont see a better time to ditch the rear bumper cover and complete your look with one of those steel rear bumpers. Swing out, gas cans etc. seems like you get far enough out it could be useful?

Here are some photos from my recent trip to Carrizo Gorge...

There is an old water tower next to the tracks at Dos Cabezas siding, that was used to supply the steam locomotives in the days before diesels. I stopped there and got some pics of the tower silhouetted against the stars:




In the morning I got some scenic shots at sunrise:








Then I parked as close to the tracks as possible, and started hiking:




Here's Tunnel #19:




Cactus and rocks along the track:




After passing through Tunnel #19, I entered the Gorge itself. Here the track clings to the side of the mountains, supported by a series of trestles where the slope was too steep to carve out a ledge. The huge Goat Canyon Trestle is visible in the distance:






The catwalk on one trestle was smashed in by fallen boulders:




The steep mountainsides are covered with ocotillos, cholla and barrel cactus, and other desert plants:








Straight sections of track are rare, as the line snakes around the mountainside:






A pair of boxcars that derailed and went over the side back in the early '70s:






Tunnel #18:




More rocks and cacti:




Tunnel #17, with the remains of a construction road above it:



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