TRAVERSING THE GOAT TRAIL ROAD THROUGH BLOW SAND CANYON

A FAMILY PHOTO THIS MORNING IN BLOW SAND CANYON

(This is Tuesday’s Post)

Each night on it’s long arc across the star filled night sky Earth’s Moon edges ever closer to becoming full in the Eastern sky.  And each night it’s ethereal moonbeams alite gently on a cactus laden desert floor giving the landscape a glowing serenity.  It is truly a touch of magic one feels standing quietly in the Moon’s soft glow.

ANOTHER FINE SUNRISE

Felt warmth in the air this morning when i stepped out with Pheebs in the darkness.  How nice of Mother Nature to finally turn off the big fan I thought.  Borrego’s lights twinkled in the calm darkness 11 miles off to the north.  An hour later with sunrise in the east two ends of a rainbow appeared on opposite sides of the Borrego Valley.  We were to see changing rainbows in the valley for the next several hours.

WE WATCHED THIS MORNING AS RAIN CLOUDS TRAVELED ACROSS THE BORREGO VALLEY

RAINBOWS BEGAN APPEARING OVER BORREGO SPRINGS

COYOTE MOUNTAIN ON THE RIGHT WHERE GEORGE AND SUSIE AS WELL AS DOUG AND YUMA ARE

THE OTHER END OF THAT BORREGO RAINBOW STRETCHED WEST OVER TOWARDS BLAIR VALLEY

PHEEBS WAITS EXPECTANTLY OUTSIDE THE DOOR TO SEE IF SHE’S COMING THIS MORNING

No matter where one is at any time in the Borrego Springs area of Anza-Borrego State Park one is always close to a myriad of Jeep roads crawling across desert floors, scaling mountain sides or running through deep Canyon washes.   We picked up one of those Jeep roads less than a mile from where we are camped and headed off on yet another great scenic Jeep ride this morning.  Just when you think the scenery can’t get any better in this area all’s you have to do is turn a corner……and it does.

WE LEAVE THE BIG EEE BEHIND AS WE GO EXPLORING IN THE JEEP

WE TURNED OFF ONTO BUTTES PASS ROAD AND HEADED INTO THE DESERT

From the corner of Borrego Valley Road and highway 78 head east 1.5 miles and keep an eye out on the left for a small brown sign with white letters saying Buttes Pass.  This is actually the road to Slot Canyon which is absolutely a must do hike which we did do back in late 2007.  We drove out to the Slot parking lot and turned left along a narrow ridge top Jeep road and followed that out about a mile marveling at the deep canyon scenery.  A cloud cover had moved across this area so we decided to return another time with a sun drenched day pulling all the beautiful colors out of the rocks and canyon walls.

LOOKING DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF BORREGO’S SLOT CANYON

I WELL REMEMBER THE DAY KELLY, MYSELF AND BUTCH HIKED THIS SLOT CANYON ALL THE WAY THROUGH……THE BORREGO SLOT CANYON HIKE

WE WILL RETURN ON A SUNNIER DAY

THIS MORNING’S INCLEMENT WEATHER ALL SEEMED TO BE OVER ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE VALLEY NEARLY A DOZEN MILES AWAY

THIS IS WHERE WE CLIMBED DOWN INTO THE SLOT CANYON NEARLY 10 YEARS AGO

THIS GREAT SLOT CANYON GETS SO NARROW IN SPOTS ONE HAS TO BASICALLY TURN SIDEWAYS AND SUCK IT IN

RAIN CLOUDS STILL DRIFTING ACROSS THE VALLEY

Backtracking along Buttes Pass road we picked up Goat Trail road heading east and followed another Jeep road winding down through Hawk Canyon to the San Felipe wash a couple miles distant to the northeast.  Could have worked our way west up the wash through the Borrego Badlands but back tracked again between Borrego Mountain’s East and West Buttes. 

FROM SLOT CANYON WE FOLLOWED A ROAD DOWN INTO THE SAN FELIPE WASH

MANY SMOKE TREES ALONGSIDE THE ROAD IN THIS AREA

JUST WHEN YOU THINK THINGS CAN’T GET PRETTIER THEY GENERALLY DO HERE IN THE SOUTHWEST

FAINT RAINBOWS CAN STILL BE SEEN ACROSS THE VALLEY IN THE DIRECTION OF BORREGO SPRINGS

A LEG STRETCH STOP FOR A WEE WALK UP A SMALL CANYON

CAN YOU FIND THE FACES??

THE GREAT SOUTHWEST IS A GEOLOGIST’S DREAM COME TRUE

CAN YOU SEE THE GIANT LEFT HAND STICKING UP OUT OF THE DESERT FLOOR

THAT IS KNOWN AS ‘BLOW SAND CANYON’ AND WE WILL BE THERE SHORTLY

WE HEAD BACK OUT OF THE SAN FELIPE WASH AREA TO HOOK UP WITH GOAT TRAIL ROAD AGAIN

Goat Trail road is aptly named as it winds it’s way along the tops of several long and narrow ridge lines.  I was surprised at how well this road has been maintained.  Despite it’s dips and sharp turns it looks like a road grader machine or something has been used on this road keeping the surface flat and free of pot holes and wash-outs.  Although at no time this morning did we have occasion to use our 4 wheel drive and despite the smoothness of this hard sand packed road I would still be leery driving it without 4 wheel drive.  Some of those short sharp dips could set back wheels to spinning.

LOOKS LIKE GOAT TRAIL IS GOING TO BE AN INTERSTING DRIVE

THE ROAD TO THE SKY

IF YOU HAVE PASSENGERS YOU MIGHT HEAR A FEW GASPS HERE AND THERE:))

DIRECTLY AHEAD ON THE HORIZON IS BORREGO MOUNTAIN’S EAST BUTTE

SHORT STOP FOR A PHOTO OP

A FAINT RANBOW IS VISIBLE

WINDS ARE PICKING UP

We were back to the rig about 10:30 Arizona time and boy oh boy was it ever windy.  Just when you think these big Borrego winds can’t get any worse they generally do.  Checked the weather site and saw there was a wind advisory for this area until 10 tonight.  There was no sitting outside this afternoon because as soon as one got up up out of their chair Borrego’s winds would have swept it away.  We generally position our coach to face prevailing winds which cuts down on a lot of shake and shudder.  Broadside on to these huge winds is generally not a good idea.

SO SURPRISED TO SEE SUCH A WELL MAINTAINED ROAD OUT HERE

SKIES ARE CLEARING A BIT ON THE FAR SIDE OF THE VALLEY

TELEPHOTO SHOT OF AN INTERESTING ROCK

If any adventurous outdoorsy person were to ever ask me where I thought the best place for them to spend their winter months I would be quick and precise with my answer.  The great American Southwest hands down.  If they wondered about specific places to go I would recommend many with Borrego Springs surrounded by Anza-Borrego State Park certainly being one of them.  It might even be at the top of my list for many obvious reasons which I’m sure readers have read about time and again in my posts. 

STOPPING TO HAVE A CLOSER LOOK AT THAT INTERESTING ROCK IN BLOW SAND CANYON

BLOW SAND CANYON

WE MADE IT UP CLOSE TO THAT INTERESTING LOOKING ROCK AND IT WAS HERE AGAINST THE ROCK ON THE RIGHT WE TOOK OUR FAMILY PICTURE TODAY:))

UP CLOSE TO THE INTERESTING ROCK KELLY TOSSED A STONE INTO THAT HOLE TO SEE IF THERE WAS WATER IN IT AND THERE WAS BECAUSE WE HEARD A KER-PLUNK

LOOKS LIKE KELLY HASN’T BEEN THE ONLY ONE TOSSING ROCKS INTO THAT HOLE

SAY HAVE I TOLD YOU LATELY HOW MUCH WE REALLY LOVE THE SOUTHWEST:))

PHEEBS TRYS TO CLIMB UP ON THE ROCK WITH KELLY

If a prospective RV’er were to ask me what kind of an RV I would recommend I would not hesitate to suggest a Class A or C Motorhome.  Many advantages of course with the big one being the ability to tow a Jeep or any high clearance 4 wheel drive vehicle.  If you want adventure and excitement with a healthy helping of sand and dust in your face the Southwest is where you will find it.  Where big winds can blow your shirt around backwards and launch your hat and false teeth into orbit.  Come on out, get yer shoes dirty and let yer hair down.  Get yourself off the smooth pavement and bury your wheels in some good old soft western sand.  Get your boots on the ground to walk where maybe nobody has ever walked before.  Hike the Chiricahua and Dragoon mountain trails Cochise and Geronimo did.  Walk the streets of Tombstone with the legendary ghosts of the Earp brothers.  Look around in any direction and see for miles and miles and miles.  Watch storms travel across valleys and cloud shadows lumber their way across towering mountain faces.  Stars from horizon to horizon and then there’s the desert floor by Moonlight and after a rain.  And don’t forget those majestic Saguaros found in the Sonoran Desert.

MAKING OUR WAY BACK TO HIGHWAY 78 ALONG THE EASTERN END OF GOAT TRAIL ROAD

LOOKS LIKE CIVILIZATION AHEAD

Oh dear it looks like I’ve got myself carried away again.  Morning Jeep runs have a habit of doing that to me.  I could sit here for hours typing away about all the great and wondrous things here in the Southwest but all good things must come to an end and all excitable little boys must sooner or later head for bed.  And so be it and so I be gone…………….

A FULL RAINBOW OVER THE BORREGO VALLEY

GROANER’S CORNER:((  The General Managers of Cascade Brewery (Tasmania), Tooheys (NewSouth Wales), XXXX (Queensland), CUB (Victoria) and Coopers (South Australia) were at a national beer conference.  They decide to all go to lunch together and the waitress asks what they want to drink.  The General Manager of Tooheys says without hesitation, "I'll have a Tooheys New."
The General Manager of Cascade smiles and says, "I'll have a Cascade Draught, brewed from pure mountain water."  The General Manager of Coopers proudly says, "I'll have a Coopers, the King of Beers."  The bloke from XXXX says, "I'll have a XXXX, the cleanest beer on the planet."
The General Manager from Carlton glances at his lunch mates and says, "I'll have a Diet Coke."
The others look at him like he has sprouted a new head.  He just shrugs and says, "Well if you guys aren't drinking beer, then neither will I."

--------------------

Three travelers, an American, a Russian, and an Egyptian, were circumnavigating the globe a la Jules Verne. The Russian man put his hand out and reached down into the clouds.  “Aaah!” he said. “We're right over my homeland.” “How can you tell?” asked the American. “I can feel the cold air.” he replied. A few days later the African man put his hand through the clouds.  “Aah we're right over my homeland.” he said. “How do you know that?” asked the Russian. “I can feel the heat of the desert.” Several more days later the American put his hand through the clouds and stretched his arm way down. “Aah, we're right over New York.” The Russian and the African were amazed. “How do you know all of that?!” they exclaimed. The American pulled his arm in and held it up for them to see. “My watch is missing.”