Author: mchazen

The weather for the past few days has been sunny and warm with a howling wind.  Most of the time the main channel of the lake is covered with whitecaps.

As expected, our friends Doug and Karen stopped by to camp with us for a few days.  Readers of this triplog may remember them, as we had spent time with them before.  The plan was to use the kayaks to explore the lakeshore but the hurricane-force winds prevented this.  Improvising, we spent the time visiting, hiking and going for drives on some of the primitive roads in the area.

One day we walked around the edge of the lake trying to find shelter from the wind.  Another day, we drove several miles along a dirt road just to see what was on the other side of the next ridge.  Another day we visited an abandoned gold mine, but didn’t find any gold.  In the evenings, we pooled our resources for dinner and entertained ourselves playing dominoes.  We very much enjoyed their visit and were sorry to see them leave for Las Vegas.  It will be a long time before we see them again.

Jeanne poses in front of abandoned gold mine.

Flower growing in riverbed.

Jeanne, Karen and Doug scour dry wash for pieces of turquoise.

Flower growing in riverbed.

Flower growing in riverbed.

Cactus blooming in the desert.

Jeanne poses with cactus.

Doug in front of barrel cactus, typical plant in this part of the area

Doug and Karen by abandoned gold mine.

Looking down the main channel of Lake Mohave.

Jeanne, Karen and Doug along Lake Mohave shore.

More flowers growing in poor soils with little water.

Flowers growing in dry riverbed. There was nothing around but rocks and gravel.

Feeding the carp in the marina. These fish grow really big and there are hundreds of them.

Jeanne relaxing on sheltered side of the coach.

Could these be poppies?

Flowers found along lakeshore.

View of the Cottonwood Cove facility including the marina, hotel, offices, RV park and residences.

For much of the year the desert around here is a combination of moonscape and furnace — nothing but hot rocks and shimmering heat a foot off the horizon.  You would swear that nothing could grow here.  However, this time of year with only a few inches of rainfall, the desert blooms and there are flowers everywhere.  There is even a slight green tinge on the distant hills.  Combined with the soft winter light it is a beautiful sight to behold.  We took the opportunity to take some pictures of the seasonal flowers, which readers of this triplog may enjoy.

As out-of-the-way as Cottonwood Cove is, our off road excursions took us to truly remote areas.  One day we were traveling off road for hours and never saw another soul.  Not a person, car or airplane.  There was nothing but sand, rocks, flowers and the sound of wind blowing across the desert.  As a former corporate warrior, I dreamed of places like this when all three lines of the work-phone were lit up or when sitting in some silly meeting discussing the elimination of the coffee service as a cost-cutting measure.  Yes, places like this really do exist and walking down a dry wash looking for fragments of turquoise is a fulfilling way to spend the day.  It sure beats worrying about explaining budget variances.

We completed our workout twice over the past few days.  One day I got to run with my friend Doug, who did remarkably well as an ‘occasional’ runner.  He suffered a little the following day but there was no permanent damage.  We enjoy running in the desert this time of year, but I’m sure any kind of workout would be impossible here between May and October.  One great feature of this location is the hilly terrain.  It had been a while since we ran on hills and they really do seem to strengthen your legs.  We’re starting to think it might be time for another 5K and we’ll see if one can be worked into our travels over the next several weeks.

There are quite a few employees living here to maintain the facility, marina, store, cafe and boats.  Most of the workers live in older trailers that haven’t moved in years.  One evening, one of these trailers was completely destroyed by fire and the guy living in it lost almost everything he owned, including his cat.  We briefly talked with him the day after and he was obviously still upset.  Strange how and event like this can turn your life upside down.  At least he is fortunate to be in a small community where the neighbors/co-workers will keep an eye on him and lend a hand.

All in all, our stay here is just what we wanted: quiet days, warm weather and new places to explore.  We look forward to more of the same.

The morning was crystal clear with a light breeze.  Looking across the lake into Arizona you can easily see for 40 miles.

The plan was to do our workout in the morning, but it just didn’t happen.  We were tired and hungry and it was cold outside.  We rationalized that we would do the workout later in the day when it warmed up.  We’ll see.

Since we were dry camping for the past few days, I finally got the opportunity to dump the tanks.  Damn!  The sprayer on the inside of the black tank was stopped up.  All that s— bouncing around in the tank yesterday must have plugged it up.  Maybe the biological action in the tank will free it up over the next few days but I doubt it.  There is no easy way to access the nozzle for cleaning.

After breakfast, we piled into the Jeep and headed to Searchlight to pick up our mail.  Jeanne suggested we tank the Jeep at Terrible’s, but what she really wanted to do was buy the last two boxes of Zonkers.  She now has seven boxes stashed in strategic locations around the coach.  Anywhere you sit, there is a box of Screaming Yellow Zonkers within reach.

On the way back, we stopped at the small cemetery where we run.  This is out in the middle of nowhere and we have no idea how or why anyone would be buried here.  Surprisingly, there is even a small area for pets.  The sites are well tended and some of the plots had fresh flowers.  Several veterans are buried here, including some from World War I.  Although there is no organized effort to maintain the place, it is obviously treated with respect by the locals.  The access road is perfect for running and this is where we will park the car.

Jeanne at cemetery in the middle of nowhere. This is where we park for our run along the powerline maintenance road.

Our running area along powerline maintenance road.

Parking at the cemetery.

We were still a little tired from the past few days, so most of the afternoon was spent lazing around the coach, enjoying the view and catching up on a few light chores.  The ground around the coach is similar to the gravely surface of a High School track and small stones are tracked into the coach.  The vacuum we bought last year in Ft. Myers, Florida is strong enough to pick these up and in a burst of energy, Jeanne vacuumed the coach.

Around 3:00 PM, much to our surprise, we actually did the workout.  The fact that it wasn’t easy meant we got back to it just in time.

So, another interesting month slipped by: rain, floods, mud, FMCA rally, Indio, Quartzsite and Cottonwood Cove.  There is never a dull moment on the road.

Contemporary Note:  From time to time I think about that little cemetery tucked away in that quiet desert location.  It is a isolated spot but must be well known to the locals that maintain it.  I hope those resting there are are at peace and well remembered by those they left behind.  

We woke a little later than usual.  The day was clear, cool and perfect for traveling.

After breakfast, we got the coach ready for travel and said goodbye to our friends.  It will be a long time before we see most of them again, although we may travel with a few during this next year.  By 9:30, we were on the road.

Our destination was Cottonwood Cove, Nevada.  We stayed there last year at the beginning of our trip shortly after we were chased out of Southern California by lack of reservations on President’s Day.  The place is remote and perfect for us to hide out for the next two weeks.

The route took us back into California along I-10.  Right over the border, we headed north on US 95, which generally follows the Colorado River.  This is some of the driest and hottest desert in the Southwest.  It was so hot and remote, General Patton used this region for troop training during World War II.  I’m sure there is still a lot of WWII equipment buried out here.

The drive was a little longer than we thought, about 200 miles.  The California part of the drive was over marginal two-lane roads typical in the Golden State.  Of course, crossing into Nevada the roads greatly improved.  Most of the drive was right into a headwind and it was a good thing we fueled the coach in Blythe.

When we reached Searchlight, Nevada, the wind was howling and it was cold.  Really cold.  We tanked the coach at Terrible Herbst, the only sizable truck stop around and Jeanne bought six boxes of Screaming Yellow Zonkers, her favorite junk-food snack.  This should last her about four days — Jeanne has no self-control when it comes to Zonkers.  I have visions of Terrible’s management trying to figure out why sales of Zonkers in Searchlight, Nevada spike in the winter.  Maybe we’ll give them a call to explain.  What’s the big deal about Zonkers?  Jeanne really likes this stuff and they have been harder and harder to find over the years.  In fact, the Terrible’s in Searchlight is the only place we can find them.  If anyone out there knows of another supply, let us know.

Cottonwood Cove is 14 miles due east from Searchlight — all downhill.  About halfway down, the weather changed; the wind abated and the air warmed.  The view was absolutely beautiful.  We arrived, checked in and set up for a two week stay.  This time of year the place is somewhat deserted and the few campers and employees present stopped by to talk.  My hypothesis: Sociability is inversely proportional to the number of people around.

The rest of the evening was spent watching the news reports on the Iraqi election.  What a relief that the Iraqis voted in large numbers.  We hope they’re on their way to a stable democratic government.

The past three days were spent at the small town of Quartzsite, Arizona.

Quartzsite is a wide spot on I-10 about 20 miles from the California border.  To get there from any direction you have to drive through 100 miles of desert.  This time of year the location is relatively dry and warm and a perfect place for RVs to hide out.  This population of this sleepy roadside town mushrooms from 800 to about 30,000 during January and February.  For miles around, rigs are dry-camping on whatever patch of desert they can find.

As the famous economist Adam Smith predicted, demand brings forth the supply.  With so many consumers at hand, vendors set up in groups large and small and the area turns into a loosely organized monster swap-meet that stretches for miles and miles.  You can buy just about whatever you want.  So, what originally started years ago as a gathering of rockhounds has turned into an exercise of laissez faire capitalism.

Jeanne and Merl looking for treasure at Quartzsite, Arizona.

Richard and Barry (partially obscured by campfire smoke) at Quartzsite.

Bob enjoys his morning coffee while camping at Quartzsite, Arizona.

Lee solving the problems of the world, but most just want to get a cup of coffee.

Jeanne browsing miles and miles of vendors at Quartzsite.

There was everything except flags at this vendor booth.

View of the coach dry-camped for $5 per night. Nothing here but compacted roadbed and chalk lines. In the summer, it can stay over 100 degrees for weeks at a time.

Getting ready to leave and saying goodbye.

The hunting and fishing club we belong to organizes an annual trip to Quartzsite and about 50 rigs usually show up.  For $5 per day you can dry-camp with the club and shop till you drop.  We had never been to Quartzsite, so this was an opportunity to see what the event was all about and visit with our CHFC friends.  Starting in Indio, which is below sea level, the drive was uphill almost the entire way and the long pull sucked down almost 30 gallons of diesel.  Shortly after noon we pulled in and set up.  During the next three days we alternated between visiting with friends, eating at potlucks and shopping for treasure.  We very much enjoyed being with our CHFC friends.

We didn’t leave too much money there.  The big purchases were a blanket to cover the couch and earrings for Jeanne.  We also picked up some smaller stuff; mostly things for the coach.  We must have walked about 20 miles each day, which had to substitute for the workouts.

Quartzsite was the first time we dry-camped for any length of time and it was no problem.  Everything worked as designed and the coach kept us comfortable.

A light rain woke us up a few times last night; this must part of the annual three inches of rain Indio gets annually.  When we finally got up, the skies were threatening but not raining.

After two cups of coffee, Jeanne shamed us into our workout.  With the rainwater evaporating off the wet pavement, we exercised in humidity that reminded us of Florida.  By the end of the workout, we were covered with sweat.

We cleaned up, stowed the gear and set out for a monster shopping trip to Walmart.  $259 dollars later, we walked out with two shopping carts of food, which has to hold us for three weeks.  Mentally, I though it would be over $300, but we saved a bundle at the only Walmart Supercenter in California.

We spent the rest of the afternoon putting the food away and doing some last minute chores.  We’re ready to roll; all we have to do is turn the key and leave.  The week here was sorely needed and we put it to good use.

By the way, today is the coach’s one-year anniversary.  It was exactly a year ago today we took possession of the coach and ever since, we have been living and traveling in it.  Time flies when you’re having fun.  I wonder what next year will be like.

The rest of the evening was spent reading, watching TV and wondering if we forgot anything.

Tomorrow, we hit the road.

The weather is changing and the air was cool under slightly overcast skies.  We had a leisurely breakfast before attacking the daily chores.

From time to time, the campgrounds we stayed at were not really set up for rigs as big as ours.  Consequently, there were a few scratches along the sides of the coach from vegetation that should have been trimmed back.  These battle scares are annoying and needed to be buffed out when the opportunity arose.  Today was perfect for this chore.  The combination of buffer and polish worked great and completely wiped out most of the scratches.  The rest are barely visible; if you didn’t know exactly where to look, you wouldn’t see them.  The front of the coach also got a generous coat of wax.

Jeanne cleaned the inside of the coach.  By the time she was finished dusting, cleaning and vacuuming, the inside of the coach looked like the day we picked it up.

Late in the afternoon we stowed the equipment and relaxed.  We now feel confident the coach is ready for another year of travel.  In addition to being clean, all the little things we had been putting off have been fixed or addressed.  All we need is to make a Walmart run to stock up on food, which is tomorrow’s chore.  We’re ready.

In the early evening, we had dinner with Robert, Jeanne’s nephew.  Robert and his family live in the area and Jeanne wanted to see him while we were here.  We spent about two hours together talking and catching up on our lives.  Robert seems to be doing well and is part of the community.  It was good seeing him again and we very much enjoyed the visit.

Well, there is not a lot left to do here in Indio.  A little grocery shopping tomorrow and we’ll be ready to hit the road.  We’re looking forward to it.

We spent the rest of the evening updating the computers, reading and watching TV.

Oh no!  A workout day!  We frantically looked for excuses!  Finally, after diddling around the coach as long as we could, we got after it.  We made a worthy effort and this is the first day that Jeanne felt she was 100% back from the layoff.

After cleaning up we headed for the Salton Sea.  What a weird place.

Here’s the backstory:  In the late 1800s, early settlers to the region discovered the soils, warm climate and long growing season of the Coachella and Imperial Valleys were perfect for farming.  The missing ingredient was water.  The Colorado river was the closest source of fresh water and irrigation canals were soon cut through the flat terrain.  Pumping wasn’t necessary since the valleys were below sea level.  It was an ideal situation and everyone was ready to live happily ever after.  There was only one problem, this was before Lake Mead, Lake Mohave or any other flood control measure along the Colorado.  Sure enough, in the early 1900s the Colorado flooded, overwhelmed the inlets gates of the irrigation canals and inundated the area.  This went on for 16 months before the Colorado was re-diverted back to its original course to the Gulf of Mexico.  What resulted was a lake some 50 miles long and 15 miles wide.  With no outlet, salinity slowly increased due to runoff and evaporation.  Such is the Salton Sea of Southern California.

The shore at Salton Sea. These shells was like walking on Rice Crispies. What a strange place.

View of shoreline at the Salton Sea, California.

Jeanne comtemplates the calm waters of the Salton Sea.

Marty at the Salton Sea. Notice the mineral-encrusted rocks.

Environmentalists should take note: geologists have discovered several episodes where the Colorado naturally changed course and flooded this area.  This particular sea is unique; it resulted from a human screw-up.  The Salton Sea happens to be on the Pacific Flyway and is a stop-off place for millions of migrating birds.  It also supports a thriving ecosystem for fish and other wildlife.  See, even screw-ups can be beneficial.

On this particular day, the wind was calm and the surface of the lake was smooth as glass.  Under partly-cloudy skies we spent about two hours quietly sitting and watching.  It seemed the whole scene changed every few minutes as the light changed and the air cleared.

Walking along the shore we noticed the the sand was really shells of some sort, probably barnacles.  Now I know what walking on Rice Crispies would feel like.  The rocks along the shoreline were encrusted with salt and other minerals.

Our lunch consisted of dates and a date shake we purchased along the way.  Jeanne seems to like these local delicacies.

The region is dotted with date palms.  Here’s a hint: any location with date palms is a furnace for half the year.  With an annual rainfall of only three inches, this place is no exception.  It is a nice place to visit in January, but you better be somewhere else by May.  Maybe we’ll camp here again on some future return trip.

We headed back to the coach and spent the rest of the day quietly watching TV, grilling fish for dinner and updating the computers.  No bad for a Monday.

Readers should note, we will be leaving for areas devoid of internet service.  Updates for this site may be few and far-between for the next three weeks or so.  Don’t worry, we’re still here and the adventure continues.

After getting home so late last night (or was it this morning?) we slept much later than usual.  From the start, it was obvious this would be a low-energy day for us.

After a leisurely breakfast, I returned to the auto parts store for the air filter.  Voila!  It was there!  It is now quietly resting in its place under the hood of the Jeep.

Scrounging as much energy as we could muster, we started moving things around in the storage areas of the coach to accommodate the kayaks.  It took about an hour, but eventually we got everything to fit.

With the last of our energy reserves, we barely made it to the pool.  The cool water was refreshing and the desert sun was warm.  Life is good.

For a change of pace, we had dinner at one of the local Mexican restaurants.  It was an excellent meal and very reasonable.  After watching a little TV, we went to bed early.

We woke very early, piled into the Jeep and headed for Ventura before sunup.  It was Jeanne’s idea to leave early to avoid the traffic, which can be squirrelly on Saturday with everyone running weekend errands.  Good idea.  The drive was long but do-able.

As we drove through the Santa Clarita valley, it was apparent how much damage the storm had done.  Typical for Southern California in winter, the hills are covered with an emerald blanket of grass.  However, this year you could clearly see breaks in the green where the hillsides turned to mud and slumped.  Driving along the river, we were very surprised to see the level of the riverbed had risen several feet.  We thought the rushing water would have cut the riverbed deeper but just the opposite happened, there was so much mud in the water the riverbeds silted up.  In fact, certain drainage ditches were completely silted up and workers were frantically working to clear them before the next rainstorm.  This went on for miles.

View of the hills driving to campground in Santa Paula. Note how parts of the hillside have washed away.

Mud has already been cleared from the roadway, but the leaning phone pole means the area is still active and can slide at any moment.

This was the Santa Paula creek. The riverbed is usually several feet below the roadway here, but it silted up this last storm.

Heather and baby Erika at two months.

Jeanne, Heather and Erika.

Andy making the first cut on his brand-new table saw.

Approaching Santa Paula, Jeanne suggested we drive up to the campground to see how they were doing.  Having narrowly escaped less than ten days ago I was not crazy about going anywhere near the place, but Jeanne was driving too fast to bail out.  Heading up the narrow canyon, the amount of damage was startling.  The water trickling out of the hillsides meant the area was still unstable and capable of sliding at any moment.  There was a lot of repair work underway — on a weekend.  Obviously the cleanup would be very expensive.

Arriving at the campground we found the workers busy with the cleanup.  It looked like the cliff was the same as we left it, but the crack across the road widened a little.  County engineers determined no structure could be closer than 65 feet from the edge, which is the amount of vertical drop to the river below.  To comply, the office structure would have to be moved onto the campsite we were staying in; the workers were busy getting this done.  Overall, the RV park lost our old campsite and several others.  Making matters worse, the county restricted the number of motorhomes allowed to travel up the canyon until the road was repaired, which meant the campground was not allowed to book groups during the busiest part of the season.

It was clear the workers were nervous.  The emotional impact of the storm was taking its toll and there was the constant threat of slides.  Nobody wanted to be anywhere near the cliff.  A mudslide almost anywhere along the road would mean being trapped in the canyon.  It went unsaid that they should get out of there asap.  After all, the rainy season is nowhere near over.  I was relieved when we exited the canyon.

After stopping at our storage area to pick up the kayaks, we spent the rest of the day at CeeCee’s.

That evening, we had dinner with Andy and Dannette.  Their friend Doug prepared the sumptuous meal.  It was good to spend a few ‘bonus’ hours with the family before moving on.

For various reasons, we decided to return to the coach that night.  We left Santa Paula a little after 9:00 PM and arrived at the coach about 12:30 AM.  What an ordeal.  At least the drive was behind us.  We hadn’t pulled a nighttime drive like that in years.

After all the time spent getting the coach ready, today was mostly a kick-back day.

The slightly overcast and warm morning was perfect for our workout.  After cleaning up, we ran errands to gather some last-minute things, mostly small stuff.

Back at the coach, we got into a conversation regarding what we should take with us this next year.  Much of the conversation revolved around the kayaks.  Recall that we cleaned out the coach and balanced the load in preparation for weighing at the FMCA rally.  With our total weight 2,000 pounds below maximum and well balanced, we have some wiggle room.  The issue now is deciding which toys to take along.  We finally decided to take the kayaks and a few golf clubs (not the golf bags) but leave the lounge chairs.  The chairs were a good idea but they are heavy and take up a lot of room.  We don’t use them that much anyway.  So, the chairs go and the kayaks stay.  Jeanne is happy.

With the decision made, we need to visit the storage facility in Ventura.  It is a 200 mile trip, so we will stay with the kids for one night — giving Jeanne one last chance to hold the baby before we take off.  We plan to leave early tomorrow morning.

We did have an interesting experience at Walmart.  Jeanne wanted a paper-photo of the baby made from a digital image.  There is a machine at Walmart for this, which looked easy enough to use.  With only 26 cents on the line we decided to give it a try.  It worked perfectly; I now have an excuse to avoid purchasing a high-quality color printer.

In the nothing-is-easy department, I returned to the auto parts store around 4:30 PM to pick up the air filter for the Jeep.  I ordered it yesterday and they promised it would be delivered this afternoon.  Silly me, I believed them.  Since we are leaving for Ventura tomorrow, this will have to wait for a day or so.  It’s the little things in life that are annoying.  Maybe someone out there can explain what is so f—ing hard about buying an air filter for a Jeep.

After loading the Jeep for the Ventura run, we spent a quiet evening watching TV and reading.