Ever Hiked Down Into A Lava Tube? Put On Your Headlight and Come Along With Us

Mojave National Preserve, California (93 degrees mid afternoon, blue skies)

Exploring a Desert Wilderness

"Man is whole when he is in tune with the winds, stars, and the hills...

being in tune with the universe is the entire secret"

Justice William O. Douglas

So when was the last time you went down into a tunnel left by a volcano flow? Interested in checking it out,? Well then this is your place.  We spent the summer near Yellowstone which was a super volcano and now we are in the Mohave Desert where millions of years ago volcanoes erupted on a regular basis and over a huge area of landscape.  

Cinder Cones

The volcanos here mostly spewed lava  straight up into the air.  The "holes' in our campground mountains are caused by these escaping gases.  As we arrived in the Lava F\low area about 2 hours from our campground you could see Cinder Cones dotting the horizon  Very little, if any vegetation was noted and the trail was sharp and jagged.  The lava here spread out smoothly and pooled near the base of the cones for miles and miles.  Some of the flow would continue moving underneath the ground creating tunnels. In this area we explored the lava flowed out the tunnel end leaving the tube. 

Trail out to lava tube

I'm not sure we would have found this place without Barry's help.  There were no signs at all. He had been here before and after going down a really rough road it ended in a small parking lot.  The trail then took us to a deep hole with a metal ladder leading down into the tube. 

John going down the ladder

We each had flash lights or a headlight and after taking a deep breath I descended down the ladder. We had to bend over and walk for a short distance and you had to be very careful not to scrape yourself against the lava because it's very sharp. Suddenly it opened up into a cave and the most wondrous thing happened. Beams of light from the roof of the cave openings shot down to the cave floor. The dust floating around helped illuminate the beam. It really was a cool experience.  

Our group except for Barry

We left the area and had a nice lunch at a Greek restaurant in Baker. Unfortunately after we were heading back our Jeep  had a flat tire. It certainly was a lucky for us it didn't happen when we were on the dirt roads but out here cell phone service was nonexistent.  John tried to change it himself and one of the lug nuts broke off. Each couple had a small tool box but nothing could get it loose.  

We called CoachNet and eventually a tow truck got us on our way.  We will be changing out these lug nuts when we get out of here. One couple, Bob and Becky, stayed with us throughout.  We were very grateful.  It was a pretty place but once the sun went down it got rather cold and scarey.  

I forgot to mention in a previous post a hike we took out to the Rock House (Bert G. Smith Homestead).  This cozy home was built in 1925 by a WWI veteran. He lived out here to recover from lung issues suffered from poisonous gases during the war. There is a pretty one mile hike which goes around the house and remnants of a fort.  While we were hiking we discussed what life must have been like for him.  He lived here for over 25 years and this area is very remote and rugged.  

Rock House

Jan and John

Pretty Lesser Goldfinches

Soldiers graffitti

We have enjoyed our time in the desert and the rally. The Mojave National Preserve is a very special place. We loved the stars at night,wide open spaces, rugged terrain, and bright blue skies. The wide variety of cactus were interesting and there are more Joshua Trees here then the National Park which boosts their name. Taking our Jeep off roading was also fun, challenging, and a little intimidating. The desert is a place of many stark contrasts and we feel in  love with its unique beauty.

We made some new friends and Barry and Jann were such great hosts and ran a very well planned rally. Until we meet again, safe travels. 

Joshua Tree

Rail Station, Sand Dunes, Cactus, and COWBOYS!

Mojave National Preserve, California (92 degrees, blue skies with some really cool clouds)

Kelso Depot and Visitor Center

We left our campground and took a off road Jeep trip to the Kelso Depot, a quiet oasis rail station in the middle of the desert.  

Getting there was half of the fun. It was also challenging and enjoyable  and a five star blue sky day. The train station used to be a thriving rail stop in 1924 until 1962. Staff, conductors, and railway crewmen stayed in the Depot and their was also a busy restaurant on site. It was recently restored by the Park Service and it's an interesting place to visit.  

Train passing by entrance

You certainly didn't want to get in trouble in this town.  The picture below is of the local jail.   

Jail "House"

We left here to attend a ranger led hike at the Kelso Dunes with Ranger Bob.  The sand dunes are over 600 feet tall are very vast but it was the endless blue skies  and wispy clouds which really took my breath way. These are known as singing dunes because as you slide down them you can hear strange moaning sounds. None of us climbed the dunes due to the heat.

/Ranger Bob demonstrating some of the magnetic rocks 

Along our way we were amazed by the wide variety of cactus.  Elevation changes are frequent and the type of vegetation changes frequently.  Here are a few examples.  

It was a great road trip and we had a nice pot luck dinner together afterwards.There are some good cooks in this club.

The next morning we headed out again to view some lava tubes (more about the tubes in my next post). Just as we were turning the corner a large herd of cattle came down onto the road along with three cowboys in white shirts on horseback. The preserve has several ranches which are allowed to run their cattle and ranches within the park. It was fun to watch real cowboys in action  We didn't have to wait long but some of us certainly didn't mind the delay. :)

THE END!

Lonesome Desert - Mojave National Preserve

Hole in the Wall Campground (Mojave National Preserve), California

"For all the toil the desert takes of a man it gives compensation, deep breaths, deep sleep, and the communion of the stars"

Mary Austin, "The Land of Little Rain"

Sand Dunes

Our last day with GTA was October 10th and we are now back on the road again. It feels good to be moving and we now find ourselves meeting up with our camping club with FMCA called Cuatro Estados (Four Corners). Our location is a remote campground in the Mojave Desert called The Hole in the Wall. It is such a stark change from the Tetons but we have always found the desert to be very beautiful. It takes a couple of days to adjust to its wonder and fully appreciate the beauty.

Along the way here we stopped for one night in Evanston, WY  at a so, so campground called Phillips RV Park.  However, the breakfast at Jody's Diner was memorable. Waking up to snow was a bit of a shock but it didn't last long. Whew! We got out of the mountains just in time.  

Elks Lodge (five sites) Provo Utah

Elks Lodge

The next two nights were in Provo Utah at a fantastic Elks Lodge. The five non reservable sites have full hook ups, modern lodge, friendly members, and $2 draft beers. For $20/night it is a perfect combination for a nice place to stay. We were like kids in a candy store due to the wide variety of shopping in Provo  Jackson Wyoming is very remote and expensive.  Just to give you an idea the closest Walmart is 100 miles away and in a different state. 

In N Out Burger

Camping World, Sams Club, Verizon, and yes Walmart were some of our stops. A first for us was trying a In N Out Burger. What a yummy treat.  Provo is very green and manicured with mountains surrounding you from all angles.  It's very picturesque but the air quality is rather poor due to almost constant smog.

Our next stop for two was at the Nellis Air Force Base FAM camp called Desert Eagle in North Las Vegas Nevada for two nights. Suddenly we have developed a strange creaking sound in the front of the motor coach over the drivers side wheel.  We spent most of our time here trying to find someone to look at it but couldn't get an appointment for a week at the  nearby Freightliner. Hopefully this repair won't be too complicated or expensive. TBA. We will stop back here after leaving the desert.

Desert Eagle FAM Camp

The campground is really nice with full hookups and a manicured site. As with most military campground everyone is so friendly. There was lots of planes flying over and this is the home for the Thunderbirds. John has been thrilled to see F-15, F-16, A-10, F-22 and C103 planes flying over. This is a very active base. It's only $20/night however you must be active or retired military to stay here with a few exceptions.

So, now we are here in the Mojave desert with our camping rally.  While we were out west three years ago we joined this club during a rally in the Four Corners area with FMCA.. Then we spent the rest of the time out east and were only able to attend one rally. It's a very active club and each one is so well planned. We met the rally leaders in Florida (Barry and Jann) last winter and spend about a month with them on and off seeing some of the sights around Sanibel and south Florida. They also came to visit us in the Tetons this summer and we had a fun kayak trip down the Snake River.  So, we may not have attended many events with the club but we value the friendship we have made with them.  It would never have happened without belonging to Cuatro Estados.  The French call this Lagniappe - something unexpected.

The Hole in the Wall Visitor Center

Note the holes in the "wall"

The Mojave National Preserve is the third largest National Park (Yellowstone and Death Valley are slight larger). It encompasses over a million acres and is very remote.  There are two campground and we are staying in The Hole in the Wall. It's a primitive campground (unreservable)with nice sites and breathtaking views and did I mention the stars at night are awesome.  Just the way we like it! And, it's only $6/night with a Golden Age or Access Pass. 

Our site 

Barry and Jann planned some great hikes and off road trips. However, the day after we arrived I found myself at the ER in Bullhead City due to a very painful knee.  I had some concerns about a blood clot but after a few tests they found some fluid had built up in my knee and called it an effusion.  I was certainly relieved.  The sudden onset of it in conjunction with driving such long distances without much exercise had me concerned.  The care at the ER was top notch and soon we were back at the campground. I'll just have to scale back some of my activities for a few days.

The next morning we woke up to this outside our front window. 

The sunrise in the desert is truly breathtaking.  

We are heading out to see the sand dunes and Kelso rail station.  Check back tomorrow to see how the day unfolds.