Day 9: Rest Day in Catalina

Always new experiences to be had...this one involves sitting in the bathroom with my computer doodads, wifi hotspot and etc. to do my blog.  Last night whenever I woke I was mystified to feel grit on my pillow and blanket but I never explored the problem too deeply.  This morning we woke to violent winds buffeting the tent and everything inside it completely covered with fine sand.  We thought it was just us, having failed to close the outer door up tight-- we usually leave it open for ventilation.  Later it turned out that the wind was strong enough and the grit fine enough that it got into all of the tents.  Even worse, it soon began to pelt rain.  I finally got the  energy to stagger out and found that we were being shuttled off site for breakfast.  The wind and rain were so violent that they couldn't keep the stoves lit and the plates and etc. were being blown away.  So, off we went to the "Sunny Side-up" (ha ha) for breakfast.  Fortunately most of us see the funny crazy side of this experience and keep laughing.  One couple has failed to see any humor at all and has gone off to a hotel, another guy has decided to go home to Texas and maybe rejoin us in a couple of weeks (but I bet he won't do it!) John is back in our tent which has so far remained dry-- a few of the others, less luckily sited, are sucking up water from the ground and the occupants have had to pack up and bring all their stuff up here to the bathoom.  What a day!  The great thing, of course, is that we don't have to ride and there is a movie complex not so far away so perhaps they will take us down there this afternoon.