Day 5
On the road again . . .
Although it takes less time to escape Automaniamegaopolis going east than going north, it’s still over an hour before you’re leaving Riverside behind. But then the traffic lessens some and soon you’re out in the desert. Lila overheard me tell Connie that desert was my least favorite topography. A little while later she said, “I think the desert is pretty”.
Last summer when Peter and I drove back from New York, we passed a sign for the turn off to Joshua Tree NP on I-10. Although we knew there was a northern entrance to the park – to which we would have taken a different route from LA – we headed to that southern entrance. My usually infallible navigator, Connie, guided by both I-maps and Google maps, told me to turn off the freeway at a place with no sign for the park (an input glich). Soon we were traveling through sparsely populated desert on smaller and rougher roads. When we were told to by our electronic guide to turn onto a single lane track of gravel the size of cobblestones, we decided that something was wrong and turned around. After reentering “Joshua Tree NP” and a 13-mile drive back to the freeway, we were once again back on the right path, chuckling about our little sightseeing detour as we went. Soon we saw the sign for the park and seven miles later, we pulled into the parking lot at the visitor’s center.
Remember that northern entrance I spoke of? When I looked at the map outside the Visitors Center, I learned that the greatest distance between any two campgrounds in the park was the one we were near and the one where we had reserved a site. Fortunately, they were able to accommodate us there and soon Megan and the girls were setting up their tent next to the van.
We also soon learned that the only possible source of campfire wood and a pump for Megan’s two airbeds was the truck stop 4 miles down the freeway. Struck out on both counts, but we were able to borrow a pump and I gathered left overs from the fire pits of unoccupied nearby campsites. After getting set up and a bit of a rest, we went for a hike.
Hiking is another one those activities that Lila hates until after the first five minutes into it. From the campground we descended into a small canyon and then back up over another ridge. The canyon beyond was exactly like every box canyon showdown between the posse, bad guys, cavalry and/or Indians I’d ever seen as a boy watching westerns on Saturday mornings. By then the girls were running ahead and climbing on every rock they could scale, both in flip-flops and Lila in her party dress.
Along the path were the occasional sign describing one of the varied nearby plants. A general description could have read, “yes we have pretty little flowers, but if you get too close, we’ll rip all the skin off your body”. Nearly all of the desert flora is heavily armed with really sharp spines. And, one thing we never saw was a Joshua tree.
On our hike, we crossed paths with a dad and his 3 daughters who were camped near us. His girls had proper footwear and were obviously used to hiking. As Megan passed by his camp, he offered us an extra bundle of firewood he had. We soon had a fire and the girls were roasting hot dogs over it. Hot dogs and carrots (Connie and I had sausages and chili) lead to smores for dessert. Turns out that Maya is an expert at roasting marshmallows. Megan put the girls to bed, zipped the tent shut and came over to share a last glass of wine with Connie and me.
A few hiccups here and there and some unpreparedness, but all things considered, not a bad first day on the road and first night of camping.