Heading home........

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We made it to Lake Havasu last Monday and spent a week of fun and relaxation at Sue and Art's place again. Mike got to go golfing twice so that was good therapy for him. I got to sleep in, play on my computer, catch up on the news at CNN and sit in the sun at the pool! But we also did some touring in the area. Last night Sue was determined to find this desert bar that she had read about so we headed out to Parker, about 30 miles or so from Havasu, then down a dirt road into the desert for about 4 miles. We were really wondering how there could be a bar out in the middle of nowhere when lo and behold, there it was! The Nellie E. Saloon situated in the Buckskin Mountains was once an old mining camp where copper was mined and later sent to the smelter to get gold. The bar opened in 1983. The saloon is powered by solar. The "church" opposite the bar was completed in 1996. It is a great photo spot and I guess it is used for wedding shoots! If you want to ever find this place, it is about 5 miles north of Parker, AZ, 5 miles off Cienega Springs Road exit on US95. The bar is open Labor Day weekend through Labor Day, noon til sunset. Only open on the weekends. There was a live band there too when we were there. On our way home we stopped at Strokes and enjoyed a nice dinner.

We also went to the flea market in Havasu. It was nice and breezy and we enjoyed wandering through the rows of booths. Because it was Easter Sunday, several vendors took the day off.

One night we went over to the London Bridge resort for a drink out on the patio overlooking the river. Very nice atmosphere.

Now we are just east of Lake Havasu in Kingman, AZ and are staying at a KOA here. We went out today to Oatman, AZ which is an old Western "ghost town" and mining camp on Historic Route 66. The town of Oatman was born in 1906 and enjoyed success as a gold mining center until 1942 producing over $36 million in gold at 1930 prices. It now is a very vibrant tourist locale with over a half a million visitors each year. The townspeople take pride in trying to keep the town as authentic as possible. Every afternoon, there is a live gunfight which is very fun to witness! Films such as "How the West Was Won", "Edge of Eternity" and "Foxfire" were made in this area. What I really liked were the friendly wild burros that wander among the tourists looking for some treats! Most of the stores sell carrots to the tourists to feed to the critters. We also got to see some of the burros on the road.

Sections of the road to Oatman reminded us a LOT of the roads in the Baja---hairpin curves and narrow lanes! The scenery was wonderful too! We were glad to know, however, that we were HOME in the USA!!!

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