Day 22 Feb 2 Fort Stockton to Austin, TX

We had dinner last night at the RV Park restaurant and watched the Superbowl on a TV in the room. It was a pretty exciting game to watch with a crowd. Today it was a 333 mile drive to Austin. We are in a campsite in the center of town. It seems to be occupied primarily by monthly residents. We got here late so we have not had time to look around. The main events today were a visit to Fredericksburg and a tour of the LBJ Ranch which is about 50 miles west of Austin. Fredericksburg is a well preserved German town with many art shops and 19^th century limestone buildings. Lyndon & Lady Bird Johnson’s 718 acre ranch was left to the government in 1965. President Johnson spent 25% of his time from 1963-69 at the ranch home known as Texas Whitehouse. The park provides visitors with an audio CD that you play while driving around. Then a ranger takes you on a tour of the house. The office is now open and complete with everything that was there in the 60’s except the shag rug. Lady Bird and the family wanted the parquet floor she installed to be shown instead. However, the rug is stored away in case its needed in the future. (See photo).

Day 21 Feb 1 El Paso to Fort Stockton

This was a short mileage day (222 miles) so we would have time to watch the Superbowl. Fort Stockton was closed on Sunday so we didn’t get to see it. It was built in 1858 to protect travelers on the trials from Indian raids. Closed during the Civil War it reopened in 1867 and remained open for 19 years until the “Indian Menace” was not longer a threat. Today’s photo was taken on a hike around the RV Park which is beside the interstate. The juxtaposition of signs makes it interesting. Fort Stockton is in the middle of what must be one of the most remote areas in the lower 48 states. Note the nearest town is 100 miles away.

Day 20 Jan 31 Saguaro NP to El Paso

Today was 342 miles entirely on I-10; lots of trucks of course. We went shopping in Deming and again at the CostCo in El Paso. I had planned to stay in El Paso but the RV park’s location looked pretty grim like the rest of the city so we just kept driving and found a rural place beside the Interstate at an Exxon. The most exciting event in the entire day was to see a wide load that found itself in a too narrow construction zone over a bridge. There were police cars everywhere and guys out with tape measures checking the width. We did not see the outcome.

Day 19 Jan 30 Joshua Tree NP to Saguaro National Park

This was a long day covering 408 miles. Leaving the campsite an approaching motor home started honking with the drive madly waving his arms at us. We stopped backed up and learned we had left the satellite dish up.  This was a first for us in 2 years. We fueled up at Twentynine Palms and headed east on 62 through Parker and on to I-10 at Vicksburg, AZ. We took the Phoenix bypass to Gila Bend and then I-8 and I-10 to Marana. In this way we avoided all the heavy traffic except for 37 miles on I-10 from the I-8 junction to Marana.  Not surprisingly, Saquaro Cactus are everywhere in this part of the country. We are camped at the Gilbert Ray County Park just outside the National Park which has no camping. This is a large very well maintained campground with electric at every site but you have to fill your water tank at one of many water stations throughout the park. The Saguaro in the photo is right our View.

Day 18 Jan 29 Salton Sea RA to Joshua Tree National Park

Joshua Tree National Park covers two deserts; the Sonora on the south and Mohave on the north. A remarkable change occurs when you cross the mountain range between the  two. The Joshua trees and rock piles are only found in the northern part of the park. We are at the Jumbo Rocks campsite which has incredible scenery but no power, no water, and no cell phone service. We hiked around the rocks for almost 3 miles. The photo shows a Joshua Tree before some of the unusual rocks. These rocks were formed under the surface by molten rock that rose like bubbles and cooled. Then the overlying rock was eroded away leaving the rounded and incredibly shaped rocks. Mavis and Judith had their last scrabble game while Bob and I took it easy. At 4,300 ft of altitude it is going to be cold tonight. Tomorrow we head east to Saguaro National Park near Tucson. Bob and Judith will head west to L.A. and then fly to New Zealand for several weeks.

Day 17 Jan 28 Bashford’s to Salton Sea Recreation Area

The mineral water hot tub last night was great. Every tub was full even at 10PM. This morning we left at 10AM for the nearby San Andres Oasis. The San Andres fault runs along the east side of the Sea just below the Chocolate Mountains. The Oasis is fed by an artesian water supply and is natural. The palm trees are immense. As you enter the oasis you are completely shaded by the palms. We had a picnic lunch and then headed for the Salton Sea RA with its visitor center. At last we got the whole story on the Salton Sea. It seems that thousands of years ago the area was part of the Sea of Cortez. The Colorado River delta gradually cut off the area and it became desert. In the last part of the 19^th century canals from the Colorado were built to irrigate the rich land in the desert. In 1905 the Colorado flooded and washed out the levees around the canal and emptied all of its water into the Salton Sea area for 2 years. When the levees were finally repaired the Colorado returned to its former connection to the Sea of Cortez. The Salton Sea today is fed by agriculture runoff and maintains a fairly stable water level. However, the salt level keeps increasing and if this continues the sea eventually will not support life. The Sea was very popular for recreation in the 50’s but today there is little activity. I have not seen a single boat on the water. There are hundreds of white pelicans here in the Sea and you can see a few in today’s photo. Tomorrow is our last day in the area and we will visit  Joshua Tree National Park.

Day 16-2 Jan 27 Mud Pots to Slab City to Bashfords Hot Mineral Spa

Slab City is the left over slabs from a World War II Marine Base. All the buildings were torn down leaving concrete slabs. Trailers and motorhomes then moved in on the slabs. However, Slab City is most famous for Leonard Knight’s Sanctuary Mountain. This is probably one of the largest examples of folk art in the world. Leonard found Jesus 22 years ago and began to build his mountain. Over 100,000 gallons of paint were used to create the painted waterfalls and yellow brick road. Leonard was there today and greeted us like long lost friends. He explained how columns were made from old tires covered with adobe clay. We then went a few miles to Bashford’s. Mavis did laundry while I worked with a local RV mechanic to try and get our hot water heater working again. It turned out there were two problems: bad connections and the hot water tank bypass was inadvertently operated a couple of days ago. Even if the water in the tank was hot, it could not be delivered to the taps. The mineral water comes from deep wells at 150 degrees. It is then cooled to 105 and put in a swimming pool and a series of 6 large bath tubs. I will head for the tubs tonight with Bob & Judith. Mavis is  not fond of hot tubs.

Day 16-1 Jan 27 Red Hill Park to the Mud Pots

This was a day to visit some very strange spaces. It started with a 1 mile trip over some very rough unpaved roads along the side of the Salton Sea to the mud pots. These are small 5 foot high volcano like piles of mud with the center occupied by boiling mud from the center of the earth  that burps and belches until the pile is so high it collapses. There are no signs or brochures describing this natural wonder. Only the locals know where to go to find them. The photo only shows the center of one with several boils. We then drove out of the farm lands to Niland and on to Slab City.

Day 15-2 Red Hill County Park, Salton Sea

We are now beside a beach 248 ft below sea level at the southern end of the Salton Sea at the Red Hill Marina County Park (see photo). It is a very wild but beautiful place in the Sonny Bono Wildlife Refuge. The Red Hill is a large rock that rises from the very flat sea bed. The marina is long gone as the shoreline has receded 1000 ft or so in the last few years. We hiked 2 miles around the rock and campsite. Looking south we can see two very large geothermal power stations on the edge of the Sea. Tomorrow we will head up the east side of the Sea to Bashford’s Hot Mineral Spa.

Day 15 Agua Caliente to Brawley, CA

This morning we hiked 2 miles through a canyon at Agua Caliente (see photo). We drove south on the Great Southern Overland Stage Route of 1849 to I-8 then east through the desert. At one point named Plaster City, we passed a large plant where gypsum is mined and made into sheet rock. Heading north the farmland has been recovered from desert with irrigation canals. Hay and straw are two of the main crops. Lunch was at a mall in Brawley. Our water heated failed this morning. A call to the manufacturer went no where but a call to our dealer Cullum and Maxie in Nashville told me one thing to try. It worked but only temporarily. We still have to heat water on the stove.