<– Day 15 – Apr. 3rd: Joshua Tree National Park | OVERVIEW | Day 17 – Apr. 5th: Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlor –>

The Borrego Springs Jeep Sculpture — Awesome!

We spent Thursday night in downtown Palm Desert. I’d like to explore it more some day, but on Friday morning we had no time to see it. Instead, we had a specific mission: find the jeep sculpture in Borrego Springs, California.

We drove from Palm Desert to Borrego Springs. From there we drove to Ontario for cheaper weekend stay and for a Sunday excursion to Hollywood.

Before leaving Palm Desert, more food was needed and, after some googling, we landed at Jensens. One look at the deli case — lobster pot pie, sliced medium rare lamb, and more — we knew we’d better tread carefully, or we wouldn’t have any money left for the remainder of the trip. We couldn’t resist a few slices of lamb, but did pass on the lobster pot pie (Drats! I really wanted to know how that tasted).

Ready for our trip into the desert, we drove east before turning south. The highway took us down the western side of the Salton Sea. Back in my Manyone Network (circa 2006 and pre-eWillys) days I worked with a group to develop a portal about the unique aspects of the area. I’d always wanted to see the sea in person and finally got that chance today. While I’d seen it in photos, it is much bigger in person than I’d imagined.

When we reached Salton City, we began our trek west to Borrego Springs, but part way along our journey we discovered a bit of jeeping nirvana: Ocotillo Wells State Vehicular Recreation Area. First, we spotted a sign for a “4×4 Obstacle Road”.

Henry saw the 4×4 road sign and was ready for some off road action. But then he saw the pipes and tires and thought better of it.

This is part of the obstacle course. A large pile of tires is on the left and some drainage pipes are on the right. The hills are steeper than appear in this photo.

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<– Day 14 –Apr. 2nd: It is Cold, Windy and Raining . . . This is the Mohave Desert?  | OVERVIEW | Day 16 – Apr. 4th: The Borrego Springs Jeep –>

Ann and I enjoying a perfect day at Joshua Tree National Park.

Our goal today was to make a quick trip to Joshua Tree National Park and then hit a motel in Palm Desert early, so we could rest and wash some clothes.

However our quick trip to the park turned into a four-hour stay, between a long hike and the long drive through the park. Part of the delay was my fault, as I took a bunch of photos:

Joshua has two entrances on the north side and one on the south side. We planned to enter via the northwest entrance out of the city of Joshua Tree. There’s a good visitors center at that location, so I’d recommend starting there. The visitor’s center also isn’t far from this Willys Truck that is hawking firewood.

A truck in Joshua Tree City outside of the National Park.

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<– Day 13 – Apr 1st: From Scottsdale AJs to Seligman Sundries | OVERVIEW | Day 15 – Apr. 3rd: Joshua Tree National Park –>

We left Arizona and entered California under a few dark clouds.

On Wednesday we began the morning by driving to the Route 66 Museum at the old power station in downtown Kingman.

Map of our drive on Wednesday April 2

On our way, there were more classic motels, but one in particular caught our attention. There was much more going on at this hotel — murals and themed rooms — but our photos didn’t turn out very good.

After many photographs, we finally made it to the two floor power station. Downstairs you’ll find a gift shop and visitor’s center. Upstairs is the entrance to the museum where we purchased our tickets. The cashier was an older gentleman who at first seemed gruff and bothered by our presence, but then warmed up as he got into a short presentation about how the tickets we purchased were good for three museums in the area. We also learned that active military folks get in free.

The museum tour starts with a history of the trail which proceeded the route. One of the first things I spotted was a photograph of a jeep from 1943. It’s the only jeep I saw in the place.

From there, more history unfolded: the need for good roads, the construction of Route 66, and the success of the towns following WWII, until the opening of Interstate 40 in 1984.

These maps showed chunks of the early highway with some interesting information.

In the middle of the Route 66 history is a large diorama that shares Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath and his use of Route 66 in the book.

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<– Day 12 – Mar. 31st: Stagecoaches and a Glass Desert | OVERVIEW | Day 14 – Apr. 2nd: It is Cold, Windy and Raining . . . This is the Mohave Desert? –>

A piece of eWillys is now a part of Route 66 history at Seligman Sundries

We began our day by replenishing our food supplies. Unlike our trip to the East Coast last summer (we each gained ten pounds), we’ve been more careful about what we eat. This has meant many light dinners of good cheese, smoked meats and some crackers. Since Ann shouldn’t eat cows milk (beef protein sensitive since a baby), we’ve been shopping for goat and sheep cheese. Since AJs Fine Foods, Trader Joes, and Whole Foods are good sources of that cheese (and close together in Scottsdale), we decided we’d better stock up so we’d have dinner for the next few days.

Today we drove from Phoenix to Kingman.

After our shopping was done, we drove toward Mayer, AZ, where I’d learned about a place called Arcosanti. Below is an example photo of the place and more images here. I thought it warranted a closer look.

I wanted to drop by Arcosonti, but we accidentally passed it.

For some reason, I thought this unusual development was outside Mayer, Arizona. It turns out it is near the intersection of I-17 and Hwy 69, which we’d already passed. So, we ended up touring Mayer for a short time before resuming our trek north to Route 66.

But, it wasn’t all for naught, as we did find this collection of odd vehicles just before Mayer. There’s a couple jeeps among some vintage trucks.

A lineup of trucks overlooking the freeway.

A wagon and a truck just to the left.

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<– Day 11 – Mar. 30th: Phoenix’s Mystery Castle | OVERVIEW | Day 13 – Apr 1st: From Scottsdale AJs to Seligman Sundries –>

Chihuly glass sculptures on a boat in a pond at the Desert Botanical Garden.

Even though Ann’s birthday wasn’t until April 1st we decided to celebrate it on March 31st. My present to her was a nice room at the Marriott and for me to abstain from work. Well, she got 1 out 2, as I only abstained from most work.

Our stay at the Marriott (in Scottsdale) was nice due to the beautiful room. However, the room we had was placed among a series of rooms where there were some college/high school aged guys. But, rather than on Spring Break, I got the feeling they were staying there longer term. They weren’t being rowdy, but the hall echoed badly as the room doors opened/shut loudly and often. At one point I had to get the manager to move a set of young men out of the hallway after they became noisy (and after I’d confronted them once). Eventually they settled down and we didn’t have any more problems the rest of our stay.

We started Monday by driving to visit the Wells Fargo Museum in downtown Phoenix. It was a rather small museum inside a Wells Fargo bank building. The museum turned out to be a little gem. First of all it was free (perhaps funded in part by the questionable mortgage practices to which my ex-wife fell victim in 2008 — she wasn’t totally innocent, but the phone reps flat out lied to her . . . but, I digress). The museum had several neat displays that included the history of the company, a challenge for visitors to put thirteen dolls into/onto a single carriage to demonstrate how crowded they could be, the difficulties of hunting ‘highway men’ and more. There’s even a very nice painting collection. If you have an hour and are downtown, I recommend it (145 W Adams
Phoenix, AZ 85003 – Learn more at Yelp).

It might not looks like much, but each of these displays is pretty neat.

Ann’s inside this stagecoach while a narrator takes her on a journey (you can just see his head in the background).

This coach is designed to carry thirteen people. The goal is to fit all thirteen dolls into the coach. It’s an effective way to show how crowded some coaches could be.

Wells fargo will print your photo and email you a photo if you want your picture on some money.

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<– Day 10 – Mar. 29th: Red Lobster or Bust — Day 2 of the FC Roundup | OVERVIEW | Day 12 – Mar. 31st: Stagecoaches and a Glass Desert –>

The Mystery Castle as it appeared in Life Magazine in 1948.

On Sunday we didn’t do a whole lot, which was just fine with us. But, we did have one objective: To visit the Mystery Castle. Located just south of Phoenix, the Mystery Castle was built in the 1930s by Boyce Gulley. While living with his wife and daughter in Seattle, Boyce learned he had tuberculosis and was given six months to live. Without a word to them, he left. After wandering for a year, he discovered he wasn’t going to die. So, he settled down in Phoenix, got some free land south of the city, and built a castle for his daughter. His wife and daughter wouldn’t learn about the castle until after his death in 1945. When they arrived to take possession of the property, they were told that after living there two years, they could open up a mystery door….

On January 1, 1948, Life Magazine was there to cover the opening of the door. You can learn more about what they found by reading the January 26, 1948, issue of Life Magazine.

Here are some photos. You really have to see the place to understand it. If you like rustic and eclectic, this place is a must see:

Following our tour of the house, we got some food and headed for our motel. Tomorrow we will do a few touristy things around Phoenix.

<– Day 10 – Mar. 29th: Red Lobster or Bust — Day 2 of the FC Roundup | OVERVIEW | Day 12 – Mar. 31st: Stagecoaches and a Glass Desert –>

<– Day 7 – Mar. 26th: Darth Vader and Tractor Bob | OVERVIEW | Day 9 – Mar. 28th: Charging Futility and FC Roundup Day 1 –>

From left to right Alan, Me and Joe and Joe’s jeeps. Alan also owns a few jeeps, including a Surrey he’s been restoring. He too can blame his father for his Willys sickness.

On Thursday morning we woke up to silence. The room at the Murray was amazingly peaceful. There’s no constant hum of a nearby highway, no air condition churning noisily, just relaxing quiet. For that reason alone we liked our stay in Silver City. But, as all good things must end, we said goodbye and hit the road for a ‘blue highways’ journey through New Mexico and Phoenix.

Before we left Silver City, we wanted to take a couple photos of the former Main Street. You can see the enormity of the damage from a storm that happened in the 1880s. There has been some discussion of filling in the area, but the importance of the event in the town’s history seems to win over any discussions of change.

Former Main Street of Silver City. Now a giant gully that still fills with water during the rainy season.

An example of the tall side walks that help direct the water down the street during heavy rains.

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