My Recent Morning Commute

This past Monday morning I was treated to a beautiful commute to work. I’ve posted before about my drive to and from work, and about some of the things I’ve encountered – some good, some bad. This post is about a good thing: the view.

I don’t have a scenic route to take to and from work. I drive through mostly residential neighborhoods, and a couple of commercial and light industrial areas. I don’t need to take the freeway. I pretty much live due east of where I work, so the sun is always behind me whether it’s early morning or late afternoon – except during certain times of the year when the sun hasn’t come up yet, or has already set for the day.

On one part of my drive – if it’s a clear day – I can see the buildings in downtown Los Angeles through my front windshield. At the same time I can see Saddleback Mountain in South Orange County in my rearview mirror. Most people would probably not even notice such a thing, but for me, it’s a treat. The key thing is that it must be a clear day. Monday and Tuesday (Nov. 6 and 7) were so crystal clear it was almost unbelievable. I couldn’t take a picture since I didn’t have my camera. And I was driving anyway. However, I’m able to share these pictures (off the web) to give you an idea:



This part of my commute is through the city of Whittier on Lambert Ave., and is approximately 20 miles from downtown L.A. It’s probably a little further to Saddleback Mountain in the opposite direction.

A little loser to my work I have to cross the San Gabriel River. This is the highest bridge I cross to and from work, and I’ve talked about this same bridge on an earlier post being one of my favorite parts of the drive home. Well the opposite view on the way to work is usually of the smoggy L.A. basin. I don’t often get to see the buildings in downtown L.A., but this past Mon. and Tue. morning, they were stunning.

From that same bridge, I can see the San Gabriel Mountains. During most of the summer the hazy smog obscures the view of the mountains so that they blend together like a big bland mass. But on Mon. and Tue. the view was so clear; the way the morning sun created shadows on the mountainside I could really see their depth. The commuters on the 210 freeway must have really been able to enjoy the view.


Closer still to my work, I’m always able to see airplanes turning in the sky as they make their final approach to LAX. Well Mon. and Tue. morning, the planes looked so clear they appeared to be closer than usual. And the way they were contrasting against the blue sky behind them was just spectacular. Here’s an idea of what that looked like:


The coolest thing for me was the near-full moon (it was full on Sun. 11-5-06). It was in view in the morning sky until about 8:30 a.m. and in contrast with the blue sky behind it. Here’s an idea of what that looked like:


Well I hope you’ve enjoyed my post this week. And I hope your commute is always pleasant, whether you travel to work or somewhere else. God Bless!