Wednesday, February 04, 2015

WE FIND A GREAT BOONDOCKING SITE IN THE MOJAVE DESERT

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SUNRISE OVER THE PIUTE MOUNTAIN RANGE FROM HERE IN THE MOJAVE NATIONAL PRESERVE

This is Wednesday’s post February 4th 2015

Anyone who has walked in the desert on a full Moon-lit night will well understand the feelings I had when Pheebs & were out after dark.  All surrounding mountains & the valley where we were camped bathed in Moonlight.  Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

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AN EARLY MORNING SUNRISE SETS THE MOUNTAINSIDE ON FIRE

Seeings how our bodies are still on Arizona time we were up before 4:30 a.m.  Not a lot to do at that hour of the morning when there is no internet but we managed & at first light we were into the Jeep with the heater on & off to find us a cool boondocking spot with hopefully an internet signal.

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VISITOR INFORMATION CENTER JUST SOUTH OF ‘HOLE IN THE WALL’ CAMPGROUND

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EASY TO SEE WHY THEY CALL IT ‘HOLE IN THE WALL’ WITH ALL THE HOLES IN THE SURROUNDING ROCKS

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A NICE LOOKING VISITOR INFORMATION CENTER

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ALTHOUGH NOT OPEN TILL 9 WE WERE ABLE TO CHECK OUT SOME INFO BOARDS OUTSIDE

Took us a bit of looking around but by golly if we didn’t find ourselves a great solitary spot just off Black Canyon Road a couple miles south of the campground.  Bonus find.  Flat, easily accessible, about a quarter mile off the road & holy smokes this location is picking up a great Verizon signal at 4G’s & 3 bars.  Of course that is with our Wilson Booster & the antennae way up on top of our roof sitting on one of our air conditioners.  However……we only have those fast speeds when we are connected & the internet connection here is spotty.  If my posts are late in publishing it means I am having connection problems:((

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WE QUICKLY PACKED UP OUR OVERNIGHT SPOT AT SITE 27 & HEADED OUT

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Noticed from our new spot we can actually look south & see Doug & Yuma's rig about another mile or more south of us.  We passed Doug’s rig early this morning while looking for a spot but there  was no sign of life in his camp yet.  Doug’s a late riser.

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THAT’S THE TOP OF DOUG’S RIG JUST DOWN A BIT FROM DEAD CENTER AND HE’S OUR CLOSEST NEIGHBOR

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SPOTTED THESE HORSES THIS MORNING

Usually after a long day’s travel we generally like to spend the next day just sitting around camp relaxing & maybe doing a few walks around our immediate neighborhood familiarizing ourselves with the terrain. Pheebs & I did a perimeter walk but didn’t go to far.  The day was heating up fast.  DSC_0024 - Copy

TURN OFF FOR THE BLM SITE IS THERE JUST ON THE LEFT & THAT IS A COW WALKING UP THE CENTER OF THE ROAD TOWARD ME…I’M IN THE MOTORHOME WITH KELLY FOLLOWING IN THE JEEP

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SOME OF OUR CLOSEST NEIGHBORS

Heard a vehicle roll in & it was Doug & Yuma.  He had no problem spotting our lone rig out in the desert.  Yuma & Pheebs get along great & within seconds the two of them were racing around like a couple wisenheimers.  Always great to see dogs playing so well together.  We pulled up a few chairs alongside our rig & had ourselves a good chat.  Places to go, where we've been, things to see.  RV folks always have things to talk about & always good to Doug & Yuma.  Our trails will probably cross again in the coming days as we scurry about this great gem called the Mojave National Preserve.

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DOUG, YUMA, & PHEEBS

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PHEEBS DUG A HOLE UNDER MY CHAIR TO COOL OFF FROM THE HOT SUN

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AND NOW FOR SOME ZANY DOG PHOTOS

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I THINK YOU ARE PRETTY NEAT PHEEBS

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TIME FOR SOME SMOOCHES

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I’D SAY THESE TWO GUYS ARE PRETTY TUCKERED OUT

We will be up & out the door early Thursday morning.  Like to do our exploring & hiking around before the hot noon day desert sun is upon us.  We will search out the Rock House cabin with a 1 mile trail that leads to a well-known watering hole & site of an 1860’s military outpost.

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A FEW PHOTOS FROM AROUND OUR BLM LAND CAMPSITE

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I WAS UP ON THE RIG’S ROOF PUTTING UP OUR WILSON SLEEK AMPLIFIER ANTENNA ATOP AN AIR CONDITIONER…LOOKING SOUTHEAST TOWARDS THE RIG’S FRONT END

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THERE’S THE PHEEBS DOWN THERE LOOKING IN THE DIRECTION OF YUMA’S HOUSE

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WE THINK THIS MAY ONCE HAVE BEEN THE SITE OF AN OLD RANCH

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THERE ARE MANY OF THESE ‘MOJAVE YUCCAS’ EVERYWHERE

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I had been hoping to catch tonight’s Moon coming up over a distant mountain ridge again but was a few minutes late & the Moon had already cleared the ridge.  But no matter, I did manage to get a few sunset photos anyway……………..

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SUNSET FRAMED BY MOJAVE YUCCAS

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GROANER’S CORNER:(( While driving in the car with my son, I had an "oldies" radio station on. It played a song that I remembered from the 1960's.  "You know, Ron, this song was on when I was in bed with a broken leg back when I was young."  "Gee, Mom, that's too bad," he replied. "You couldn't even get up to turn it off."

17 comments:

  1. what a great spot the two of you found! love the photos of Pheebes and Yuma!

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  2. OMG, those dogs are having so much fun! Love seeing that. And I also love the photo of Pheebes laying the the hole she dug under your chair. Funny...

    You got some beautiful sunset shots. It was fantastic this evening, and the moon rising over the mountains? Tonight is the first time I've gotten pictures of that. I NEVER remember to look in that direction - I always face West because of the way my solar panels are placed, so the moon usually rises behind me. I just happened to be outside this evening and caught it peeking over the mountains and ran back in for my camera. It was a beautiful, gold, full moon. So nice to be in the desert on evenings like this one. :)

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  3. Gorgeous!! That area has been on my radar ever since MoHo blogged about it, but we've just never made it (yet). Your pics are only enticing us more. Looking forward to what you discover out there.
    Nina

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  4. Getting me excited to explore Mojave. Bonus to get a signal.

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  5. Looks like an amazing area to explore, wish I could talk Suzie into those kind of places.

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  6. JEALOUS, JEALOUS, JEALOUS...........

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  7. Al, that first photo is stunning--it looks like a painting! Love seeing all your photos--tell Kelly I found the honey!

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  8. Clever photo of you and Kelly in silhouette in front of the information board:)

    I really enjoyed all the dog photos:) Pheebs and Yuma sure did have a good time, no wonder Pheebs is looking down at Yuma's house!

    Beautiful evening sky photos:)

    Looking forward to what great things you discover out there in the desert.

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  9. Al, I know you do enjoy the Interstate but some people would consider it criminal if you did not drive some of the Old Route 66 while you are in that area.

    I would suggest that you do so by driving from Essex to Amboy then Amboy Rd south to CA 62 which will take you to Parker AZ and then follow your nose back to Congress. The last time I drove any of the Old Route 66 from Amboy it was not in very good condition but keep it slow and enjoy driving some history. This will add about 60 miles and a couple of hours driving but I think you will enjoy it almost as much as you do the Interstate.

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  10. They are likely fixed by now, but some of the bridges were washed out on that stretch between Essex and Amboy so I'd ask the rangers at Hole in the Wall - because it is a great road like Ed says! Yuma and Pheebs are the definition of joy! Great action shots of the two pals. I'm sure it still grabs Doug's heart at what could have been..... The sunset behind the yuccas is stunning.

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  11. You sure find some great spots and is there anyone out in the desert you don't know?

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  12. That Yuma and Pheebs sure had fun. Good that Pheebs is Yuma's first friend and I am glad I let Yuma off his leash so they could play and chase each other around the camp.

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  13. Love the doggie shots. They sure seem to love the life too! I love your pictures, but I sure think these were fantastic! Love the colors, the sunsets, the framing!

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  14. You may want to check out Kelso Dunes as well. 34.886318 -115.717302 A couple good boon docking spots there as well - right by some awesome dunes. It's 6.5 km off the Kelbaker Rd and a bit washboardy, so you may wish to scout it with the jeep first. Jeep can go on east of that location as well.
    Dunes can be very photogenic! Lots of little animal tracks in the sand as well.

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  15. Great location you found, lots of exploring and wondering about past activities that went on there. Nice to see your dog found a playful friend, looks like she had a blast.
    I love that cow in the road. Having free cows and horses as neighbors is fantastic.
    Thanks for the effort you went to so we could see it.

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