From Gunsight Wash, the trip to Kelso Dunes in the Mojave National Preserve took most of the day. Of course, things might have gone a little faster if I hadn’t stopped for the China Buffet in Havasu, followed an incorrect lead given to me by the GPS, which thought that the “shortest route” involved a mountain trail to the Vulcan Mine, and gone by the turn-off to Kelso in the dark, then having to turn around on a narrow road (not easy with a trailer).
Anyway, after arriving near the site, one passes a small parking lot with pit toilet camping prohibited). The Bruggers had told me, however, that there was a larger area to camp 1.1 miles up the road, so I kept on going, finally stopping at the junction of two dirt roads. The main entry from Kelbaker Road is a graded dirt road but with lots of washboard that shakes everything to death. I could see lights from a couple of campfires off to the right so hiked up and talked to a fellow tent-camping who told me to go another short way to a parking area where I could turn around or camp. This I did, found a nice flat place for the night at the end of the road (further access is prohibited by the Preserve). I kept the truck hitched and didn’t bother with precise levelling the first night, preferring to have a beer and relax with a newspaper in the lazy boy after the stress of driving around lost in the dark. News on the radio about the Tsunami warnings on the coast and destruction and deaths in Japan was shocking. I guess my timing was right, since I wouldn’t be on the coast for another couple of weeks, if at all. Cell phone reception at Kelso is very weak or non-existent, depending on exactly where one stands.
Warm days (80) but cool nights (40) make Kelso a good place for this time of year. I attended a guided walk with one of the Park Rangers and got the lowdown on reading animal tracks (scorpions, kit foxes, kangaroo rats/mice, fringe-toed lizards (saw one), sidewinder snakes, Mojave rattlesnakes (highly venomous but not seen until nights warm up a bit), desert tortoises (didn’t actually see one but, heard rumours), black tailed jackrabbits (huge ears and lightning fast) plus many more.
Also on the agenda were several species of plant life specific to the dunes area - bursage, Indian rice grass, desert rhubarb, Borrego milk vetch, diamond (pencil) cholla, hedgehog cactus and the ever-present creosote bush (some as old as 11,500 years - at least their seed lines might be that old, not the individual shrubs) 
After the guided tour, I climbed to the top of the dunes (by my GPS, approx. 550’ vertical) with one of the couples who had also attended the “walk and talk”- all sand, so heavy slogging at times, particularly where steep. Being an old ski-tourer, I contoured off to one side trying to keep the grade reasonable and ended up on the ridgeline, much easier than tackling the steepest parts. Others hiked the main dune straight up – the Diritissima (sp?) - quite difficult in sand as the feet slide backwards almost as far as they climb upwards. A school group of quite young kids was on the dunes with snowboards, so were sliding down on a side dune. In all, this hike took about an hour up, maybe 20 minutes down. An interesting and reputedly rare feature of the dunes is that the sand makes a groaning sound akin to that of a deep cello or bass instrument when it rolls down a steep hill. With several people striding down a 40°slope, “the hills were alive with the sound of music”.
My campsite in the parking lot that I originally discovered on night 1 remained very satisfactory, given that there was lots of room and a firm, flat base. Kelso Depot on Kelbaker Road is currently a Park Interpretive Centre and is only 10 miles away. It used to be a hotel and train depot on the Union Pacific Line.
One day, I did a milk run to Baker via Kelso Depot, then Cima Road which included The Cima Dome, a huge almost perfectly round volcanic dome that rises 1500’ above the surrounding landscape and that is home to the world’s largest concentration of Joshua trees. Baker itself is a freeway town and is notable for nothing other than being home to the tallest thermometer in the world and a mass of fast food restaurants with a sprinkling of service stations (diesel fuel @ $4.49/gal) in between. I found a water tap at the back of the general store so was able to fill the jugs in the back of the truck. The drive home was 45 miles, a long way for a few gallons of water. Late that same afternoon, the campsite was swarmed by rescue vehicles, including 3 ranger trucks, two fire and rescue trucks and an ambulance. Apparently, there had been a 911 call reporting someone suffering a possible aneurysm or stroke of some description. All the flashing lights must have confounded any desert creatures out for a stroll that afternoon, as they did other campers in the neighbourhood. In the end, I discovered that the patient refused medical assistance, so all the emergency vehicles returned to Baker, 45 miles away. While applauding the efficiency of the operation, it did occur to me that a lot of fuel and cost was spent to cover a non-rescue. Another day, I went again to the Kelso Depot, toured the exhibits and attended an interesting video presentation about the Mojave Preserve. Staff were very friendly and helpful. No water, other than drinking fountains or bottled, is available. On the loop home, I visited Mid-Hills campground which, at 5600’ could be cool and contained small sites not appropriate for RV camping. After that it was off to Hole-in-the-Wall camp. At 4300’, this was better suited to RVs and offered dry camping for $12. At Hole-in-the-Wall, there is an Interpretive Centre (closed on Mondays) and the very entertaining “Rings” Trail.
This hike is only a mile long but cuts through a very narrow cleft in the mountain where steel rings have been installed in the rock to assist people to clamber up short chimneys and over boulders that block the passage. Hole-in-the-Wall has several water spigots, so one could fill jugs on another visit.About the only thing in the trailer other than air conditioning that won’t operate off the inverter is an electric hair clipper that I inherited from my father. To give myself a clip, I have to fire up the generator, so one day, I did just that – and vacuumed the trailer at the same time. I rode the power line trail up to Kelbaker Road (250’ rise in elevation), thinking that if I got off the main road, I might see a Desert Tortoise or rattlesnake - no luck; Both animals remain elusive as advertised. On the next to last day at Kelso, I loaded the bike in the truck and went up the road to Vulcan mine, then carried on the top of a short (2 mile) but steep ride to Foshay Pass. Back to the highway, I made a mistake by taking the powerline trail – very rough and very steep in spots; every wheel of four-wheel drive was tested.
On March 20th, I made my move to Bakersfield in southern California. Very strong winds on the way – at one point I had to pull over and park at a gravel place next to the freeway, head into the wind. Basically, every other RV on the road did the same thing. After a while, the wind eased and the rain started. This then turned to snow, then heavy snow at the top of Tehachapi Pass (at only 4060’, snow has no business falling this far south). When it snows in the coastal ranges, it really snows, so the road was getting covered in slush, not pleasant with the trailer behind. Anyway, I think that I was about 30 minutes ahead of the time when they closed the highway. As soon as I crested the summit and began to descend, all was well, snow melted and I had a smooth run into Bakersfield. The trusty GPS took me to a Walmart parking lot (Rosedale Highway branch - N35 23.090 W119 05.779) where I stayed two nights.
Bakersfield is quite sizeable (+/- 450,000) and has several Walmarts. Driving through, it seemed pleasant enough with lots of green areas and bike paths (my criteria for pleasant cities). Southern cities attract lots if homeless people. One guy set up an elaborate shelter every night, using the Walmart Cart-Return, a bicycle and some garbage bags to keep dry. While in Bakersfield, I finally did what I had been intending for some time – went to a Verizon Store (2701, Ming Ave – agent Michael Still - 661 342 9287) and got one of their Mi-Fi gadgets for Internet access. The device was free (+ California tax of $27.00) and I will pay $35 per month on a contract. I will break the contract when I get home, pay the penalty of $175 so that I own it and can go on a month to month (“pay as you go”) basis in subsequent years. The whole process of setting up an account with Verizon was very complicated and involved using a friend’s home address (thanks Ted), a New Mexico Zip Code, a fictitious American social security number as my Verizon I.D. (issued by Verizon, not me!). Because of the age of my laptop, this gizmo only works for me when hooked directly into a USB port but still beats the system of paying for my Canadian Service, running the risk of a huge data overload and having to turn off all possible download programs every time I want to check e-mail. The Mi-Fi also acts as a Wi-Fi Hotspot, so others can hook into the signal. Hopefully, there will be no duplication of payment as I only use one country-appropriate device and suspend the other at any given time.
March 23rd, I moved north again after collecting my new toy, this time making it as far as Los Banos, whereat the GPS located yet another accommodating Walmart (N37 03.225 W120 52.079). The next day, storm and severe winter weather warnings were being proclaimed on the radio but my trip to Ukiah was uneventful along the very picturesque Highway 20 (west from Williams, Ca). Again, I stopped at a Walmart but here, the parking area was full of shifty looking people, loitering and leaving their garbage all over the place, not very appetizing, or secure, for that matter, so I drove 28 miles north to Willits, home of the Sherman Valley Casino (N39 23.637 W123 21.671), where I arrived as it was raining cats and dogs. Most casinos are fairly lavish but this one was very low end, and so too were the clientele, possibly the parents of the homeless crowd in Ukiah. Anyway, I had a fish n’ chips at the café, then blew $10 on the slots to appease my conscience for having parked in front of a no-parking sign (unseen in the dark) and preventing the Gambling Commission President from parking in his accustomed spot the next morning. In reality, the parking area was quite small overall and not suitable for large RVs.
Heavy rain all night turned to heavy snow in the morning. The Indians were quite pleasant but asked me to move the trailer to create the extra parking space that they required. Any time I move, it takes about ½ hour or more of preparation (putting everything away, retracting slides, recovering power cable from the inverter receptacle, moving levelling planks etc). By the time I did all this, it was snowing hard (very rare in Willits at only 1347’), so I knew that slipping and sliding my way north was not the best plan, opting instead to go to the local Safeway (N39 24.239 W123 20.942), where I found a pleasant spot overlooking a stream (quickly becoming a raging torrent) just behind the loading docks.
My reason for choosing the California/Oregon coastal route home was partly to see the Redwood Forest National Park as well as the Oregon State parks, so hopefully, the weather will improve in time for that. I do have 150 days of supplemental insurance this year (instead of the more usual 120 days), so can dawdle past the customary April 1st return date if necessary. Safeway employees were in discussions as to where to stay overnight, given that many roads were closed and, in some instances, homes had no power. To think that, when I left the Ajo area three weeks ago, temps were pushing the 90 degree mark!
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