This Week - Not Like The Others

 We started the week still near Oatman, AZ so we decided to take a drive along the old Route 66 to Kingman, AZ which at one time was the only road through this area and many parts are very narrow and winding (there are 191 curves in 9 miles).  In some areas, the flowers were blooming although we did not see the hillside filled with California poppies as we have in the past. 

Along the side of the road is a place called Shaffer Spring.  It is a natural bowl  up a short and steep path and has been stocked with goldfish.  The colour of this water - hmmm - how do the goldfish survive? 

And of course, the burros along the highway waiting for someone to stop and feed them.

Monday morning it's time to pack up and move.  One of the jacks did not want to totally retract, so this is fix one.  Along the way, we stop at a service station at a Casino as it has been advertised to have cheaper fuel.  We get there and the advertised price is still pretty reasonable, but the diesel pumps are covered.  Oh well, we will carry on as we really don't need fuel yet, but we go by another station and yup, the diesel pump is also covered.  Perhaps it might be of concern that this is what we could expect, but we carry on.

We cross over into Nevada near Laughlin and head towards Las Vegas.  The road is very good, except it is a rather steep climb.  As we head up, we are going slower and slower and the engine starts getting hotter and hotter so we pull over to the side of the road to let it cool off.  As the engine was running to cool off it got HOT!  We get out and check and there is antifreeze everywhere.  We call roadside assistance, a mobile mechanic comes out and determines that a hose clamp let go, he replaces it and we are on our way.  

At the top of the hill there is a rest area where we decided to reconnect the Jeep.  All is good, we stop to reconnect, and oops, not so good - it's leaking again.  I give the mechanic a call and he comes to us and determines that he did not tighten the clamp tight enough as there didn't seem to be a problem anywhere else.  By now it is 5 pm so we spend the night in the rest area.

Next morning, the step would not retract so again, another repair job.  Actually it wasn't a repair but make it not a problem and away we go.

We go to Pahrump, NV to revisit a place we visited every winter in years past.  We are planning on staying a week so we stay at a campground and get some final chores done, and to replace the step motor.  The motor is ordered, received, but not installed.  The motor that is supposed to fit does not so that will be a fix down the road.

We took a tour of Death Valley which is really pretty amazing.  The scenery is every changing and spectacular.  There is a super bloom; however it is not as we remember in the past.  There are a lot of flowers but the  variety is limited. 

It is beautiful to see the landscape covered in colour.  We drove along the Badwater Basin which is the lowest level in North America. 

Due to the big rains at the start of the year, there is still a bit of water in the basin and you can walk out on the salt flats right to the water. 

We drove and we stopped and we drove and we stopped.  The weather has been hot but being in Death Valley, and the low elevation, I found the heat a bit tough to tolerate.  All in all it was a super day.  There are so many photos so I created a video - just click (or double click) on the video.

This morning we went to a flea market at the Legion.  There were a lot of vendors - some with produce, some with jewelry, some with crafts, but a lot with junk!  Here was the cutest vendor of all - each chick was $5.

Of course the price of fuel is over the top.  If this continues, here goes the kid's inheritance!

The weather this week is again supposed to be unusually hot but the good news is that it extends a long way north.

I hope everyone has a great week.

Oh, The Winds

 The week past brought record high temperatures, this week brought us winds.  The first couple of days were most pleasant but that was about to change.  The temperatures dropped and the north wind blew - for the past several days.  Everything was rattling and banging so we finally brought in our slides and gosh, how much quieter it was.  I know, real first world problems.

We spent the week just a few miles from Oatman, AZ which is an old gold mining town situated on the original Route 66.  It has retained it's old wild west character complete with staged gunfights, wooden sidewalks, original old buildings, plus various tourist attractions. 

Wonder if it will ever be sold

He caught some lunch - a gecko

We took a drive into town one day as it's always fun to walk around.  In past years, burros roamed the streets but there was only one the day we went.  Many places sell food but folks are discouraged from feeding them in town because the are still wild animals and folks have been injured by them.  However, they are on the road on the outskirts of the town.

We are also relatively close to Laughlin, NV so of course, we took a run into town.  Often, if you sign up for a player's card, the casino will offer some free play.  That we did in one casino - they offered $5 in free play.  Of course, you have to play at least $1, and then there are a set of instructions to activate your free play.  With that, my free play only cost me $0.70 but Gerry's cost him $2 - I wonder who follows instructions better!!  And, there are always some interesting things to see. 

There are a lot of fifth wheels for RV's and many are toy haulers.  I'm not sure this toy would fit into anywhere.

A drive through the parkade - how, and why, would there be so many footprints on the overhead concrete beams.

In the parking lot was a travel trailer totally self sufficient for his power needs - not only several solar panels but a windmill - a type that required just a bit of wind and was quiet.

As well, in the casinos - the prices have sure increased since we had been in one.

Today we went for a short off-road trail.  The scenery off the highways is always to be enjoyed.

There are many beautiful sunsets but here was an unusual type of sunset.

The other night at about three in the morning, I woke up to some type of snorting and then there was some braying.  As I had mentioned, there are quite a few burros in the area and they often hang around in the middle of the road hoping someone will give them a treat.  Well, they also come around the RV's looking for a handout.  Not too bright - wrong time of day if they were looking for something good.