Tuesday 2 October
Death Valley is the hottest place on earth and its almost entirely devoid of shade and water. Average summer temperatures are 112F or 57C degrees with the highest recorded temperature of 134 degrees taking place on 13 July 1913 - this makes it the hottest place in the world. On 15 January of the same year, the record low of 15 degrees was recorded.
Excited about today. We left Beatty about 10.00 a.m. to go to Rhyolite first of all, a ghost town about 4 miles away. Like many early mining towns in Nevada, it boomed and it busted. It was founded in 1905 when samples of gold were found which resulted in the usual real estate boom. The town reached its peak in 1907 with an estimated 8-10,000 residents and was once known as the 'Chicago of the West' with 3 railroads passing through, a stock exchange, 3 storey office buildings, hotels, banks and boarding houses etc.
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| Rhyolite, California |
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| Rhyolite, California |
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| Rhyolite, California |
Rhyolite, however, was only able to establish 1 mine which wasn't profitable and only 2 million dollars worth of gold was taken when it closed in 1911. Quite a story and quite strange to walk around the ruins of this once proud town positioned as it is in the middle of the desert. Other than the fact that the ruins are concrete, with the deep blue skies and outlines of once majestic buildings, it likened itself to the ruins of an ancient land. Lots of notices to 'beware of rattlesnakes' and 'no shooting' - we had a good hunt around but didn't see one - tempting to go poking under stones but dangerous so we left nature alone.
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| Rhyolite, California |
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| Shot at Rhyolite, California |
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| Millie in the desert, Rhyolite, California |
Further down the road was a surreal little wonder - The Goldwell Open Air Museum where modern art meets nature. There was a life-sized interpretation of The Last Supper set against a backdrop of magnificent mountains, a pink woman made of cinder blocks, a steel prospector accompanied by a penguin, a ghostly bike rider and a beautiful, colourful mosaic sculptured settee - simply exquisite
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| Goldwell Open Air Museum, California |
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| Goldwell Open Air Museum, California |
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| Dave and the 12 disciples, Goldwell Open Air Museum, Californiaa |
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| Goldwell Open Air Museum, California |
Drove the few miles then to the entrance to Death Valley National Park. Its a very hot day but we know it will get much hotter once we get into the valley.
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| Death Valley National Park, California |
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| Death Valley National Park, California |
It was an amazing drive to Bathwater Basin, the lowest point in Death Valley, and in North America itself, at 282 ft. below sea level. It is a land of stunning beauty and strange contrasts - crusty salt flats and towering mountain peaks, parched desert and small spring-fed oasis. Totally fascinating and we walked out in the scorching temperatures - 111 degrees today - onto the salt flats. It is a strange feeling, there were other people around, but the stillness and the silence are entrancing and I was reluctant to leave.
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| Bathwater Basin, Death Valley National Park, California |
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| Bathwater Basin, Death Valley National Park, California |
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| Bathwater Basin, Death Valley National Park, California |
Carried on driving through the park until we arrived at the little tourist village of Stovepipe Wells where there is a small hotel, a campground, grocery store and saloon. There was also a mineral-fed swimming pool which was a very welcome but quite unexpected surprise - just what we needed. Had a swim and went to the bar a bit later for a few cold beers and were shocked to pay 7 dollars (we had forgotten we were in California). In fact it troubles us quite a lot that as we have had to travel so far across the country for the wedding (east coast in Florida to almost the west coast), California is our only real option unless we backtrack - we need to make some decisions soon. Wandered back to the van for more beer and burgers and sat out looking at the amazing stars. Would have been perfect had it not been for everyone's air conditioning blasting out - ours included.
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| Stovepipe Wells Village, Death Valley National Park, California |
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| 'It's hot', Stovepipe Wells, Death Valley National Park, California |
Wednesday 3 October
Quite a quiet day. Went for a walk first thing before it got too hot and hoped to see a rattlesnake but no luck - they also have tarantulas and black widow spiders here as well but didn't see any of those either. Plenty of snake holes but not brave enough to poke a stick down. Spent a lot of the day swimming and reading in the shade before going out late afternoon to the sand dunes.
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| Death Valley National Park, California |
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| Death Valley National Park, California |
Had a walk among them but simply too hot to be out for too long. So had another swim before a barbecue and an early night. Have loved it here but off tomorrow.
Thursday 4 October
Happy Birthday Tom xxx
Left the National Park today and said goodbye to the last of the really hot weather we'll probably have this year. The drive through the mountains and high desert to Bishop was stunning and scary in equal measures. The mountains took in the whole range of colours on a Dulux paint card - taupe, stone, ochre, orange, chocolate, maroon - I was humbled, awed and sickened all at the same time - oh to be able to look at the views without fear of death but I just can't do it. It got cooler as we went higher and the mighty Sierras Nevada mountain range soared in the distance. It is said to be some of the most dramatic scenery in Southern California - an oasis of colour, brooding volcanic formations and the odd Joshua Tree standing sentry. We passed huge expanses of salt flats and then the landscape began to get lusher, we saw grass and real trees and lots of beautiful yellow gorse or scrub. We reached Lone Pine which is dominated by Mount Whitney standing at 14,505 ft. - the highest point in the lower 48 states. It resembled a silver-gray ridge of pinnacles which forms a nearly sheer wall of granite - magnificent.
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| Mount Whitney, Lone Pine, California |
Lone Pine is home to the famous Lone Pine Film Festival, a must for staunch Western fans, it has provided a base for the filming of epic Westerns for years. We passed through the little towns of Independence and Big Pine before reaching Bishop (pop. 3,575, elev. 3,300 ft.). Bishop is the largest town in the Owens Valley and is a tourist base for cross-country skiing, fly fishing and, in particular, rock climbing. Pulled into the Diamond J RV Park in the middle of town and will probably stay for 3 days.
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| Diamond J RV Park, Bishop, California |
Went out for a wander, its a pretty little town with a nice park, famous Erick Schat's Bakery which people flock to from miles around - apparently it is known for its Sheepherder bread!). Its quite a grand Bavarian looking building and always seemed to be full of people inside and out. Later on went for some beers at Rusty's Saloon and delighted to find they were only 2 dollars here. Anyway had too many, decided to sit outside at a little cafe for a last one before getting KFC but ended up having a massive row and going home seperately - things not too good at the moment.
Friday 5 October
Well Dave and I not really speaking so spent a bit of a solitary day. Went to the park and read my book for a while - weather still gorgeous here and it seems as if summer doesn't want to end, which is fine by me - I can't bear the thought of it getting cold and having to wear loads of clothes. Went for a walk and did a bit of shopping before cooking myself some food and going to bed to read - sad.
Saturday 6 October
Things a bit better today and we went out in the morning to a big classic car show which was taking place at The Fairgrounds just down the road. Hugely impressive array of stunning cars there and a gorgeous hot day added to the enjoyment. I did see the car of my dreams as well - a lime green and white Thunderbird - total perfection.
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| My favourite Thunderbird, Bishop, California |
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| Bishop, California |
Came back and sat in the glorious sunshine for a while before going out late afternoon to see the Main Street Parade - it was brilliant. There must have been over 100 cars of all colours, sizes and descriptions - we joined the local community who lined the street to wave and see them pass - a real carnival atmosphere. Ended up back at Rusty's Saloon again, this time full of locals enjoying a cold beer on a hot afternoon. Could get used to this little place, it's really cheap and they certainly know how to pour a drink - definitely no measures here. Well it was still light when we shamefully stumbled back up the street. Dave went for food whilst I decided to stay put at the campsite. Peace is restored. A good day and a good night's sleep.
Sunday 7 October
Another lovely day although early mornings are definitely cool here. Had a tidy up, checked a few things online before driving 5 miles to the Laws Railroad Museum and Historical Site.
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| Laws Railroad Museum, Bishop, California |
Fascinating place telling the story of the railroad and the town of Laws that grew up around it during the mining days in the 1880's. Spent a couple of splendid hours wandering around looking at the old schoolhouse, the printers, beauty parlour, general store as well as the trains and station itself.
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| Laws Railroad Museum, Bishop, California |
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| Laws Railroad Museum, Bishop, California |
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| The Beauty Parlour, Laws Railroad Museum, Bishop, California |
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| Laws Railroad Museum, Bishop, California |
Followed that with some shopping in Bishop before parking up in the carpark for a free night. A touch of autumn in the air and I think it will certainly get cooler as we go further north. Cooked some fish, made some chips, not a drop of alcohol in sight. Had a nice quiet night with an amazing sunset and our books.
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| Bishop, California |
Monday 8 October
Set off in the morning for Yosemite National Park - lovely bright, sparkling morning. Mountains everywhere as we climbed up and into the Inyo National Forest looking for bears all the time - they are prevalent here. Drove through Tom's Town, past Mammoth Lakes - a big ski and fishing resort and on into Mono Lake National Basin. Mono Lake sits in the middle of a volcanic desert, from a distance it looks almost lunar with two large islands, one light-coloured, the other black, all surrounded by water. Eventually reached Yosemite and, quite frankly, the day went all the way downhill from there. We entered the National Park through the 39 mile scenic Tioja Pass, the Park's trans-Sierra Nevada crossing.
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| Yosemite National Park, California |
It's a simply stunning drive, it passes forests of pine and giant redwood and magnificent blue mountain lakes. We stopped for a cuppa at Tenaya Lake at an elevation of 9,538 ft. It was brilliantly blue surrounded by white beaches and huge granite peaks. Finally after more hair-raising curves, heights and bends we reached Yosemite Valley. Its only 7 miles long and never more than 1 mile wide and it is walled by near vertical 3,000 ft. cliffs. Apparently it is famous for its waterfalls which tumble down in the spring but were in short supply at the end of the hottest, driest summer on record.
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| Yosemite National Park, California |
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| Yosemite National Park, California |
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| Yosemite National Park, California |
I went to the Visitor's Centre to check out the campsites thinking that an October Monday would not present a problem, only to be told they were all full - crushed. It had been a long, hard drive to get here, the 37 miles had taken the best part of 2 hours and we had to turn around and do it all again. There are unserviced campsites in the Park, many of them, but they all close at the end of September so we had no choice - we were not happy. The scenery, as always, has been beyond description but to have to turn straight back round again was upsetting to say the least and we needed to do that as we didn't fancy driving the road once it started to get dark. Anyway, off we went, stopped off at a few picturesque spots, namely Olmsted Point which had a wonderful view over the valley, passed the giant redwoods at Tolmna Grove and finally got back to where we started very late afternoon.
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| Yosemite National Park, California |
Just wanted to find a nice little spot to spend the night, didn't want a campsite but a few beers and some food would be nice. Drove about 30 hard miles, the mountains of the High Sierras are relentless and, however beautiful, we're getting a bit tired of them now. Eventually reached the little town of Bridgeport (pop. 650, elev. 6,583 ft.) and pulled in off the main street. Went to the Sportsman's Bar and Grill for a couple of beers, great chilli and back to the van for bed.
Tuesday 9 October
Well another day that hasn't really gone right. Had a very bad night's sleep - it was soooo cold. From sleeping with barely a cover we were under 2 quilts and a blanket and I had on leggings, socks and a hoodie and was still freezing. Anyway, as it usually does here, the big yellow ball shines in the big, blue sky and it starts to warm up pretty quickly. We had a beautiful ride, we're back in ranching country with hundreds of cows everywhere, there are lush mountain valleys bleached yellow by the sun and we passed massive boulder-strewn dried-up riverbeds. Fuel prices are becoming a bit of a problem - we saw it at 5.66 today - we thought it was horribly expensive when we paid 3.80 dollars a couple of weeks ago - it's certainly making a difference to our budget. Tiny little communities here which must be pretty isolated through the winter months - they all seem to have huge woodpiles stocked up ready for the season ahead. Lovely, lovely drive but goodbye California - too expensive and we know if we carry on down the 101 on the coast, it will be totally unaffordable for us, so we crossed the state line back into Nevada.
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