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Through Death Valley....

10/20/2015

 
( Writing this from Deming, New Mexico on October 20.  We are now staying at Temperate Zone RV Park, 15 miles north of Deming, off of US-180. )
This will be our base camp for most of this winter, in order to establish New Mexico residency.  Besides this being an absolutely gorgeous state, there are very good reasons for changing our residency, which are: the auto insurance and licensing are half the cost of Michigan's and the health insurance is very affordable here.  
And this is one of only four states, ( someone told me this but I can't find out who the other three states are) that offer an annual Camping Pass at their state parks. For only $180.00/NM resident, $100.00/Senior NM resident or $225.00/Non-resident,  your camping fees are covered for twelve months from the date of purchase. Most of the campgrounds have showers and flushing toilets, and electric sites are only an additional four dollars per day.  The nature programs and organized hikes at the parks are excellent. This was a real selling point in choosing New Mexico.
Wow, that was a really long intro!  so lets get on to the blog and some pictures.
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The last pictures from a couple weeks ago, were from Tuttle Creek. This picture is of Mt. Whitney from a gas station parking lot as we leave Lone Pine on October 1, and head west on CA Hwy 190, through Death Valley to Las Vegas, Nevada and then into Arizona. Can you imagine working here and having this view everyday.
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This is the first rest stop after driving into the park. This canyon at the Padre Crowley Point is a favorite spot for the military fighter pilots to test their skills. They tip on their side and shoot through the canyon, it's called " threading the needle". We were fortunate enough to see one as we drove into the lot. There was no time to grab the camera, they are gone it the blink of an eye out over the salt flats.
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You definately want to fill your tank before crossing Death Valley.
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The desert is not just flat sand, it has many hills and mountains, what it doesn't have are many things green.
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Yes, that's a minus -190 feet below sea level.
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About half way across, we stopped at the Borax Museum at the Furnace Creek Ranch. Small, but very interesting.
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                         Death Valley on motorcycles!
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    At the end of our adventure, we find Pahrump RV Park, a very clean park and good for a one night stay after a long drive.  
Did I mention how lucky we were, the high for that day was 103 degrees, the day before was 114 degrees.

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Here is a preview of our camp in Wickenburg, Arizona.
We liked it so much we ended up staying 10 days.



Good Night All,   B&D
              Miss you bunches.
​                 Love you Mom!!!

Mount Whitney from Tuttle Creek....

10/8/2015

 
( Writing this from Wickenburg, Arizona on October 8. )
This is the last blog from our stay at Tuttle Creek.  The base of Mount Whitney is right at our campground.  The summit is at 14,495 feet elevation, highest in the U.S. outside of Alaska.
If you follow the road past our camp it takes you to the trailhead.
Doing the summit is only allowed with passes won in a lottery.
The drive to the trailhead of course is gorgeous and there are lesser hikes from there and picnic areas.  For those doing the summit there are overnight camping facilities.
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14,495 feet of sheer granite.
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Waterfall at the trailhead parking lot.
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Maybe you would like to rent a simple cottage on the Whitney.
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Our camp is along the light colored squiggly road ( in the middle, left )and the Alabama Hills are the low mounds in front of the Sierra Nevada's past our camp.
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Breaking camp on October 1.
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McDove says goodby to the Alabama Hills.
From Tuttle Creek we head for Wickenburg, Arizona.  Our first time here also and we find a great boon docking camp on Vulture Peak Road.  So far we have been here for eight days and plan to stay another four days.  
We love this desert boon docking!!!

​Good night all,      Love, B&D

Bristlecone Pines Near Lone Pine...

10/8/2015

 
( Writing this from Wickenburg, Arizona on October 8. )
While at Tuttle Creek we took a day trip to the Ancient Bristlecone Pine National Wilderness Area.  The sign, off of
Hwy 395, said 25 miles.  Whoa; twisty, turny, up and up.  An hour and a half to get to the visiter center and the closest hiking trail.  So worth it, though.  Bristlecone Pines grow above 9500 feet elevation and live to be thousands of years old.
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                          This is the view from the hiking trail.  

This is the third time in the last year and a half that we have had the chance to see Bristlecones and we will always take every opportunity to see these magnificent creations.

More Alabama Hills....

10/8/2015

 
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This is not one of the Hollywood rocks!
This is a very small sample of the rock formations.  You can spend days driving and hiking in the Hills   At the Interpretive  Center on Hwy 395, you can get a brochure showing the locations of some of the famous western movies shot here.

Next, Lone Pine, California....

10/8/2015

 
( Writing this from Wickenburg, Arizona on October 8. )
Lone Pine was the next destination for the last week in September and was less than 200 miles south of Lake Tahoe on CA Hwy 395.
​ Outside of Lone Pine is Tuttle Creek BLM Campground; $5.00 per night/ $2.50 with Golden Pass.
This is now in our top five favorite campgrounds.
It is located at the base of Mount Whitney ( highest mountain in the lower 48 states ).  In the other direction the view is the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range with a pass east to Death Valley.
Driving through the Alabama Hills to reach the camp should be on everyones bucket list.  
The Alabama Hills are famous for being the location of many Hollywood movies since the 1920's.
​We will let the pictures speak for themselves...
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Sierra Nevada's in background.
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Site #30.
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Check the next blog for more of the Alabama Hills....

Lake Tahoe....

10/5/2015

 
By September 25, we were down to the west shore of Lake Tahoe.
We stayed one night at a state park between the coast and Tahoe. We camped two nights at a National Forest Campground right on Lake Tahoe.  The color of the water was gorgeous and the mountains around the lake take your breath away.
(  Writing this from Wickenburg, Arizona on October 5.
Enjoying an afternoon thunderstorm today.)
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Camp sites around the lake are at a premium so they are close together. That looks like where we should park our vehicle next to the camper but it is another camp site!
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On the way south, leaving Tahoe, this was one of the roads we didn't take.
Night all, have a great week.             Love,  B&D

Oregon Coast....

10/4/2015

 
(  Writing this from Wickenburg, Arizona on October 4.  
We are boon docking on Vulture Peak Road.  One camper when you turn on this road and then us, one mile in.  That's it!  
​Very quiet!  Very private!   And very free!  )
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Vulture Peak Road.
Going back to the middle of September, when we left the gorge, we stayed two nights near Astoria, Oregon at Bud's RV Park near the northern most point of the Oregon coast.  High cliffs, beautiful bays, great museums and lots of seafood restaurants .  Our first day there, after setting up camp, we went to a nearby scenic overlook and saw a school of porpoises, whales feeding and surfers. All on my first day at the pacific ocean.  The pictures are not very clear since we were so high up but I want to put them in anyway because they mean so much to me.
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My first view of the ocean!!!
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Yes, those are porpoises.
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And yes, those are whales!
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They were there for a long time, but they dive under so fast it was hard to get a good shot.
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And this is the first time I've ever seen someone surfing in person.
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Fish Tacos at Mo's .
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Everyone said the best place to eat was Mo's; they were right. The chowder was the best.
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The last day the weather was getting rougher, which is why we didn't stay any longer.
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​McDove did find a calm place to say goodby to the sea.
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Good night all,   Love,  B&D
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And this was the view from our table as we ate.
From Astoria, we moved about 200 miles down the coast to Florence and set up camp for three nights at a National Forest Campground.  There were huge Sitka Spruce there and a great hiking trail that was like being in a magical forest.  As you drive south along the coast from Florence there is 50 miles of dunes preserved as a National Wilderness Area.  All along this area are designated trail heads and parking for day use only.
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David at the dunes!
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Barb at the dunes!
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McDove at the dunes!

WATERFALLS OF THE COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE....

10/3/2015

 
( Writing this from Wickenburg, Arizona on Oct. 3.  
The mountains are beautiful but they don't play nice with the WiFi signals. We are happy to be back in the desert. )
We know it's been awhile and a lot of miles since the last blog.
I would still like to share some pictures of the many waterfalls along the old Columbia River Highway.
(  In the next blogs we will cover our week at the Oregon Coast and then the last couple weeks traveling from the coast to the southwest desert. )
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The hikes to the falls were as exciting as the falls themselves
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Some of the falls didn't have a hike so they were quite crowded.
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View from the road on the way up to a scenic overlook.
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Looking up the gorge from 3900 ft. with a zoom lens.
.This is a very amazing area that we would love to see again.
                       Miss you all!       Love,  B&D
​                                 Congrats on a great book sale.  😀

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