I’ve been on the road for almost a week now, driving along Route 8 from San Diego through to Tucson, Arizona. With no solid plans, I’ve managed to find out about upcoming highlights and worthwhile detours from my Twitter followers and Facebook fans – as well as a few people I’ve met along the way.

One of the first unplanned stops that I came across was the Desert View Tower in Jacumba, California. It is a stone tower in the middle of nowhere that was built in the 1920′s by a local land owner (Bert Vaughan) to commemorate a route which was once a difficult pass, but was becoming more trafficked as railroads and improved roadways were being constructed nearby. A stone sculptor added some carvings around the tower in the 1930′s, which I came across while hiking across the field of boulders leading up to the tower.

I met the current owner, Ben Shultz, who has lived there for the past 10 years. He has so many pets running around, I suggested that he start a zoo to bring more people in to see the tower.  Being quite a prankster, he sent me on what turned out to be a wild goose chase for the famed “desert springs” up on top of the tallest peak in the area. Here are a few snapshots from that hike up to the springs (click to view full size). The Desert View Tower can be seen in the background of the final shot (behind the springs):