Arizona to California
Mid to late April 2022

From Albuquerque, we dipped into Arizona to spend a few days at Lake Havasu. We camped at the state park, which turned out to be a much better location than Cattail Cove, where we stayed last year.

This park was much closer to Lake Havasu City, with better amenities and things to do. We got the van serviced at the Ram dealership, did some trip planning, and relaxed near the water for a few days.

We walked the shoreline of the lake at sunset and watched squadrons of swallows soaring and diving for their evening meal.

This was a nice park, and we enjoyed our time here.

We met a lovely couple traveling from the Netherlands. We enjoyed chatting with Angeliek and Marco, and comparing notes.

I admire folks who brave the waters to rent a travel camper and spend months exploring a country so foreign from their own. Perhaps that will be us one day?

From Lake Havasu, we took a slight detour to drive through Las Vegas, and then see Hoover Dam. At noon, the streets and sidewalks of Las Vegas were jammed with traffic and tourists. So many people in really bad tee shirts. Maybe another time we’ll check into a hotel and do dinner and a show. For this trip, a drive-by was really colorful enough for us.

We drove out to Hoover Dam, and were surprised to see lots of tourists there, too. We managed to snag a parking space, and then climbed the stairs to the dam viewing area. I wasn’t expecting to be impressed, but I was stunned. The dam is huge.

At 60 stories tall, it was the world’s highest dam when it was built in the 30s. It is still in the top twenty. It was built primarily to protect Southern California and Arizona from the devastating floods of the Colorado River. It also supplies water and power to Los Angeles and irrigation to farming communities. Beyond its size and function, the dam has become an icon of American industry and ingenuity, which is, according to the Park Service, why more than a million visitors a year come to see it .

Lake Mead, which was created by the dam, is America’s largest manmade lake. However, due to decades of drought, water levels of the lake are at their lowest since the dam was constructed.

We spent that night west of Vegas, at Artesian Cellars Winery in Pahrump, NV. Other than being in a town with such a funny name (which sounds like something an older uncle would say to get your attention …”ahem…pahrump”) the place was great. This was a Harvest Host stay and it was a good one. We had nice wines and creative dishes. And our server was engaging and fun.

The next day we began our drive through Death Valley National Park. We took Route 190 across the border into California and followed it across the park, almost to Darwin. This is no man’s land desert.

We saw a couple snazzy resorts carved into the wilderness, with watered bits of jewel green lawn and palm trees, but the rest was the Mojave Desert. Rocks and mountains in shades of brown, grey and beige, and lots of sand. The road took us to Badwater Basin, where the elevation is 282 ft below sea level, the lowest elevation in North America. In places, the road climbed to more than 4,000 feet.

We spent three nights at Panamint Springs Resort, 10 miles inside Death Valley Park. This wasn’t a resort in the typical sense. The camping area was sandy gravel and our section of the campground had no electricity.

The bathrooms were very basic, but they did have hot showers. Water is precious here. All the water for the complex (lodge, campground, general store, restaurant) comes from a mountain spring in nearby Darwin.

The original motel was built in 1937 by Agnes Cody (a cousin of Buffalo Bill Cody) and her husband. It has changed hands a number of times and barely survived a few tough periods. Right now, it’s the only show in this part of the park.

The restaurant aross the street from the camping area, was our oasis for our stay. The food was good, the beer was cold, and the staff was great.

The restaurant parking lot was the only place we could get a cell signal and WIFI, so we made it our hangout.

Evenings here were quiet, for the most part. A neighbor gave us a heads-up about the roaming wild donkeys. Apparently, there are still bands of descendants of donkeys that were set free at the end of silver mining days. Sure enough, at 2am, I was awakened by a loud “HEE HAW!” right outside our van. But a few minutes later, after not finding any late night snacks, they wandered on.

On our last day, a powerful dust storm rolled through. The distant Panamint Mountains vanished behind a wall of dust. Wind swept through the campground, collapsing tents, flipping chairs and portable tables, and leaving a layer of sandy dust on every exposed surface. The winds rocked the van and dust found its way inside through nooks and crannies. Dust was everywhere. We vacuumed and cleaned up, and then decided to go have dinner in the restaurant.

The next morning, we packed up and were on our way, all the time wondering how people thrive in the desert. Though we have great respect for the awesome beauty of the place, desert living just would not be for us. Guess that’s why there’s vanilla and chocolate. Our friend who lives in Albuquerque said she never really felt at home on the East coast…too many trees! Oh, well.

We traveled on to visit Sequoia National Park, where the trees are numerous and huge.

We stayed in two Corps of Engineers Parks: Tule Campground at the southern end of the Park and then Island Park, near East Trimmer, at the northern end.

The drive through the park is beautiful. The narrow road twists through canyons and forests alongside mountain streams and hillsides in bloom.

We visited General Sherman, the world’s largest tree. It’s 37.5 feet in diameter at its base and over 2,000 years old. Giant Sequoias are Sequoiadendron giganteum. Redwoods, which can grow taller but are less massive in total volume, are Sequoia sempervirens. Redwoods are found mostly along the coast where they get most of their moisture from the coastal fog. Look for the people standing near the base, to get a sense of General Sherman’s size.

We were sad to see that so much of the Park had been impacted by last fall’s forest fires.

Two separate fires, caused by lightning strikes, merged and burned for months, scorching thousands of acres of forest. But, the forest is slowly regenerating and will come back. Not soon, but over time.

Tule Campground at Success Lake was very busy on Easter. The picnic areas were loaded with families enjoying the holiday. The next day, the campground was almost empty, and we had it pretty much to ourselves.

At the northern end of the Sequoia National Park, the Island Park campground was way off the beaten track. We drove through miles of orange, lemon and olive groves to get there. We even passed through several free range cattle farms where bulls were munching grass along the roadside and cows were lazily crossing the road.

When we arrived at the lake, we were amazed by the views.

This is one of the prettiest parks we’ve seen. Our campsite was tucked under large trees on a hillside overlooking the lake.

It seemed that the park’s season was just beginning. They were short-staffed and park maintenance wasn’t tip-top. But that was balanced by the scenery, which reminded me of Ireland.

Craggy hillsides dropping down to the water. Mossy boulders, swaying grasses and spring wildflowers. Very pretty.

On our last day here, we made a trip to Fresno for supplies and errands, and then readied ourselves to move on.

From here, we made a beeline for the Pacific coast and Morro Bay State Park. How wonderful to see the Pacific again!

Next up: Springtime on the Pacific coast.