We stayed at the same campground in Las Vegas as we stayed in last. Year. One day we went to Lake Mead and drove around some of the lake. The water is way down. Ate lunch in Boulder City and checked out the shops in old town. We drove through the strip on night coming back from dinner. There are always lots of people walking along the Strip and the bright lights are something to see. One afternoon after lunch we drove the 13 mile scenic drive around Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area which is located west of town. The red rock formations and mountains were something to see. There were lots of people taking the loop drive.
 |
| The Las Vegas Strip at night |
 |
| You can see how low the water is in Lake Mead |
 |
| Red Rock Canyon |
 |
| These rocks were called Calico. People were climbing on them. |
 |
| more rock formations |
Pahrump NV & Death Valley Nat. Park CA, April 17 to 23rd
We move to Pahrump Nevada because it is close to Death Valley National Park. We leave the campground early with a lunch to spend the day in death Valley. We drove through Twenty Mule Team Canyon and stopped at Zabriskie Point. Our first stop in Badwater Basin which is the lowest elevation in the US, 282 feet below sea level. We drive the side road of Artists Palette and then stop at Furnace Creek. The campground there is closed and being improved so maybe next time we can stay in the park. There is also a Death Valley Museum in Furnace Creek that we stop at. We drive to Stovepipe Wells and stop at the old Harmony Borax Works.
 |
| This is Charleston Peak behind our campground in Pahrump |
 |
Dick and I at Badwater Basin    |
 |
| There are three Pupfish in this picture, they are blue colored and small. |
Today we move about 75 miles north to the little town of Beatty so we are closer to the northern part of Death Valley. After getting settled in the campground we pack a lunch and leave to go into Death Valley to Scotty's Castle. We take the one way Jeep like road through Titus Canyon. We climb over Red Pass and the road winds through the enormous straight rock walls that are at a right angle to the road and form a box canyon. There was only room for a one lane road through the canyon. We get to Scotty's Castle in time for the 1:00 tour of the house which lasts an hour. The 1920s era building is decorated with Spanish and Italian antiques, leather furniture, hand-carved redwood beams and iron chandeliers. The floors are tile and partly covered with handmade Spanish Majorcan rugs. All the furnishings are original. The only thing that was never finished is the outdoor pool. The house was built by Albert and Bessie Johnson but takes it's name from Walter Scott better known as Death Valley Scotty who loved to tell stories and claimed he had a gold mine under the castle.
 |
Titus Canyon |
 |
Courtyard between main house and annex Living room   |
 |
Old cars  |
Before leaving the park we drove to Ubehebe Crater which is 3,000 years old, 1/2 mile long and 500 feet deep. The beautiful color of the crater walls are very surprising, the landscape before getting to the crater is very black looking because of the lava rock covering the landscape.
 |
| Ubehebe Crater |
We have had a wonderful trip this winter and have done lots of sightseeing along the way. We stayed one month in Yuma and 2 months in Mesa and rest of the time visited many different places. We had a wonderful two week trip to Hawaii this winter also. We are in Winnamucca NV tonight and it is raining. We leave tomorrow for Parma ID to visit my sister and her husband for a few days. I need a shopping trip!! We will then be heading home to Colfax. Our son, Chad turns 40 May 6th so we are going to his birthday party in Moses Lake that weekend. Happy Travels, Barb
Oh I almost forgot, Dick and I are going to be volunteers at North Head Lighthouse at Cape Disappointment for the month of July. We will be camping at Fort Canby State Park and the lighthouse is at the mouth of the Columbia River on the Pacific Ocean and owned and run by the State of Washington. If you are in the area, stop by the lighthouse and say hello.
No comments:
Post a Comment