Monday April 7th, 2008

We were up early and on our way to the wildlife refuge a little before 6 AM. From the literature, we had decided to go the the Palm Canyon area and walk in the half mile where you can see one of the only natural palm trees in the area.

We stopped at the Loves Truck Stop in Quartzsite to fill up as they has the best price on fuel. $3.23 a gallon for Regular. Gas in Blythe on the California side of the river runs from $3.65 to $3.95 a gallon, while just 4 miles further in Arizona is is a good $.40 to $.60 less.

The entrance to this part of the preserve is about 20 miles south of Quartzsite and then you have to drive on a washboardy road for another 9 miles. You either have to go less than 15 or over 30 to keep from getting shaken all to pieces.

The walk in was just perfect as far as the temperature was. Even with my 28 MM lens I could not get back far enough to get the whole canyon in, so Barb had to get those shots. There were lots of different flowers to stop and photograph. When we got to the Palm Canyon it was a little disappointing, as the palms are across the way and up quite high. That's probably why they are still there.

There are suppose to be Big Horn Sheep in this area also and we kept scanning the canyon for them, but never seen any signs of them. For the walk out, I put on my 105 MM macro lens, and probably spent more time on my seat than on my feet. May of the flowers and plants were less than an eight of an inch in size, and I had to get within a couple of inches to get the pictures. I am still working on settings, but hopefully with time I will get some better shots. We met several others just coming in as we were leaving and by now the morning sun was starting to fill the canyon, so we were glad we had gotten there early.

When we finally got back on the road, we headed another 9 miles down the road to where there was suppose to be the remains of a 200 year old stone house that had been used by prospectors and miners amongst others over the years. There was also a tourist trap that had every thing at half price as they were closing for the season, as well as a dollar table, so we picked up a couple of pairs of water shoes for a dollar a pair, plus a few other items.

By now it was getting pretty warm so we headed back to the camp ground. We had originally planned on staying here in Ehrenberg for three weeks but changed our reservation in Pahrup, NV, so that we could come in a week earlier. The plan is to be on the road by 6 AM in the morning heading North.

Red Lion Man (& Lady)

Enjoy today's slide show.