UPDATE: The connectivity is poor, so just a few updates today.
Just not something you see everyday, unless you go to Alien Beef Jerky in Baker, California every day!
On Monday we drove from Palm Springs, California, to Pahrump, Nevada, via Riverside. Our goal was to save two sets of DJ front axles in the hopes that someone could use them.
On Monday we drove from Palm Springs to Pahrump via Riverside.
We started the morning in Palm Springs. The night in our Extended Stay room was cheap, but nice. The view in the morning of the Santa Rosa mountains was just stunning. It’s not hard to see why Palm Springs became a popular destination to escape the LA basin.
Panoramic photo from the Extended Stay’s grounds.
Our first objective was to meet Jim in Riverside to pickup a set of DJ-3A axles. My biggest worry was that they wouldn’t fit in the back of the jeep, but then serendipity in the form of Paul Dubois, an eWillys reader and a regular at the FC Roundup, came when he offered to store them if I couldn’t pick pile them into the jeep (he lives in Riverside — Thanks Paul! … Spoiler, I got them in).
We met Jim in the morning at his storage locker. As the door slid up, it was clear that DJ axles weren’t the only thing he had. After we made a deal on the axles (anyone need one??), he began picking through the parts, then held up a set of never-used Buick V6 headers. Well, I did need a set for Biscuit. He cut me a great deal at $100 — one heck of a great buy. Then I bought a couple more parts. Next thing I knew, he was tossing some free parts at me, hoping I could find them a home. So, I tossed a can Blaster Dry Lube courtesy of the Blaster Corp. (A sponsor of Alaska Or Rust). I told Jim I would do my best to find the free parts homes and I’ll list them when I get home.
Jim’s hoping to get the parts better organized so he better understands what is there, but he’s got an assortment of items from f-marked GPW parts to flat-fender and probably some CJ-5 parts. I offered to list them on eWillys, so he said he’d let me know when he was ready to do that. Many thanks to Jim for his time!
After Jim, we began our trek north, following I-15 through Barstow and into Baker. Ann had never been there, so we took some photos of us with the huge thermometer (this is the new one … an earlier one had fallen into disrepair).
Then, we took some photos of the Alien Jerky store across the street, which is getting a makeover to look, well, more alien. There also appears to be an Alien/spaceship themed hotel coming soon, too. You can preview of video of the store here: http://www.ufohotel.com
Will there be a hotel built (it was scheduled for 2017)? The LA Times reported on this back in 2015: http://www.latimes.com/travel/california/la-trb-california-baker-ufo-hotel-20150528-htmlstory.html
About that time, Ann and to go the bathroom, so we drove up to a place that had several restaurants. It turned out that the bathrooms were being remodeled, but management had the foresight to set up porta potties, even designating two as handicapped only. Unfortunately, when I opened the door for her, it was disgusting. The pile of shit and toilet paper and unidentifiable items was litterly piled above the seat. It seems once the port potty got full, people just kept going! We immediately sought bathrooms elsewhere.
From Baker, we took highway 127 north. It’s a long, lonely, no cell-service road. There were lots of places set aside for offroading of all types. At Shoshone, we turned right onto highway 176 and followed that into Pahrump and landed at the Golden Nugget. The reviews for the place were mixed on the internet, but our room was as good as any we’ve had all trip.
Today we head north, but our direction is weather dependent. There were some reports of possible snow, so we’ll see how things go …
A great place to stop after leaving Palm Springs is Hadley’s seeds and nuts and other fine items. Know you would like it. Also, Judy lives just a stones throw off the freeway in Riverside. I wonder how the city of Baker started the theme of space aliens. Maybe there was a rush of space aliens that used the port-a-potties. We’re still experiencing rain up here. It can quit any time!!!
The Good, The Bad and The Shitty! Way to roll with the flow! However, I thought Ann would be more prepared for those bomb drop squat holes from Saudi. She should’ve stepped in there, kicked over the stack and built her one the right way.
Hey Dave’s Mom, we just got a fresh dusting of snow here in town that we’re willing to trade for your rain.
Are you interested????
Lost a day of my life after eating at the Bun Boy in Baker, CA. There is a reason it is called Death Valley.
Mom: Now you tell me!! We would have visited Judy had we known. You’ve mentioned Hadleys, too, but I didn’t think of it.
Barry: She can’t do squats anymore with her knees, even with her cane. I wished I’d thought up the “Good, Bad, and Shitty” remark … that’s a title post right there!
Paul: I’ll haul some fresh Washington water for you, but I don’t think it will be all that fresh by the time I arrive!
Brian: I had that happen three years ago in California, too, but we were in Santa Cruz … I shouldn’t have eaten that Sushi!!!