Bye Bye Bandon……..we really had a great time out here at Bandon Dunes, and can honestly say this is the best golf experience we have had in one location ever. Cabot comes close, but 5 courses VS 2 courses is just not a fair fight. If this place is not on your bucket list……..get a bigger bucket.
Today is a travel day………our next destination is Death Valley, and yours truly, travel planner extraordinaire, decided to break this leg into two parts. Day 1 would see us staying in Hat Creek, California, leaving a journey of the same length to reach Stovepipe Wells in Death Valley the next day. Well……..we have arrived in Hat Creek……..blinked and almost missed it………I knew there were what they call “hill people” back in the Ozarks, but in California……..are you kidding me. What looked like a really cool RV Park online, has turned out to be something completely different. I was expecting a Hippie Dippie cattle ranch, buy our fresh eggs, commune with the herefords, catch a couple of trout in the pond, kinda place……….more than a near miss, and into the bargain, we are totally shut out for wifi and even cell service………it’s a black hole………we actually drove back to Burney, CA, to the closest golden arches just to post yesterdays drivel. We have decided it will be an early rise tomorrow……..on the road ASAP………I never thought I would be DYING to get to DEATH VALLEY, but it appears that is the case……..
OK, its really not all that bad (I just opened the scotch)…….potatoes are baking in our now fully functional and totally understood micro/convection oven, and dinner will be fabulous…….cows strolling by outside, the sun is shining, beautiful views………….…..but I’m still outta here as soon as I wake up, believe me, there is not enough scotch in the world…………
I am up and on the go by 6am…..broke down camp, hooked up and ready to go by 6:30……a new record for me……….checked the GPS to see what the day’s drive looked like, and discovered it was 200 miles longer than expected………WHAAAAT!!!!……..I thought it might be the black hole we are in, but actually turns out that I totally screwed up when planning the drive…………that just doesn’t happen. We are pissed, but what can you do……..it will be a longer day in the truck, but we will get there all the same.
Going through Hawthorne, NV., we see hundreds, maybe thousands, of these non-descript buildings all laid out in rows, and then about the same number of what looks to be underground bunkers …….went on for a few miles…..apparently this is one of the biggest ammunition storage facilities in the USA. We are noticing a very large military presence here in Nevada………multiple bases and facilities.
Leaving Hat Creek there is clear evidence of forest fire activity, and as we head further south/east, it shows even more…..then it shows a lot…….then there are areas totally burned out on both sides of the highway and up both sides of the valley we are driving through………..turns out this area was part of the huge Dixie Fire, 2021, that was the second largest wildfire in history, with over 900,000 acres burnt, and was active for around four months. We stopped at McDonalds for a cuppa, and ran into a firefighting team from Oregon………probably 20 guys…….5 vehicles full of gear, heading to another active fire in N. California. I see now why my niece Fallon comes out here every year to fly the firefighting helicopters.
So we are tooling along making good time, passing through isolated small towns, and the occasional larger centres with their high rise casino’s a familiar feature. Of particular note was Fallon, Nevada, named for a long lost relative of mine, Michael Fallon. Back in 1875, Michael was drinking heavily one night in one of the harbour pubs in Glasgow, and upon leaving, decided to lie down and take a nap atop one of the many shipping pallets on the dock. He awoke the next morning well out to sea in the hold of a ship on it’s way to the Americas. How he made his way west to the desert, and had a town named after him is a matter for much discussion………we will do that sometime
Surprisingly a lot of climbing today…….up to 5,700 ft at one point, but we never really come down below 3,500. From our morning high up in the forest, with views of distant snow capped peaks, Crater Peak, Mt. Grant, etc., it turns very quickly to desert terrain…….absolutely beautiful landscapes and colours. Those roads you always see in the movies that just go forever all the way to the horizon, were one after another all afternoon.
The wind was howling, and once again Plan B proved how great it handles in those conditions. Dust/sand was blowing in clouds all over the valleys……..huge sandstorms that obscured the views for miles. Jutta took a load of pictures from the truck……you will see a lot of them.
We knew we were getting close when we reached the town of Beaty, and connected to Hwy 374 that would take us right into Stovepipe Wells, our destination in Death Valley. There was a short climb out of Beaty, then a sign at the top warning of 12 miles of continuous downhill……..check your brakes!! Here is the crazy thing……..I have never experienced anything like this in my life before……….temperature at the top of the hill was 70 degrees………..by the time we reached the bottom 15 minutes later……….it was 96 degrees. How crazy is that? We probably dropped the better part of 4-5,000ft, and gave the brakes a real good workout.
We are now parked and hooked up in Stovepipe Wells……..280 ft below sea level……nice little all in one location with motel, restaurant, saloon, gift shop, general store, pool, RV sites, and general camping also. I am now enjoying the lowest beer I have ever had, and tonight I will wander over to the Badwater Saloon for dinner, and have the lowest meal I have ever eaten……….that is about as low as this guy can get. This is home for the next couple of nights, so until tomorrow when we will be reporting from atop a sand dune, among other things…….we wish you goodnight.
HUGEBLOGSITE 