Vivid red outcroppings slash across the landscape in stark
contrast with near-white silica domes and towering grey conglomerate mountain
ridges. Ages of erosion have left shapes
that are jagged and rough while others are smooth and curving. Trace minerals in the many layers create
colored swirls that look like rainbows frozen in place.
Hikes take us to elephant rock – it does seem to have a trunk; Fire wave – one of those smooth, curving ribbon like formations; and white dome – it includes an impressive slot canyon. We close out our visit with lunch under the shade ramadas at Seven Sisters formation.
White Dome Slot Canyon
Rainbow Vista
Fire Wave
We spend a quiet afternoon in camp that includes watching clouds
build above the mountains to our east and west.
We have rain in the forecast but it mostly misses us; just barely, it rained
hard over the lake less than a mile from camp. It was
not as impressive as the storm earlier in the week but still interesting to watch.
While the clouds formed, the roar of an engine out over the
lake joined the sound of the increasing wind.
A plane flew north, banked a hard turn over the lake to head back south,
then landed on the water. Wow, I wasn’t expecting
that. In seconds it took off again and
disappeared from sight. By its third
pass I had my binoculars out. It was an Air
Force sea plane practicing landings and take offs.
Kent and I try to get to this unique desert bar outside of
Parker AZ anytime we are in the area and it is a weekend and it is between Oct
and April (they are definitely seasonal and 100% weekend only).
We head that way today with Carol along for the ride. The place is at the end of 5 miles of rutted,
rocky jeep road that is maintained just barely passable for sedans. Dozens of pickups, SUVs and sand buggies overtake
us but Kent does a fine job getting us out there. The upside of moving slowly is that we get to
check out lots of wildflowers and cactus that are in bloom; plus, we got a
great look at a snake that glided across the road in front of us.
The place is jumping when we get there. Parking is jammed full but Kent gets atypically
lucky when a spot opens up not far from the main “entrance”. The music reaches our ears as we get out of the
car and head for the entry bridge. There
is lots more seating since we were last here and they have formed a partnership
with a Lake Havasu City restaurant, Niko’s Bar and Grill. The food is fantastic: pulled pork, pastrami
and garlic fries. Yum! Thank you, Kent
for the 45 minutes of your life that you spent in line waiting for it! The bar is growing in size and popularity but
is still a unique, fun place. We soak in
the atmosphere, food and drink for a great afternoon. No visit would be
complete with out pics in the horseshoe rocking chair under the horseshoe
cactus and a shot of the old-time church.
Bye ‘til next time!
We took a side trip to the California side of the Colorado
River on a search for the feral burros that wander the BLM land. We found them, at least two of them and they
are as cute as ever. This riverbank has
certainly changed a lot as homes of all types have popped up along much more of
the bank. It looks like the BLM has
partnered with lots of different folks and allowed huge development. It is sad to see so much more of the river side
built up….guess I would feel differently if I were one of those who wanted to live
here!
Well, the weather advisory was right. It is windy plus it is in the 50s. It would have been a terrible day on the
river but we decide to brave it for a day out at Red Rock.
We get our first good look at the signature red rocks that
are visible from the visitor center. The
resident desert tortoises are all still holed up in their heated borrows so we
head on out to explore. Up close we see
that rock climbers dot the cliffs and we talk a short walk out to see petroglyphs, It is pretty but just too chilly to head out
on any of the trails or even stay out for very long.
Dinner is at one of Kent and my favorites, A&W. It is not very sophisticated but you just
can’t beat that frosted mug!
Weather has just not cooperated so no camp fire tonight…we
compromise and close out the day with s’mores built with marshmallow toasted
over the gas flame of the stove. That
works.
We laze around camp waiting for it to cool off then head for the trailhead about 4PM. Oops, it is a 2 ½ mile trail, if you go down into the crater and who wouldn’t, and it gets dark here by 6PM. We know that it is a rocky uneven climb so not something we want to finish in the dark. New plan, we will hike it tomorrow morning then head on to Mojave Preserve. The overflow lot is a perfect place to boondock. We do a lot of train watching. This big valley seems to be a staging area for the many east-west trains that move through this part of the country. They were lined up like huge caterpillars as we came into the valley and I am sure that one moved through here every half hour all evening and most of the night. We got in some great dark sky star viewing.
Monday morning the temperature is about right and the sun
beautiful but the wind is going to make an exposed hike on the cinder cone rim
an interesting event. We are up for
it. Up close, even the lava flow area
doesn’t seem quite so barren. There are
wildflowers, lizards including chuckwalla and a beautifully colored green -blue
lizard plus more of our usual desert birds.
The ascent up the one trail is loose rock and steep…I regret wearing
shorts. Fractured and wind eroded lava
and pumice make for pretty abrasive stuff that will create some pretty severe
trail rash. We climb up, down through
the crater, back up a really awful trail to the rim, walk about half the rim
with only a few stops when the wind threatened to blow us off, back into the
crater – another trail that is steep and loose rock- then back to the lava
field. I can’t help but imagine the
power involved when this erupted. It must
have been amazing and they claim it was only 500 years ago.
We meet up with Mike, Tracy, Willa and Katrina in Claremont
where they have some business to attend to.
Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Garden is highly recommended and within easy
walking distance. Willa joins us to
check it out while Mom and Dad are busy at work. It is a natural setting with zones that
include pretty much every desert plant you might expect to find in the US. A special exhibit of large origami sculptures
makes for great accents among the plant life.
Unfortunately, our timing is off and very little is blooming; add a few
dark menacing clouds that bring a chilly rain and our visit is cut short.
We move to an Airbnb in Hollywood/Little Armenia that is
perfectly located for the kids’ business meetings and a great place to
stroll. Kent and I check out Barnesdale
Park and tour Hollyhock House, a Frank Lloyd Wright house that has been
preserved by the city of LA. It has an architectural
motif that looks very Aztec-like to me and appears everywhere both inside and
outside the house. As it turns out, it
is Wright’s geometric interpretation of Mrs. Barnsdale’s favorite flower, the
Hollyhock. The poured concrete entryway
and door are a bit tomb-like and the motif almost overwhelming. Great for a visit but probably a bit much for
everyday living. They continue to fight
with reoccurring roof leaks – our docent says that is a frequent issue with FLW
houses – guess he is too focused on the creative and unique to worry about
mundane stuff like roof leaks? The
docent is great with lots of stories to tell and pictures on her ipad to show
various remodels and a look at original construction.
Our neighborhood strolls take us past (well not always past)
a great Armenian bakery with a huge assortment of sweets and shelves loaded
with loaves of crunchy outside chewy inside bread. The pastries never make it all the way home but
everyone seemed to enjoy the bread.
Lunch at a street vendor includes chicken marsala and a
spinach dish over excellent spiced veggie rice (delicious) all accompanied by cucumber
lemonade (refreshing).
This one is a hike not a stroll
Kent and I head to Griffith Park and the top of observatory
hill. The sandy trail up the Ferndell
side is all steep switchbacks but it is a clear cool day so a wonderful
hike. The view is fantastic: LA and the
ocean beyond, snowcapped mountains to the east and Hollywood just below
us. I stop to take in an observatory
talk about the life of stars with a reminder of exactly how amazing it is that
this one place called earth ever even came to be and how many things had to
come together just right for humans to even come into existence. There are lots
more displays and some great sounding shows in the theatre and planetarium. Those
will wait until another visit.
Meals make for perfect family time – Everybody out for great
Thai food in the neighborhood and a simple spaghetti dinner at home.
Check it out: Willa on a star. We strolled the walk of fame and posed on the
red carpet – never mind that it is plastic covered! This is Oscar’s weekend so things are all set
up around the Dolby theatre.
We meet up with Tracy and Katrina at a coffee shop. There is outdoor seating with a fountain and
as it happens, a shop called “I love pie”.
Who could skip that? We enjoy an
assortment of mini single serving pies; cherry, mixed berry, chocolate brownie
and vegan apple. They have savory pot pies too …
The kids and Willa head to la Brea tar pits and Santa Monica
beach with a stop on the way home at a vegan sandwich shop. They brought us sandwiches that were
amazing. Typically, if I go vegan, I
avoid the meat substitutes and just enjoy the savory vegetable dishes, but
these were full on meat substitute meals and they were not missing a
thing. Kent’s BBQ brisket burger was spot
on flavor wise and the texture pretty darn close. The BBQ sauce cinched it…just plain
delicious. I had grilled chicken. Both flavor and texture were so close I would
not have known it was vegan if they hadn’t said so.
We all hike- Mike, Tracy, Katrina, Willa, Kent and I
plus friends from the girl’s earlier years all meet up at Griffith Park for a
great afternoon hike before we all must head out. LA haze veils the view from the summit, but
it is still a nice way to close out our visit.
Back down at the trailhead the kids grab a Lyft for LAX while we gather
up to head out of town for a bit more desert time.
First, the quest to find the elephant tree. Soft sand and big smooth stones make the
access road too treacherous. We have to
walk the last ½ mile to the trail head. We are actually out on an ancient alluvial fan
winding our way through smooth rounded stones heaped in rows where raging water
left them many years ago. One can’t help
but be impressed by the power of water! One
more zig or maybe zag and we come upon the one remaining living elephant tree
on the trail. Pretty cool shape and
amazing anything that big can survive here; but I can’t see why they call it an
elephant tree.
In the desert where there is water there is wildlife. I am anxious to check out the trail to Yaqui Well to see who might be hanging out there. We wind our way through a great cluster of green leaved ocotillo with bright red blossoms like flags on the stalks. No critters to be heard or seen. We move on. At about a mile in we hear sparrows and the sharp tweet of the P2 moving among the mesquite. Ok, sounds like the water theory might be a good one. We walk on, turn one last corner and find…..a sign that says area closed for restoration! There is no artesian well here, no impoundment for wildlife, just a damp depression in the desert soil. I am bummed. We explore the area a little more but leave the area and retrace our steps settling for a nice walk in the desert sans local fauna. Check out the cool old fresh-air potty. Wait, is Wilson in the Women’s Room?
It is just as stinky here as when we came through in 2011. The difference being this time we are just day tripping from Anza Borrego and we can put up with the smell for a few hours while we check out what feathered friends are around. We see many of the usual waterside suspects plus a couple we rarely see; cinnamon teals and burrowing owls. Gambel’s Quails scurry about under the wildlife refuge bird feeder their cute little top-knots bouncing as they go. A large flock of snow geese moves between grain fields and a sheltered pool.
