Travelogue

Golden Canyon TrailWe had been to Death Valley numerous times before, but Herb never seems to get enough of it. He loves everything about it - the heat, the remoteness, the ability to be totally alone (+ me) in a vast pristine expanse, and, of course, the stark beauty of its barrenness.

Despite having been here multiple times, there were still some things on our list of things to do - primarily the hike from Golden Canyon to Zabriskie Point, considered the best hike in the Park. We had done the 2-mile Golden Canyon Interpretive Trail in 2014, but had run out of daylight to complete the whole 7-mile Golden Canyon, Zabriskie Point, Gower Gulch loop. Today was the day.

Since the Golden Canyon section of the hike is the most spectacular section of the hike, we decided to do it in reverse, so we would hit it in the golden hour right before sunset. This meant starting off along the trail that ran parallel to Badwater Road for awhile before climbing up through a canyon along gravel-filled wash, which is Gowers Gulch.

Lolo on the Golden Canyon trailRather than take a left at the Badlands Loop Trailhead (at 2.3 miles), which would have brought us back over and down into the Golden Canyon for a 4.5-mile loop hike, we continued straight up for another mile and a half to Zabriskie Point, probably the best overlook in the park, where there is a panoramic view of Golden Canyon and the surrounding vibrantly colored badlands.

Most people get to Zabriskie Point via car and then just walk the short distance out to the overlook. We, however, felt that we had truly earned the view, as we gazed down at the canyons and badlands below us that we had traversed to get here.

Unfortunately, you can’t be in every place during the golden hour, and since we didn’t want to be hiking down in the dark, we started our trek down, this time taking the Badlands Loop over towards the Golden Canyon Trail. There were parts of the way down that were a bit sketchy, with loose scree and steep drop-offs, but nothing too precarious.

Golden Canyon TrailThe most dramatic part of the trail with the biggest expanses and interesting rock formations was the section along the Badlands Loop over to the top of the Golden Canyon Trail. It was just hard to keep my eyes on the trail because the scenery was so beautiful.

We got back to the car with sufficient daylight to find camping for the night. Death Valley, like Carrizo Plains, allows dispersed camping as long as you are a mile away from a main road. The nearest place for us to go was one of the dirt canyon roads off of the West Side Road. Since it was getting late, we chose the first one, Trail Canyon, and drove a bumpy, rocky mile up it towards the canyon. It was a nice sport, and the price was right.

The next morning after our normal morning routine, we headed out to explore more of the park. It’s amazing how my perception of normal was evolving after only my third night sleeping in the back of the same vehicle I take to the grocery store.

Salt hexagons of Badwater BasinOur first stop of the day was Badwater Basin, which at 282 feet below sea level, is the lowest, driest, hottest place in North America. A boardwalk leads out across the basin, at the end of which you can continue out onto the salt flats themselves, a surreal, otherworldly highway made of table salt which organizes itself into interconnecting hexagonal honeycombs. These shapes are the result of repeated freezing and thawing and evaporation cycles that gradually push the thin salt crust up into a hexagon, nature’s most efficient shape - even bees know that when they build their honeycombs. You can go on for miles on the salt flats if you choose, all the way to the other side of the Valley, but we chose to go for just a little over a mile before turning back.

On the way back north from Badwater Basin, we took a 1.5-mile bumpy dirt road to the trailhead for the hike to Natural Bridge. From the parking lot, we immediately entered the mouth of a canyon and hiked uphill for about a ½ mile before arriving at our goal, a 50-foot high massive rock that spans the canyon.

Artists DriveContinuing north, we turned off onto the one-way, highly scenic Artists Drive, a 9-mile paved spur road that winds through a colorful display of sedimentary and volcanic rock. We stopped at a viewpoint called Artists Pallet, named for the amazing rainbow of colors – red, pink, yellow, orange and brown – that paint the hills. Unfortunately, it was high noon, not the best time for photography. This would be a great place to come back to at sunset, but that was not in our program for the day.

We skipped the Harmony Borax Works, as we had been there on a recent trip, but I highly recommend it for anyone interested in the human history of Death Valley, which pretty much the revolves around the mining of borax.

A little further north from the Borax Works is the Salt Creek Interpretive Trail, a rare chance to see water in Death Valley. It’s not exactly a hike, but more of a pleasant stroll on a mile-long boardwalk. The tiny little creek here is home to the inch-long Salt Creek Pupfish, a hearty little creature that somehow manages to survive these harsh conditions. In past visits, we had not seen any, but this time we were fortunate enough to be here in springtime when they are out and about and looking for a partner (or partners) to breed with.

Mating pupfish at Salt CreekWe actually got to see the courtship ritual, which was quite fascinating. We could tell which ones where the males because they were luminescent blue, to attract the ladies and let them know they were interested and ready to breed. The males were quite territorial and aggressive, chasing other males away from their turf, while simultaneously trying to entice a female into his turf. Once he has lured one in, they cuddle up beside each other, form and s-shape, and start to wiggle. During this wiggle, the female releases an egg and the male releases sperm, which immediately fertilizes the egg. Sometimes, the female hangs around for another round. The fertilized eggs take about 10 days to hatch. A single female typically lays somewhere between 50 and 800 eggs in a single season.

We continued north on Scotty’s Castle Road towards Ubehebe Crater. This is a beautiful stretch of road, with desert views to the west and alluvial fans and mountains to the east. Unfortunately, Scotty’s Castle is still closed from the flood damage it experienced back in 2015, and is not expected to reopen until 2020. Too bad, as that is truly an interesting part of Death Valley’s human history.

Ubehebe Crater RimHowever, the road was open to Ubehebe Crater, another one of Death Valley’s impressive geological features. The crater is huge - a half-mile wide, 750-feet deep, formed by volcanic explosions several thousand years ago. Last time we were here, we hiked down to the bottom of the crater. The hike back up was pretty exhausting because of the steepness and loose cinders.

Ubehebe is not the only crater in this part of Death Valley. There is a cluster of craters to the south and west of Ubehebe, the largest being Little Hebe Crater.

This time we decided to hike around the rim of the crater, with a short side trip to Little Hebe Crater along the way. The whole hike around the rim, including Little Hebe is 2 ¼ miles. Although most of the rim is level, there are some steep sections, as the west side of the crater is 270 feet higher than the east side. That plus the loose cinders and the drop-offs made it more than just a casual stroll.

Ubehebe Crater RimFortunately for those that don’t hike, the best view of Ubehebe Crater is actually from the parking lot, where the you see the bright yellow and orange stone of the opposite side is exposed.

The 27-mile dirt road to Death Valley’s famous Racetrack, where rocks mysteriously move across the dry lakebed on their own accord, starts right near the parking lot for Ubehebe Crater, so we figured we would go there to spend the night.

Road conditions seemed a little rougher than the last time we drove it, probably because of the winter storms that had closed so many of the other roads in the park. Still, we were able to move along at a good 20 mph pace.

After 19 miles of incredible natural desert scenery, we came upon a bit of a man-made attraction at Teakettle Junction, where the sign marking the junction of Racetrack and Hunter Mountain is strung with dozens of old teakettles.

Teakettle Junction on way to the RacetrackNo one quite knows how this tradition began, but rumor has it that kettles were hung to show early settlers that there was water nearby. Another theory is that it was considered good luck to leave a kettle with a message on or in it for fellow travelers to read. When the number of teakettles get to be too much, Rangers remove them, and the process begins all over again.

For this afternoon, we continued straight for another 6 miles to the Grandstand Parking Area at the northern end of the Racetrack Playa (dry lakebed), which is 3 miles long and 2 miles wide. Rising from the playa is a large, dark outcrop of quartz monzonite, which is actually the tip of a mountain buried long ago by material eroded from the surrounding mountains. It looked like an island in a sea of clay.

Unfortunately, we hadn’t “raced” fast enough to get here. As we walked across the playa towards the Grandstand, the sun dipped behind the mountains, putting it in shadow. So close.

Rock racing Lolo to the GrandstandNo camping is allowed in the parking areas alongside the playa, so we continued on to the primitive campground, just two miles beyond, where there are a half a dozen or so places to camp, only two of which were occupied.

The next morning we drove back out from whence we came and stopped once more to walk out on the playa, this time at the southern end, where most of the “moving” rocks hang out. It was easy to find those that had moved by the tracks they left behind in the clay.

Scientists have been studying this strange rock behavior for decades and think they have finally solved the mystery. The theory is that after a rain, the surface of the playa, which is clay, becomes quite slippery. Accompanying that loss of friction with the strong winds that blow out of the Saline Valley, sometimes as high as 70 mph, and you get a sufficient force to actually move a rock across the slick surface, some of which are as large as 1,000 pounds. Some of them have moved as much as several hundred feet, leaving long tracks behind them showing the direction of their journey.

Mysterious moving rocks of the RacetrackUsing GPS measurements, scientists have mapped, measured, and even named 162 rocks. Kitty weighs in at 1,275 pounds and is 22 inches tall, while Hannah is a measly 1 pound. Apparently, rocks are female.

We said goodbye to Kitty and Hannah and headed back north on the Racetrack Road. We debate spending another night in Death Valley at Eureka Dunes, but I think we both had had enough of living out of the back of our 4Runner.

Instead we would drive out to Big Pine on Route 395 via the Death Valley / Big Pine Road. Our oldest son and his wife had recently moved to Bishop, just 15 miles north of Big Pine, so we texted them and invited ourselves for the night.

Description

Golden Canyon TrailIn 1994, the Desert Protection Act added an additional 1.2 million acres to Death Valley National Monument and upgraded its status to National Park, making it the largest national park outside of Alaska. The park is located on the eastern border of a remote section of California with some small portions extending into Nevada. Despite its remoteness, it is one of the most highly visited parks in the national park systems. Many of these visitors come all the way from Europe and Japan to experience the extremes of this stunningly beautiful desert.

Death Valley received its name from the unfortunate forty-niners who were forced to cross the burning sands here in order to avoid the severe snowstorns in the nearby Sierra Nevada on their way to the California Gold Rush. Many perished along the way, and those that survived remembered it as a place of suffering and death. The current names of many of the places in Death Valley reflect its harshness: Dead Man Pass, Funeral Mountains, Furnace Creek, Hell’s Gate, Devil’s Golf Course, Starvation Canyon, etc.

The valley itself is over 130 miles long, but only about 12 miles wide, flanked on both sides by unvegetated reddish mountains. From an elevation of about 3,300 feet in the north, the land slopes steadily downward to an elevation of 279 feet below sea level at Badwater, the lowest point in the western hemisphere. In fact, 70 miles of the desert floor is below sea level, accounting for its extremely high termperatures, which can exceed 130°F in summer.

Golden Canyon TrailIn many ways, not much about the valley has changed since the pioneers first crossed here. Its intense heat, frigid cold, and the driest air imaginable still make it one of the most inhospitable locations on earth. However, today’s visitors can enjoy Death Valley and see most of its highlights from the comfort of their air conditioned cars and stay in comfortable, and even luxurious, hotel rooms at night.

The park is criss-crossed by a network of roads, ranging form washboard dirt ones to paved, well-maintained highways, making the most popular destinations quite accessible. The Furnace Creek Visitor Center, near the center of the park, is a great place to get oriented and to begin an exploration of Death Valley. This greenness of this area is a surprise to most visitors who come to the park expecting to see nothing but miles and miles of sand. Fed by warm springs, this area is a verdant oasis with palm trees as tall as 50 feet. There are also two world-class resorts here: the elegant Furnace Creek Inn and the more down-to-earth Furnace Creek Ranch.

Highlights traveling south from Furnace Creek on Route 190

• About 5 miles south of the Furnace Creek Visitor Center is Zabriskie Point, one of the most spectacular overlooks in the park. A short walk uphill from the parking lot brings you to a panoramic view of Golden Canyon and the surrounding vibrantly colored badlands. The views are particularly stunning in the lowlight of early morning or late afternoon.
• Another 1.5 miles down the highway s the turnout for Twenty-Mule Team Canyon road, a one-way dirt road that rejoins the highway in 2.7 miles. The road winds through Twenty-Mule Team Canyon with close-up views of the same colorful badlands seen from Zabriskie Point. RVs and trailers are not allowed on this road.
• 4.5 miles further south on 190 is a turnoff for Dante’s View (restricted to vehicles less than 25 feet). The road to Dante’s View climbs steeply to an overlook 5,000 feet above the valley floor, where the temperatures average 20° F cooler than in the valley. From this viewpoint, which most consider the most breathtaking in the park, one can see the lowest point (Badwater) and the highest point (Telescope Peak) in the park.

Highlights traveling south from Furnace Creek on Badwater Road

• About 1.8 miles south of the Visitor Center is the turnoff for Badwater Road. 1.5 miles further south on Badwater Road is the parking lot for the popular hike into Golden Canyon. A well-marked nature trail (2 miles RT) leads into the narrow canyon, wedged in by eroded cliffs and the slopes of golden badlands.
• Back on Badwater Road, continue south past Artist Drive (get that on the way back as it is a one-way road going north). Around 9 miles south of Golden Canyon is the turnoff for the unpaved spur road to Devil’s Golf Course. The road leads to an odd and forbidding landscape created by salt and erosion on a lake bed that dried up 2,000 years ago. The result is a jagged terrain of salty white miniature mountains and spires, less than 2 feet high. The name comes from the feeling that “only the devil could play golf on such rough links.”
• About 8 miles south is the Badwater Basin, the hottest and lowest point in Death Valley accessible by car. Surprisingly, its permanent spring-fed pools also make it one of the wettest. Legend says that it got its name from a surveyor whose mule refused to drink it. Although not poisonous, it is similar in composition and taste to Epsom salts. Despite its apparent inhospitableness, it is home to water beetles, insect larvae, and a soft-shelled saltwater snail that slowly adapted to these conditions.
• Turning back north on Badwater Road towards Furnace Creek, in 8 miles you come to the turnout for the one-way, 9-mile paved Artist Drive, which winds through a colorful display of sedimentary and volcanic rock hidden from the main road. It received its name from the rainbow of colors—red, pink, yellow, orange, and brown—that paint these rocky hills. About half-way through the loop is the parking lot for Artists Palette, one of the most colorful areas along the loop. Artist Drive is restricted to vehicles less than 25 feet.

Highlights traveling north from Furnace Creek on Route 190

• About 1.7 miles north of the Furnace Creek Visitor Center are the remains of what was once the Harmony Borax Works. Borax, which the prospectors called “white gold,” was once a big business in Death Valley. In the 1880s, Chinese laborers were hired to rake borax “cottonballs” from the valley floor and bring them to the Harmony Borax works to be purified. From there the refined borax was loaded onto the famous twenty-mule team wagons and transported 165 miles across the desert to the train station in Mojave. From there it was shipped to processing plants where it was used to make soaps, disinfectants, and food preservatives. Between 1883 and 1927, more than $30 million worth of borax was produced in Death Valley. A short trail leads past the ruins of the old borax refinery and some outlying buildings. More information on the mining of borax in Death Valley is available in the Borax Museum at the Furnace Creek Ranch.
• 12 miles further north on 190 is the turnoff for the 1.2 mile gravel road to Salt Creek, home to the famous Death Valley pupfish. When the lake that once covered Death Valley dried up thousands of years ago, the desert pupfish was the only fish that managed to adapt to the harsh conditions here. Isolated from each other in scattered salty pools, springs, and creeks, nine types of pupfish have evolved. A tenth has already become extinct. They are found no place else on earth. The pupfish can often be seen from the short wooden boardwalk nature trail that crisscrosses the stream and marshes.
• About 21 miles north of the Visitor Center, Highway 190 turns west towards Stovepipe Wells and the west entrance to the park. At this point, you can either continue on 190 or head north on the North Highway another 32 miles to Scotty’s Castle, the major man-made attraction in Death Valley.

Highlights along the North Highway (traveling north)

• The drive to Scotty’s Castle on the North Highway is a very scenic one with desert stretching out on the west and mountains rising to the east. About 10 miles north on the North Highway is a pullout with great views of Death Valley’s renowned alluvial fans. These fans are something like an hourglass with debris from the mountains funneling through a narrow opening and spilling out in a wedge shape into the valley. They come in many shapes and sizes. The ones near this viewpoint are smaller and steeper.
• 25 miles further north in the remote Grapevine Canyon looms the unlikely sight of a Moorish Castle. Construction of what was more officially called Death Valley Ranch was begun in 1922 by Chicago millionaire Albert Johnson, whose doctors had advised him to spend more time in a warm, dry climate. However, the mansion is known as Scotty’s Castle, named after Johnson’s unlikely friend, Walter Scott. Walter Scott was a cowboy that had traveled with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show in the 1880s before taking up prospecting. Albert Johnson was one of Scotty’s gullible investors in his “secret gold mine” in Death Valley. After several trips west to see the mine, Johnson realized that he was being duped by Scotty. Despite that, Johnson truly enjoyed his new friend and the tall tales he told. Scotty helped Johnson conceive the idea of this vacation villa in Death Valley and lived in it after Johnson’s death.
• In 1970, Scotty’s Castle was purchased by the National Park Service from the foundation to whom Johnson had willed it. Today the colorful history of the castle is brought to life by rangers dressed in 1930s clothing that welcome you as if you were Scotty’s guests. The one-hour guided tour is excellent, both for its inside look at this unusual mansion as well as for the stories about the eccentricities of the two men that built it. Tours depart every 20 minutes from 9 am to 5 pm. Plan to arrive early because they fill up quickly.
• About 1.5 miles down Grapevine Canyon heading back south on the North Highway is the turnoff for the 8 mile road to Ubehebe Crater. This half-mile wide, 600-foot deep crater was formed by volcanic explosions several thousand years ago. Dark cinders and volcanic fragments cover the surrounding countryside. From the parking area there is a steep trail up to the crater’s rim. Be prepared to battle some very gusty winds.
• Because of its remote location, few visitors get to see the famous Death Valley Racetrack, where rocks mysteriously move across the dry lakebed on their own accord. Although no one has actually seen the rocks move, they are known to move because of the trails they leave behind them. After studying the phenomenon for decades, scientists now believe they have solved the mystery. The surface of the lakebed is a fine clay that becomes very slippery when wet. After a rain, heavy winds as high as 70 mph blow the rocks across the slick surface. A 4-wheel drive vehicle is needed to reach the Racetrack, which is 27 miles past Ubehebe Crater on a rough dirt road.

Highlights traveling west along Route 190 from the junction with the North Highway

• Just west of the junction is the parking area for the surrealistic Devil’s Cornfield. On both sides of the road are odd-looking clumps of brush four to ten feet tall that resemble corn stalks. They are actually arrowweed bushes, whose stems were used by Native Americans to make arrow shafts.
• A few miles further west on 190, pull over on the shoulder by a roadside display where the Sand Dunes come close to the highway. These are the highest of a 14-square-mile field of dunes. Although there are no trails to follow, hikers are free to roam the dunes on their own. The best time of day to visit the dunes is in the morning or late afternoon when the temperatures are cooler and the lighting is more dramatic.
• Two miles further west is the village of Stovepipe Wells, Death Valley’s first tourist resort. The village actually got its name from an historic site about 5 miles north where an old stovepipe was sunk into the sand to form the shaft of a well. For years this well was used by travelers as a source for water. Around 1926 a developer planned to build a small resort near the well. However, his lumber trucks got stuck in the sand before he could reach it. Rather than unload and reload his trucks, he decided to try and dig a well where they were. They struck water and stayed. That spot is the current location for Stovepipe Wells. Today the village has a motel, general store, saloon, restaurant, and campground.

Campgrounds that will accomodate RVs in Death Valley

• Furnace Creek Campground (136 sites, no hookups) – located just north of the Visitor Center. Open year round. This is the only park campground that takes reservations.
• Mesquite Spring Campground (30 sites, no hookups) – located 5 miles south of Scotty’s Castle. Open year round.
• Panamint Springs Resort (40 sites, 12 hookups) – located 30 miles west of Stovepipe Wells on Route 190. Open year round. This campground is privately operated and takes reservations.
• Stovepipe Wells Campground (200 sites, 15 hookups) – located in the village of Stovepipe Wells. Open year round.
• Sunset Campground (1000 sites, no hookups) – located .25 miles east of the Furnace Creek Ranch. Open October through April.
• Texas Spring Campground (92 sites, no hookups) – located near Sunset Campground. Open October through April.
• Wildrose Campground (30 sites, no hookups) – located 30 miles south of Stovepipe Wells off the Trona-Wildrose Road. Open year round.

In addition to the park campgrounds, there are two privately-owned campgrounds in the park:

• Furnace Creek Ranch Campground (26 sites, all full hookups) - located at The Ranch just south of the Visitor Center. Open year round. Guests can enjoy the Ranch’s natural spring-fed swimming pool, shower facility, coin operated laundry, tennis courts, shuffleboard, volleyball, Bocci Ball and basketball court.
• Panamint Springs Campground (37 sites, 12 full hookups) - located at the western end of Death Valley National Park on Highway 190 in the town of Panamint Springs

Travelogue

Lolo approaching a large pinnacleHerb had been to Trona Pinnacles on a solo trip last year and had ever since been anxious to bring me there to see its uniqueness and stark beauty. I think it was pretty sweet that he wanted to share his experience with me.

It is pretty much out in the middle of nowhere, 20 miles from the nearest town and reached via a 5-mile, BLM dirt road that leads you to a lunar-like landscape of more than 500 tufa spires, of varying shapes and sizes, some as high as 140 feet, rising from the bed of the Searles Dry Lake basin.

Like the Mono Lake tufa towers, another one of Herb’s favorite barren and desolate otherworldly spots, the crumbling towers around us were also made of calcium carbonate and had been formed thousands of years ago underwater. Now with the lake long dried up, they sit isolated, surrounded by miles of dried mud and mountain ranges.

Golden hour at Trona PinnaclesAs I mentioned in the previous stop, there couldn’t have been a starker contrast between the landscape and experience of being at of Trona Pinnacles and that of Antelope Valley - desolate vs. crowded, sharp rocky spires vs gente rolling hills, monochromatic grays and browns vs. the vibrant hues of the flowers. It is these differences that makes each of these places more special, and travel more interesting.

Dispersed camping is allowed in designated areas at the Pinnacles, and there is a pit toilet. Other than that there’s just sand and rocks.

When we arrived, we were the only ones there, so we had our choice of campsites - and I use the term “campsite” loosely. Herb decided to position ourselves where we would get the best view of the spires in the evening light.

Golden hour at Trona PinnaclesAlthough the landscape was interesting and photogenic during the day, it really came into its own when the sun began to set behind us, lighting up the ski behind the spires in fabulous pastel pinks and blues..

Being the good photo assistant I am, I made the trek across the dried mud to the spires, wearing my bright red jacket, so Herb could get an object in his photos (that’s me) to give a sense of scale. Some of the best photos of me are tiny little dots in a beautiful landscape.

The next morning our spires were silhouetted against the rising sun, but the rocks behind us were now lit up underneath another beautiful pink and blue sky.

Great stop, but really only a one-nighter, so on to Death Valley!

Description

Golden hour at Trona PinnaclesThe Trona Pinnacles are a unique geological formation in the California Desert National Conservation Area, approximately 20 miles east of the town of Ridgecrest, California. Getting there requires driving along a 5-mile, BLM dirt road (RM143) that is usually accessible in a 2WD vehicle.

The lunar-like landscape consists of more than 500 tufa (calcium carbonate) spires, of varying shapes and sizes, some as high as 140 feet, rising from the bed of the Searles Dry Lake basin. Once underwater thousands of years ago, the crumbling towers now sit isolated, surrounded by miles of dried mud and stark mountain ranges.

The pinnacles are classified into four general shapes:

• Towers - 30 to 40 feet high with pointed, rounded, or flat summits
• Tombstones - 20 to 30 feet high and more stubby and squat
• Cones - less than 10 feet high
• Ridges - massive, toothy, and tufa runs. One ridge in Trona is 800 feet long, 500 feet wide and 140 feet tall.

Lolo playing on Trona PinnaclesThe best time to view and photograph the pinnacles is at sunrise or sunset.

Over 30 movies, TV shows, and commercials were filmed in this start and eerie setting, including Lost in Space, Planet of the Apes, and Star Trek V.

As with most BLM land, there is free dispersed camping in designated areas and a pit toilet.

Travelogue

Antelope Valley Poppy ReserveThe next stop on our super bloom tour of southern California brought us to the amazing Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, located a bit too close to L.A. (just an hour and a half) to expect the serenity we had experienced in Carrizo Plains.

Fortunately, we were not arriving on a weekend, when crowds as large as 60,000 descend upon this lovely 1,700-acre Reserve. We got there around 9:00 am on a Friday morning, driving right past the sign, “1 hour wait from here,” paid our $9 parking fee ($10 for non-seniors, so bring an old person), and easily found parking in the fairly large lot.

To quote Julie Andrews, “The hills were alive…” - but with dazzling color rather than the sound of music. The brilliant orange of the California poppies dominated the hillsides, intermixed with the bright golden yellow of Goldfields and the deep lush purples of lupines. It truly was amazing.

Antelope Valley Poppy ReserveThere are eight miles of walking trails that wind their way along the flower-covered hills. We hiked about 5 miles of them before deciding to relinquish our parking space and give someone else a chance.

This was a particularly good bloom because of all the rain. It started in mid-February and is expected to last through May. You can find out the current bloom status and what flowers are expected along each trail by calling the hotline at 661-724-1180.

I highly recommend it.

After leaving the Reserve, we drove back a short distance to a spot alongside the road where there were Joshua Trees surrounded by bright yellow flowers, a lovely juxtaposition

Now it was on to Trona Pinnacles, a place that couldn’t be more opposite from the crowded, colorful, rolling hills of Antelope Valley.

Description

Antelope Valley Poppy ReserveAntelope Valley California Poppy Reserve is a 1,700-acre park famous for its springtime poppy-blanketed hills. The Reserve is located about an hour and a half north of Los Angeles along the western edge of the Mojave Desert grasslands.

After winters where there has been sufficient rainfall, the hills of the Reserve come alive with brilliant oranges (California poppies), yellows (goldfields), and purples (lupine). The duration and intensity of the colors vary from year to year and generally lasts from mid-February through May.

The Reserve has eight miles of walking trails along the gentle, flower-covered, rolling hills. There is a paved section for wheelchair access.

To find out the current bloom status and what flowers you can expect to find along each trail, call the hotline at 661-724-1180.

There is a $10 per vehicle parking fee ($9 for seniors).

Travelogue

Carrizo Plains - Soda Lake salt flatsThey say every cloud (no pun intended) has a silver lining, and our consolation for weeks and weeks of seemingly endless rain was the promise of a spectacular super bloom in southern California.

We never had super blooms in New Jersey, as it is a desert phenomena that only occurs after a particularly rainy winter season - and we had neither deserts or rainy seasons in NJ - so we were very anxious to experience one. Our weather forecast wasn’t particularly inspiring, but we decided to head out anyway, as it was a Wednesday, and we wanted to beat the hoards of fellow super bloomers that descend upon these parks on weekends, causing traffic jams and general crankiness - Herb hates traffic.

The drive to Carrizo Plains National Monument was about 5 and ½ hours, most of it along 101, where the hills and vineyards along the way were a brilliant vibrant green - its version of a super bloom.

Carrizo Plains - Soda Lake salt flatsWe got off 101 onto Route 58 in the lovely town of Paso Robles, the last major town before the northern entrance to Carrizo Plains, about 50 miles away. About 5 miles past the town, we realized there would be no gas stations before Carrizo, so we made a quick U-Turn and filled up.

As we were driving along Route 58, we stopped alongside the road, with about a dozen other cars, to photograph a spectacular field of bright yellow flowers. I am sorry to say I am not a botanist, so colors are about as descriptive as I’m going to get. If this was any indication of what we would encounter when we actually reached Carrizo, this was going to be great.

We arrived in Carrizo Plains by mid-afternoon, with plenty of daylight hours left to explore. There are really only two roads through Carrizo that pretty much run parallel to each other for about 40 miles from the north to the south ends of the park.

Herb doing what he loves doingSoda Lake Road runs down the middle of the park, and as you would expect, runs alongside its namesake, Soda Lake. The northern part of Soda Lake Road is paved, but in the south it is dirt. In fact, all other roads in the park are dirt, which, as the park brochure warns, become muddy and impassable during periods of rain - a reality that we were unfortunately going to learn about first hand on Day 2.

Elkhorn Road, which is reached via several crossroads from Soda Lake Road, runs alongside the foothills of the Temblor Range, on the eastern boundary of the park.

There are tons of smaller dirt roads leading off these two main roads, most of them leading up into the foothills on either side (the Caliente Range in the West and the Temblor Range in the East). It is along these roads up in the foothills where dispersed free camping is allowed. There are also two official campgrounds that have pit toilets. I pointed that out to Herb, but he was having none of that - we were camping in the foothills.

Little lolo loose in Carizzo PlainsWe entered the park on the Soda Lakes Road, and after about 3 miles came to the actual Soda Lake, which was actually a lake now, rather than the dry lake bed it is for much of the year. To get a good overall view of it, we drove to the top of Overlook Hill, where there was an expansive view of the lake, the entire Carrizo Plain, and the foothills of the Temblor Range, blanketed in wildflowers, painting them in brilliant yellows and purples

This view is very different most of the year, when the lake dries up and becomes an expansive salt flat.This occurs because Soda Lake is a closed basin, with no inlets or outlets, so when water trickles down from the mountains into the lake during the winter and then evaporates in spring, it leaves behind a glistening expanse of sulfate and carbonate salts, making it the largest remaining natural alkali wetland in southern California.

Down at lake level again, we stopped to walk along the interpretative boardwalk trail that runs alongside the lake.

Our camping spot in the Temblor Range foothillsHowever, Herb was anxious to find a home in the foothills for the night, so we got back in the 4Runner, drove to the southern end of the lake and took a left on Simmler Road, which brought us across to Elkhorn Road and its many offshoots up into the Temblor Range foothills, which were painted in vibrant yellow and a more subdued purple. I believe the yellow were goldfields and the purples were lupines, but whatever they were, they were spectacular.

We spent a lovely evening strolling along the base of the foothills, photographing their splendor.

Dispersed camping in the wild is such a serene and tranquil experience that is truly rejuvenating for the soul. Herb loves everything about it, and I do too, with one minor exception - the 2 inch clearance between my slumbering nose and the roof of the 4Runner when sleeping on the platform bed Herb built in the back. There really was no other design choice if we wanted the storage space for a large cooler and gear below, so I am learning to live with it. However, I did have one cranky attack when trying to remove my jacket, which I had fallen asleep in. I felt like Houdini trying to escape from a straight jacket.

Carrizo Plains - Soda Lake salt flatsThe next morning, after completing our domestic and personal duties, we headed back down to Elkhorn Road to the parking lot for the Wallace Creek Interpretive Trail for a closeup view of the Andreas Fault, which runs along the northeast side of Carrizo Plain, and the chance to be on two different tectonic plates (the Pacific and North American) in one hike.

This area is considered to be one of the most important geological sites in the world in that you can see first hand the effects of plate tectonics. In fact, the Carrizo Plain owes its very existence to the geologic processes that occur along the San Andreas Fault. 30 million years ago, movement along the San Andreas and San Juan fault lines caused the rise of the Temblor and Caliente mountain ranges on either side of the valley, and the formation of the shallow basin in between now known as Soda Lake.

While it’s a little tough to wrap your head around and visualize how earthquakes can create entire mountain ranges, it is a bit easier to absorb how the movement of plates along a fault line can cause a creek to shift and bend. That is exactly what we would see along this trail.

Wallace Creek Interpretive TrailWe followed the trail along the fault, before climbing up a steep ridge overlooking the dry creek bed, which is sometimes Wallace Creek. Unlike most creeks that meander and gently curve, this one has two almost 90-degree bends, which were caused by a 7.9-magnitude earthquake in 1857, in which the Pacific plate moved 30 feet past the North American plate. The Andreas Fault crosses Wallace Creek almost exactly through these two tight bends.

The Andreas fault cuts crosses the Carrizo Plain from northwest to southeast. Everything southwest of the fault, including the Caliente Range and the downstream half of Wallace Creek, is on the Pacific plate and sliding slowly to the northwest (toward San Francisco) while everything that lies northeast of the fault, including the Temblor Range and the upstream half of Wallace Creek, is on the North American plate sliding to the southeast (toward Los Angeles). Unlike the 30-foot jump of the plates in 1857, the usual rate of movement is an imperceptible 1.3 inches per year.

I wanted to make sure I was on the same tectonic plate as Herb at all times in case anything happened.

The colored hills of Carrizo PlainsAfter our very educational hike, we headed over to the Pacific Plate section of the park - just showing off my new knowledge - with the plan of exploring and finding camping in the foothills of the Caliente Range. We took a few side dirt roads off of Soda Lake Road, which was also now dirt, to look for remnants of old ranches as well as potential camping spots for the night.

Unfortunately, the weather was beginning to turn for the worse, but the clouds sure were interesting. Soon it began to drizzle, and what had been perfectly drivable roads before, turned into slippery mud. On our way back down to Soda Lake Road from one of the offshoots, we actually spun around 270 degrees. Since the weather didn’t look like it would be improving any time soon, we decided, for safety reasons, to leave the park tonight and find a motel to stay in.

Easier said than done. We decided to cross back over to Elkhorn Road, with the intention of leaving Carrizo out the south entrance along the Elkhorn Grade Road. The better choice would have been to stay on Soda Lake Road to the paved Route 166. Hindsight is always great.

The crossover to Elkhorn involved going up and down a small mountain, during which we spun around once more. When we finally got to Elkhorn Grade Road, we saw that it too was dirt, or more correctly slippery mud. We made it about 20 feet slipping and sliding before turning around and heading back towards the north entrance (40 miles away).

Along Hurricane Ridge RoadElkhorn Road was flat, so it was a bit better, but we still did one more almost 360. Finally, the road got a little better as it had rained less in the northern part of the park. Rather than go the entire length to the northern exit, we turned right onto Hurricane Ridge Road, which would bring us out to Route 33. The road was steep, narrow, and twisty, but highly scenic. If it had been wet, it would have been a nightmare.

Finally, we reached the less than scenic town of Taft, where there were oil pumpjacks (also appropriately called nodding donkeys) pumping as far as the eye could see. What a contrast to the serenity and natural beauty of Carrizo Plains.

We drove about an hour more to a Days Inn in the town of Lebec.

Description

Carrizo Plains - Soda Lake salt flatsCarrizo Plains National Monument, located about 100 miles northwest of Los Angeles and 60 miles east of San Luis Obispo, is one of the best kept secrets in California.

Since the mid-1800s, large portions of the grasslands of the 400-mile long San Joaquin Valley have disappeared as a result of urban and agricultural development.The Carrizo Plain National Monument is the largest remaining undeveloped remnant of that once vast ecosystem, offering a refuge for many endemic plant and animal species.

The Carrizo Plain owes its existence to the geologic processes that occur along the San Andreas Fault, which runs along the northeast side of the plain. 30 million years ago, movement along the San Andreas and San Juan fault lines caused the rise of the Temblor and Caliente mountain ranges on either side of the valley, and the formation of the shallow basin in between now known as Soda Lake.

Soda Lake is a closed basin, so when water trickles down from the mountains into the lake during the winter and then evaporates in spring, it leaves behind a glistening expanse of sulfate and carbonate salts, making it the largest remaining natural alkali wetland in southern California. During the heat of the summer, the salt flat appears to ripple and sway.

The lake can be viewed either by climbing to the top of a small hill above the lake or by strolling along a boardwalk alongside it that crosses the wetlands to a vista point.

Lolo of CarrizoThe Wallace Creek Interpretive Trail, on the opposite side of the lake, provides as closeup view of the San Andreas Fault and is one of the most important geological sites in the world in that you can see the effects of plate tectonics first hand. The trail runs diagonally along the fault and then makes a steep climb to a ridge overlooking two almost 90-degree bends in the dry creek bed, caused by the slippage of the San Andreas Fault, most recently by a 7.9-magnitude earthquake in 1857.
In spring, if conditions are right, a super bloom occurs, and numerous wildflowers carpet the valley floor and the foothills of the Temblor and Caliente mountains, painting them in breathtaking bright yellows and purples. Expect large crowds on weekends.

The Carrizo Plains National Monument can be reached from the north via State Route 58 or from the South via State Route 33/166. There are no services in the park, so be sure to gas and stock up in one of the gateway communities outside the park.

There are two developed campgrounds in the Monument as well as dispersed camping along the foothills.

Travelogue

Home Sweet Home

Description

Our home in Sonoma Valley

Travelogue

As predicted, the Tecate border crossing was quick and uneventful. It was quite sad though to see several families with young children pleading to get a ride once across the border. There is pretty much nothing but 30 miles mountainous, winding roads between the border and civilization. It's pretty heartbreaking to see.

We drove for about an hour before settling in for the night (our last on the road) at a Days Inn Wyndham outside of San Diego.

Description

One of Baja's three border crossings into the U.S.

Travelogue

Along the road north on Mexico 1877 miles to go.

However, we did have a fun event planned for the day: visiting a winery in the Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico’s version of Napa Valley. We live in Sonoma Valley, so we were curious to see what their wine country was like.

Based on advice from fellow travelers we had met along the way, we were going to cross the border in Tecate rather than Tijuana. Besides being a quicker border crossing, this route would bring us along La Ruta de Vino (Wine Route), a rapidly growing wine region in northern Baja, just an hour south of the Tecate border crossing.

Wildflower bloom along Mexico 1La Ruta del Vino (Wine Route) is the name given to the roads that connect the more than 120 boutique wineries in the valley. There are only three paved road in the Valle de Guadalupe, the rest being a network of unnamed dirt roads. Blue signs designate the turn-offs from the paved roads for various wineries and restaurants.

In addition to the varietals we are familiar with in the states, lesser known grapes, such as the Spanish tempranillo and the Italian nebbiolo, are grown here. Also, the region produces many blends, thus creating unique taste profiles not found anywhere else.

The demands for wines from this valley is so great in Mexico, that 96% of the wines produced here go to Mexico City. Because of this great demand, U. S. citizens are only allowed to bring back one liter of wine per adult into the U.S. every 30 days.

Enjoying lunch at Finca Altozano in the Valle de GuadalupeIn addition to great wines, there is great food to be found at one of the many outdoor campestre restaurants serving gourmet farm-to-table food with views of the vineyards.

Since this was a long driving day for us, we were more interested in the food rather than the wine. We chose Finca Altozano, a campestre that received a star rating in our Moon Baja guidebook. That guide had not steered us wrong yet in its recommendations.

The restaurant was located about a mile down a dirt road off La Ruta del Vino. Compared to the places we passed along the way, the parking lot was quite full - always a good sign.

The atmosphere was lovely, open-air dining with views overlooking the vineyards, and the food was excellent. I had an incredible pasta dish with their house-made sausage and Herb had a breaded Chicken Milanese. A refreshing wine spritzer with melons and oranges completed our fabulous lunch.

Lolo enjoying the view from atop a wine barrel at Finca Altozano in the Valle de GuadalupeAfterwards, we walked around the property, where they’ve turned large wine barrels into lookouts with benches at the top. What a great place it would have been to sip a glass of wine and enjoy the views if we didn’t have a border crossing and miles of driving still ahead of us.

The rest of the day went smoothly. The Tecate border crossing was quick and uneventful. We spent that night, our last on the road, at a Days Inn outside of San Diego.

Description

Often referred to as the “Napa of Mexico,” the Valle de Guadalupe is a rapidly growing wine region in northern Baja, just an hour south of the Tecate border crossing. As a result, it is a popular weekend destination for people from the San Diego area.

La Ruta del Vino (Wine Route) is the name given to the roads that connect the many wineries in the valley. There are only three paved road in the Valle de Guadalupe, the rest being a network of unnamed dirt roads. Blue signs designate the turn-offs from the paved roads for various wineries and restaurants.

Although wine has been made in this region for over 100 years, it has only been in the past 20 that it has received some well-deserved attention. Today, there are over 120 boutique wineries producing small batches of high-quality, award winning wines.

In addition to the varietals Americans are familiar with, other grapes, such as the Spanish tempranillo and the Italian nebbiolo, may be less known. Also, the region produces many blends, thus creating unique taste profiles not found anywhere else.

90% percent of the wines from Mexico come from this region, and 96% of the wines produced here go to Mexico City. That is why they have not received much exposure outside of Mexico.
Because of this great demand, U. S. citizens are only allowed to bring back one liter of wine per adult into the U.S. every 30 days.

In addition to great wines, there is great food to be found at one of the many outdoor campestre restaurants serving gourmet farm-to-table food with views of the vineyards.

Travelogue

Mision San Francisco JavierAs per the experienced Baja travelers we met in Kuyima, we left Mulege a day early and headed towards Loreto, where we had just made reservations for the night at a place called Coco Cabanas.

On the way down Mexico 1, we stopped at Playa El Requeson, the beach I had marked in my trip planning notes as the best place to camp, to see if it was something we would like to do on our way back north. It was. The beach was much quieter than Playa Santispac, with much fewer RVs. Not sure why, as it was much prettier. Perhaps it was the lack of a restaurant on the beach.

Interior of Mision San Francisco JavierWe very much wanted to see the remote Mision San Francisco Javier, a highly recommended side trip from Loreto, so before heading over to our hotel, we took the gorgeous 24-mile, steep and winding drive from Mexico 1, through the scenic valley of the Sierra de la Giganta, to the tiny agricultural town of San Javier. The views of the craggy peaks of the Giganta along the way alone were worth the trip.

The town was lovely, set against a backdrop of black lava cliffs. There was only one street through town, lined with two restaurants and a souvenir shop, coming to an end at the steps of the beautiful stone structure of the mission.

We had been to two missions in Baja so far - San Ignacio and Mulege - but this one was by far the most impressive. It is considered the crown jewel of the Baja mission system, because of its impressive architecture and its excellent state of preservation.

Interior of Mision San Francisco JavierOutside the mission, there were several informative historical placards detailing its history. The following is a brief, summarized version:

The mission was founded in 1699 by Padre Francisco Maria Piccolo. However, during a drought, in 1710, it was moved 5 miles south to its present location because of its better access to fresh water and fertile soil. The goal of every mission was self-sufficiency, and this new location would allow them to grow their own crops, such as grapes, olives, and citrus.

The church here today was built from 1744 to 1758, and remains the finest preserved stone mission in Baja. The mission features the first glass windows in Baja, three gold-leaf altars shipped from mainland Mexico, and a spiral staircase leading up to the choir loft. Dominating the altar is a statue of San Francisco Javier, surrounded by eight large oil paintings.

Armed with knowledge, we stepped through the double portal and wandered through the interior of this very impressive church, taking note (and photographs) of the features we had learned about.

315-year-old olive tree (plus us)However, by far my favorite was the statue of a female saint (or possibly martyr?) set in the niche of a closed portal to the left of the altar. She was clothed in a black, formless cloak and crown of sorts, that left only her face exposed, in an expression that I can best describe as pure ecstasy. Adorning the portal surrounding her were a few more disembodied heads, with much more mundane, earthly expressions. I really wanted to know the story behind this, but could find no information either there or in later google churches. Her image was haunting.

After visiting the interior of the church, we strolled around back to the gardens, where you can still see the wells, dams, and irrigation channels built by the mission founders. It was quite lush, and date palms, citrus, grapes, and olive trees are still grown here. I can understand why they chose this location.

The most impressive example of their plantings was an enormous, 315-year-old olive tree, with gnarled branches extending in every direction. By my calculation, that tree had to have been planted almost immediately upon their mission’s move to this location.

The tree was the perfect backdrop for what turned out to be Herb and my first, and only, photograph of us together on this trip.

Mision San Francisco Javier's backyardWalking back from the gardens, we were treated to a very different perspective of the mission. From the front, it dominates the scene. However, from the back, with the black lava cliffs of the Sierra de la Giganta rising above it, it takes on a more humble role amidst nature’s glory.

Before leaving town, we decided to have lunch. We sat down at a table in Restaurant La Palapa, which was the only one mentioned in this town in Moon Baja, but were totally ignored. When a tour bus pulled into town, we figured we would never get served, so we got up and went across the street to Betty’s, where we had a very good, and quickly served, lunch of quesadillas and beef burritos.

Time to head back down the twisty road to Loreto and check out our accommodations for the night.

Description

Portals of Mision San Francisco JavierThe Mision San Francisco Javier is the crown jewel of the Baja missions because of its beauty and excellent state of preservation. It is the most architecturally impressive mission on the peninsular, as well as best preserved. Adding to its allure is its spectacular remote setting against a backdrop of the spectacular black lava cliffs of the Sierra de la Giganta.

Padre Francisco Maria Piccolo founded the mission in 1699, but during a drought in 1710, it was moved 5 miles south to its present location which had better access to fresh water and fertile soil. This new location would allow them to grow their own crops, such as grapes, olives, and citrus. Today you can still see the wells, dams, and irrigation channels that they built, as well as a 315-year-old olive tree, in the gardens behind the mission.

The church was built from 1744 to 1758, and remains the finest preserved stone mission in Baja. The mission features the first glass windows in Baja, three gold-leaf altars shipped from mainland Mexico, and a spiral staircase leading up to the choir loft. Dominating the altar is a statue of San Francisco Javier, surrounded by eight large oil paintings.

The Mision is a must-do side trip from Loreto. From Mexico 1 (at km 118), drive southwest for 24 miles to the tiny agricultural town of San Javier. The drive through scenic valley and peaks of the Sierra de la Giganta is worth the trip alone.

Travelogue

My favorite roadside graffitiThe fun part of the trip was pretty much over. Our southernmost destination on the peninsular had been Loreto, and we had started our journey back north with last night’s stop on Playa El Requeson, where a beautiful sunrise greeted us the this morning.

There are not many choices of roads in Baja, so we would have to retrace our steps along Mexico 1, back through Mulege, Santa Rosalia, Las Tres Virgenes, San Ignacio, Catavina, and San Quintin. We did, however, make the decision to cross the border in Tecate rather than Tijuana this time, both because it was rumored to be quicker and also because it would allow us to see something new along Mexico 3 - the Valle de Guadalupe and its burgeoning wine country.

I put “Home” into Google Maps, and it said 1,222 miles. Oh boy! We would have to figure out some fun breaks along the way.

Cacti outside of CatavinaSo far, all I was coming up with was trying to find a building that I had wanted to photograph on the way down, but weren’t able pull over in time - and there are not many opportunities for a U-turn on these narrow roads. I wrote myself an email describing its location, on the chance that we could find it on our way back north.

About 5 hours into our otherwise uneventful drive, I told Herb that I thought we were getting close. There was not much else along this stretch of highway, so when I saw a white, rather decrepit building just ahead, I told him to pull in. There it was - an old, crumbling building with graffiti all over it, the best of which were large black letters saying “Make America Mexico Again.” Herb was quite impressed with my navigational abilities.

That was pretty much our highlight for the day, with the exception of some pretty awesome cacti just outside of Catavina.

Predawn cactusThere weren’t that many great choices of lodging along this stretch of the road, except for the Hotel Mision Catavina, where we had stayed on the way down. Fortunately, they had room for us. It was much warmer than on our way down, so I attempted to sit by the pool for a bit, while Herb napped after our long drive.

The next morning, Herb got up before sunrise and went out by himself to photograph the cacti in the morning light. When I saw the photo he took, I wish I had dragged myself out of bed to join him.

Going back to my rather cliche analogy of the optical illusion of the old woman and the pretty young girl, upon our reentry into northern Baja with its contrasts and extremes, we were being visited by both of them.

Description

Looking out our hotel windowCatavina is a small town in the middle of the desert with a mini market and one hotel. There is no longer a gas station, but in its place are several pickup trucks selling barrel gas. Because there is not much between El Rosario and Guerrero Negro, it is a popular overnight stop for people passing through.

However, beyond its convenience as a stopover, Catavina has much to offer on its own. The terrain around the small town is a photographer's paradise, with its striking boulder fields sprinkled with cacti and desert plants.

Also nearby are the Catavina Pinturas Rupestres, the most easily accessible cave paintings in Baja. To find them, at kilometer 76 look for the INAH sign on the east side of Mexico 1. Park your car hear and follow the well-marked trail up the hill to the paintings - about a 10 minute walk. Their are informational signs along the way explaining the history and significance of this site. Unfortunately, they were all written in Spanish.

The paintings are tucked inside a small cave at the top of a hill. The drawings, done in yellow, red, and black minerals, depict a sun, geometric designs, and other abstract shapes. They were believed to have been created about a 1,000 years ago by the Cochimi people.