Imagine This

Southern Sinagua farmers built five-story, 20  room dwellings in the early 1100's. It was amazing to see the structures built into the cliff overlooking the valley! The National Park site was named, Montezuma Castle because it was assumed that it was Aztec in origin. New facts have proven this questionable. 45 rooms were built into the rock cliff and sometimes shared by three families. 

A creek was the source of water for growing their crops of corn, beans, squash, and cotton. Gathering of berries, and hunting of deer, antelope, rabbits, and duck provided them with a great source of food in their lovely valley. This Verde Valley location was home to settlers for thousands of years and is located 50 miles south of Flagstaff, AZ. I would highly recommend the stop to visit if in the area.

Time Flies

Wow, it has already been a week since Luke and Kendall joined us in Las Vegas! Time sure does fly! We fit a lot into this Vegas visit, also.

Luke's wish was to see Hoover Dam, which we did. Rick and were disappointed to learn that there was no more, "Hard Hat Tour" since 9/11! But, still an interesting guided tour into parts of the dam. The weather could not have been more perfect for this day's outing!

We decided to take the RV to the Grand Canyon instead of the WHOLE day drive like we did with Jess and Rob. This turned out to be a good choice, and we spent the night in the Large Rig campground. Luke and Kendall took the jeep day #1 and found the trolley to jump on and off of. So, they had some alone time viewing the majestic canyon as Rick and I cleaned the coach. The following day, we all did some more drive and look trip. Heading back to Vegas proved to be interesting.

As we neared the Hoover Dam, traffic was backed up! We were happy to have a bathroom, food, and drink for the wait! Because of the high winds, some reaching as high as 80 mph, power lines had blown down at the dam crossing bridge. Luckily out wait was only about one hour.

During the stay we went to, "Le Reve" that had been recommended. It was an awesome performance performed at the Wynn. The theme was a love story taking place along the river. I still can't get over the fact that the stage was set in a pool of water that had fountains, props, up and down leveling, and dancers and divers going in, out, and up and down! The domed ceiling must have been 70 feet high with acrobats ascending and descending! How they could hold onto each other and not slip from moisture is beyond me! 

Luke was so impressed with Penn and Tillers picture on the Rio, that Rick bought tickets to the show. Kendall and Luke enjoy, "The Apprentice" and thoroughly enjoyed the performance. Magic, humor, and wonder were all incorporated. Kendall stated that she was sitting next to the biggest sceptic, and that would be me. :)

A visit with Aunt Cindy, and too much food also added to the trip. Now, the kids are home and we are trying to lose a few pounds as we sit in Sedona, AZ. The weather is beautiful, as it is back in Wisconsin. Just wait, my prediction is that when we head home a HUGE snowstorm will hit!

China Ranch Date Farm

I talked Rick into another Harvest Host stopover. We decided to spend a free night at the China Ranch Date Farm, and turned off the highway to find it. It was easy to follow their signs through the desert! However, the road became quite interesting, and I could feel Rick tense up. Through steep hills and sometimes one lane roads, we made it to the bottom of the canyon!

The date farm was started by a man from China, but is now under new ownership. It was fun to walk through the date groves, all labeled with informative signs. The crops were able to be raised because of one small river running through causing the oasis. Clever irrigation paths were seen running to the trees. A flea market shop was in the main building with a bakery and malt shop. Everyone that we ran into could not believe that we had not ordered their famous date malt. Oh, well..................

Winnie decided to escape and run away into the twisted brush area behind our coach, so we talked and had a wine with a couple from California while we waited for her return. We were all a bit nervous as coyotes roam the land. I guess she was tired of Rick's cat calls, as she eventually returned. 

We decided to go to Shoshone to the famous and only saloon in town called, The Crowbar." We shared an order of fajitas and then headed back to the date farm. It was a much easier drive in a jeep. After our night of sleep all alone, Rick decided that he was tired of the desert, and wanted a nice camp. He had researched and off we went to Terrible's RV Resort in Pahrump, Nevada. 

Kelso, California

Leaving Twenty Nine Palms, we headed for the China Date Farm. It was almost lunch time and we both needed to stretch our legs! As we rounded the bend, we saw a sign for Kelso and thought we would stop the RV and get out for a bit. 

It was a lovely spot that is now more or less a ghost town. However, the Park Service has financed a huge restoration project to maintain the old depot and its grounds that were once very popular during the depression. The railroad stored "helper engines" here to help push the trains up the steep grade of the mountains. The land was owned by the Union Pacific Railroad, and it was a major stop. Housing was put up quickly for the help. Living in the desert must have been a bit lonely, and apparently many chose to drink heavily. A double sided, steel jail was used often to house the drunks of the day!

After a turkey sandwich, we wandered throughout the depot rooms set up as a museum. The railroad history was explained, along with a library. I found the local cacti fund raiser interesting. Local children painted their cactus to be auctioned off in May. Rick would not let me bid on one! So, back to the coach we went, and headed for the China Date Farm.

Visiting Joshua Tree National Park

We decided to stay at Twenty Nine Palms RV Park in California for three nights. That way we could do day trips into the park with the jeep. The temperatures were still cool, and I kept wishing that it would raise about 10 degrees. However, Rick was quick to remind me that it was the perfect temp for hiking, which we found ourselves doing quite a bit.

Day one we entered the North Entrance of the park, where I got my National Park Passport stamp. We drove the long southeast path toward Cottonwood Spring. Driving along we began to appreciate the Joshua trees in their funny, Dr. Seuss look as they twist and turn with greenery on the ends of their branches. They can grow to 40 feet tall, but only gain an inch/year!

Our next stop was the Cholia Cactus Garden. The garden is dominated by cholla (choy ya) nicknamed "Jumping Cholla" as they tend to stick to anything that they touch. We witnessed one woman using a pliers to pull the cactus barbs from her tennis shoes after getting too close! This reminded me to look, read, but stay on the path through the garden.

Upon arriving at Cottonwood Spring, we started another hike through desert and sand to the rock boulders, as we climbed higher. Rick stated that we never took up rock climbing because Jess would not keep her shoes on. I on the other hand was not sure that we were ever brave enough! The Cahuilla Indians inhabited this area before the gold mines opened.

We decided to drive back to our RV following the Old Dale Road. We had been told that it was a jeep trail, and that our vehicle would have no problem. That was true until we reached the border of the park! Around the corner opened up rough trails of rock and huge gaps. We did chicken out and turned around for a longer ride back.

Day 2 was spent in the northern section of the park. We had a nice 1.5 mile hike to see the Jumbo Rock area. Millions of years of change were evident as we walked around, past, under, and between the huge eroded monsters!

Rick decided to brave another jeep trail, and this one was much better as it was all in the National Park. It brought us to Barker Dam, an old cattle rustling area. The dam was built around 1900 to hold water for the cattle and miners. It was fun to hike through more gigantic rock, and then to come upon a wet area containing the old dam.

By this time, Rick was complaining of hunger. We drove to Hidden Valley picnic area where we made friends with a cute little chipmunk creature. It was a nice warm spot in the sun and all of the wind blocked out! Packing lunches and water was important as there were NO eating spots in the park.

No, we did not see every spot in the park, but did cover a lot of ground! We both agreed that it was worth seeing. The different terrains were fun to see and explore. The amazing desert plants that are able to survive, and the "few" animals that we spotted helped us gain a better understanding of southern California and the Joshua Tree National Park.

Boon Docking

I finally talked Rick into "boon docking" in the desert! We pulled off the road between Lake Havasu City and Parker, AZ to stay on the desert. We wanted to stay close to Havasu as the huge Fireworks Convention is going on in town. We drove close to SARA Park last night to watch the warm up and practice fireworks put on by two different companies. They were pretty amazing as they try to sell their show to the big time buyers!

Heading back to the desert camp, we joined some neighbors at their campfire. It is the first fire we have taken part in since we left home! Fun to talk to other jeepers and teachers from Wisconsin! Now that Rick feels more comfortable, he has committed to two nights in the free desert camp! It is dry camping, we have to use water and generators sparingly.  The fun continues!

You have to Go To the Desert Bar

When talking to people in Lake Havasu City, they all said the same thing, "You have to drive out and see the Desert Bar!" With only three days left in Havasu, we thought it was time to take the drive. Off we drove toward Parker, Arizona about 30 miles away. Taking a left turn onto a gravel road, Rick commented that we would not be the only ones checking out the spot. After a five mile drive over rock and dust, we found out that statement was true! The parking lot was full of cars with license plates of all states!

The Nellie E. Saloon (Desert Bar) is in the Buckskin Mts. and use to be an old mining camp. Ken, bought the land in 1975 which included a liquor license. He opened the bar, and hauled water in with an old fire truck. In 1997, he drilled a well. The saloon started out as a little lemonade stand look. After five years, he started adding buildings, or shelters.

A bridge was built to take you over a crevice and get to the bar and sitting area. Then, a church front was added for special weddings, pictures, and events. There are no pews and it is too small to put a chair in, but is an interesting look sticking up in the desert. Ken built a home to live in and does not venture out often. We met him amongst the 400 people or more that were there. 

The Desert Bar is only open on Saturdays and Sundays and closes in the HOT summer months. We found the sign in the parking lot amusing, stating that there is no beer drinking in the parking lot, as there were people sitting every where in the outdoor setting considered to be buildings. There is always some form of music entertainment. We could understand the draw to spend your lazy day in the sun having a beer and listening to the 60's and 70's tunes.

Kathi spent 20 minutes in the hamburger line, while Rick spent his time in another line for french fries. The sign states in no uncertain terms, "No Cheese!" We had been warned that the hamburgers were well done, but I found them quite tasty! The french fries on the other hand............ After spending an hour eating, looking, buying a t-shirt, and listening to the music, we headed back out to find another spot for Rick to try his metal detector.