Barstow, CA to Wickenburg, AZ 2/15 - 3/1/2018

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THE BASICS

After Death Valley, we headed for Palm Springs. And then to the north side of Joshua Tree National Park for a few days, with great forays into the park. At last we left California, arriving in Parker AZ for a couple of nights. We visited Lake Havasu City and crossed London Bridge. On to Wickenburg, AZ, for a couple of nights.

Our itinerary has been affected by weather. e.g., when we mentioned that we would like to head next to Flagstaff and then work our way south to Phoenix, the response was, "Do you have chains?" Unlike the East where we live, chains are required in snowy areas in the West. So we are heading toward Phoenix and will try to go north when the weather starts cooperating.

THE FLUFF

We had enjoyed exploring the desert around Palm Springs a few years ago, but this time things didn't work out as well. We stayed at an RV park just south of town, and found the amount of traffic just plain annoying. The ideal weather caused everyone to be out, driving to enjoy all the tourist and native attractions. The biggest disappointment for us was trying to return to Palm Canyon and encountering an interminable and snail-fast moving line to enter. So we gave up on that. Fortunately, our RV park was next to a golf course and we took walks there so we could at least enjoy the very pleasant weather. And we were surprised that there in the desert, our park had no restrictions against vehicle washing. So we stayed an extra day and John took advantage of the chance to wash the RV for the first time since July. We did enjoy our coffee break at Kaffe in downtown Palm Springs, which has a lovely lawn in back with lots of chairs which were all full on a sunny warm day.

We had reserved a spot at a campground near 29 Palms, which is near the eastern entrance to Joshua Tree. As we drove through Yucca Flats, we wondered if we should have stayed closer to the western entrance, but were warned that the weekend lines there were very long, and much better near 29 Palms. 29 Palms is near a large marine air ground base; a woman who worked there was very restrained about telling us how many service members were there and what they were doing...

We had visited Joshua Tree once before, but we just drove through the park then. This time we had a chance to try out several of the trails and enjoy the scenery. It is a neat park, because there is a mix of long, rugged trails and one-milers. Also, it is a mecca for rock climbing, both with and without ropes. There are several campgrounds (no water at most), with hundreds of sites, and they were all full that weekend. The change of vegetation is quite visible - the Mojave Desert to the north is cooler and higher (hence, it supports Joshua trees) and the Colorado Desert to the south is lower and warmer, so we see vast expanses of chollas and other cacti. We got to the park fairly early each day, which was fortunate because the lines at the entrance were long when we left - one car at a time was allowed in when another exited. It is again the problem of our national parks becoming too popular and populous.

The trip from 29 Palms to Parker, AZ, is marked "scenic" on the map. We were somewhat puzzled by that. Along the first dozens of miles, mostly abandoned small buildings were scattered. Then the desert became mostly uninhabited. There were mountain ranges on either side, so that part was "scenic." After awhile, we got to stretches where the road was smooth but lined with "caution: soft shoulders" signs. And generous John goofed: when he spotted an RV by the side of the road with a distressed-looking man, he pulled off to offer to help. Pulled over too far and we were embedded in soft sand. Fortunately, the other man had completed his own repairs, and had a rope with which he was able to pull us backward back onto the road. John stays so calm through challenges like this; I'm trying to follow his example.

In Parker, we stayed at a county park north of town, next to the Colorado River. I wonder how many thousands of RV's line both the California and Arizona sides of the river! It looked to me like a fine area for snowbirds to stay. The river was a comfortable width and quite flat there. And so pretty! Parker Dam, one of the dams controlling the Colorado River flow, is a few miles north. We awoke to the sounds of pickle balls being hit back and forth, and saw lots of gatherings of people as we walked around the park.

The weather forecast was for rain the next day, so we decided to spend that day visiting Lake Havasu City, about an hour north. That area is another snowbird paradise. We got a pleasant walk along the river, finishing just before the rain began. We drove over London Bridge (it actually is a former London Bridge, disassembled and carefully reconstructed there in the desert) to an island in the lake. The island has some development, but most appealing was a long biking and hiking paved path around its perimeter. We drove back into the town and sought refuge from the rain in a Starbucks, which was really crowded when we left - rain is an unusual phenomenon out here. And they are all complaining about the cold; it gets down to the 50's and 60's during the days...

It was such a long ride from Parker to Wickenburg, 110 miles that felt twice that. Great, if you like to observe desert. But closer to Wickenburg, the Arizona canal system provides water for agriculture, so there were suddenly green fields. To our south were the Vulture Mountains. Charming name, huh?

More about Wickenburg next time...

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