Coachella Valley Preserve

Our last week we enjoyed the luxury of a Desert Hots Spring RV resort. The area including Palm Springs is located along the San Andreas Fault. As the fault shifts, the crack leaves a opening for water to rise to the surface, creating a natural oasis. Coachella Valley Preserve holds one of these oasis giving us a chance to experience the cool benefits that the dense palms provide. Some of the huge palms are over 100 years old and the oasis contains an old hermits hut, now the visitors center. This area is know for the hot springs that many resort tap into and we took several long soaks and swam in the many pools at our resort. One could really get use to this lifestyle! A trip to this area would not be complete without a visit to Palm Springs, where we found the iconic statue of Norma Jean aka Marilyn.

Desert Hot Springs, a California Christmas

Well no snow again this Christmas (except for the photo Don sent) but we are making the most of it in Desert Hot Springs. Caliente Springs resort has 2 pools and 4 whirlpools, feed by the thermal hot spring in the area. Pools and whirlpools range in temps from 90-104 degrees. Unlike other hot springs we have been in this one smells good. We're just sitting back and relaxing this week and enjoying all the amenities before going off the grid again. It's a dirty job but someone has to do it. OK, bring it on all you folks stuck in the snow back home, it is one way to get some feedback. Seriously, we miss everyone and wish you all the best in the new year and beyond!!!

Joshua Tree

While this is our second time in Joshua Tree National Park, it is our first time actually staying in the park. The park has several campgrounds with minimal amenities, no electric or water but the views go on forever. With the holidays just around the corner, there were lots of families and young people hiking and climbing the many rock formations. The park is a short days drive from LA and large enough to handle the traffic.

Joshua trees the name and signature species in the park, grow fast up to 3.0 in per year in their first ten years. The Joshua tree has a top-heavy branch system with shallow roots, but the roots can reach out to 36 ft away. We saw many split in two or blown over by the heavy winds that can effect the area. If it survives the rigors of the desert it can live for hundreds of years with some specimens surviving up to a thousand years. The tallest trees reach about 49 ft.

Cattail Cove

Sorry to all of our followers for the delay, we went into Joshau Tree after Cattail Cove and found we had no cell or internet.

Along the lower part of Lake Havasu on the Arizona side sits another state park, Cattail Cove. This was one of many firsts this year. It sits up river from the Parker dam and provides a nice place to shelter from the winds that can kick up on the lake and some nice hiking along the lake bluffs. We did not get the kayak out this time but we promise to next time. As we walked along the lake Gary found some AZ graffiti and expanded on it, gets the message out without all of the harmful effects on the environment.

The lake has several sites that boaters and kayakers can camp at for $10. We were able to hike to one that is within walking distance from the campground. Back at the cove, site 3 was a great place for Blue to explore and to get a view of the lake.

Full moon on the BLM

Well a few days turns into a week and we will miss the wash near Havasu. Ths is clearly one of Blues favorite places, up at sunrise, breakfast and then a walk, how good is that!

Lake Havasu BLM

For now I will just call our home CW because it is a well kept secret, but this is one beautiful place to boondock and we plan to stay a few more days. At first I thought there were no coyotes in the area because we never hear them but as I am writing this blog, one tripped up the road. Last night when we went for our evening walk, a big horn sheep ran across the road 50 feet in front of us. We watched as he made his way easily up the steep mountain near our rig and peeked around the rocks to see if we were still watching, and we were. I have also put out my hummingbird feeder and get great enjoyment from all the little hummers that come to drink. It is a great location, no noise and very near the city. So far the weather has been great, one day we had a little threat of rain but just a few threatening clouds made an appearance.

Laughlin Nevada, a good place to hang

A few nights in Vegas and a few more in Laughlin have expanded the waistline. We are not much for gaming but the buffets are just what the cook ordered (thats me). It is a good time to leave however because the weather has turned warm and we need the exercise now that we have eaten way too much. South we go to Lake Havasu and some nice BLM locations.

A chill in Vegas

I hear that winter is in full swing back home in MN and we are feeling the cold all the way out here in Las Vegas. No problem for us, we walk the strip while the dancing girls kick up there heels. Given the cool temps for the next few days, there is no reason to leave the warmth of full hookups at an RV park so Blue is staying warm under the blankets again tonight.

Lake Mead levels have dropped over 100 feet

Lake Mead is a beautiful oasis in a very dry area of the southwest corner of Nevada, but the drought of the last 13 years has dropped the water levels significantly. One study suggests that Las Vegas which takes it's water from the lake will drop below the intakes by the year 2015. Our first night was in one of the many campgrounds along the western shore and the last two nights we spent in Government Wash, a free spot along the same shore but with no facilities. With full tanks this is not a problem for us. The campgrounds are nicely set up but the facilities are minimum with no electric at the sites but, hell, what do you want for $10! The lake is stocked with bass including Strippers that will take food from you at the marina docks and the locals tell us there are several other species of fish making the lake a great place to catch a meal if you had a license which we do not, so we settled for a nice kayak around the docks and out into the lake.

After talking with another camper we learned that the Railroad Pass Casino has a wonderful buffet on Monday nights for just $6 per person. When we went for lunch the hostess asked if we were over 55 and gave us a discount 2 for 1. With the food we ate, I can't imagine how we could make that much ourselves for so little. And it was very good! Our route took us through the nice small town of Boulder City so all-in-all we had a very enjoyable day and I didn't need to cook, OK by me.