Member-only story
See the USA On COVID-19: Moving Cross Country During the Pandemic
Day One: Yuma to El Paso
We left Southern California March 26, headed for Punta Gorda, Florida.
We didn’t know what to expect, driving cross-country with our sole possessions. We were headed toward a new home we hoped — but did not know — we could reach. The United States in coronavirus quarantine is stark, lonely, sometimes terrifying, and ultimately, magnificent.
Driving east on the 8 toward Yuma, we encountered a late snowstorm. My heart pounded as we drove through at least ten minutes of wind-driven, near white-out snow. Fortunately it was barely above freezing and the windshield didn’t ice.
Like all desert towns, Yuma has a harsh beauty, magnified by isolation and “stay at home” orders.
We stayed in the Howard Johnson’s, but there were no crisp, rubbery clam strips this time, just a basic room with a small cockroach and a decent shower.
