A few people pics along the way with our travel partners

 

Believe it or not, Amy agreed to the very narrow slot canyon excursion! It was suck in your gut narrow.

Joshua Tree National Park, part II

Located in a remote area of Southern California at the convergence of the Mojave and Colorado deserts, Joshua Tree National Park also includes the Little San Bernadino and Hexi Mountains. The volcanic geology makes for incredible scenery with weathered granite rocks outcrops throughout the park. Hiking to the top of Ryan Mountain (elev. 5,458) for the 360 degree panoramic view of the park is incredible. 

Southern California's Joshua Tree National Park

 

The namesake Joshua tree can grow to 40 feet high. Cholla cactus gardens line the park to the east.

Death Valley National Park around the valley edges

Death Valley sits between the western Panimint Mountain Range and the eastern Amargosa Mountain Range. Hiking through beautiful Fall Canyon, Natural Bridge Canyon to a natural arch, and stunning views hiking canyons and ridge line. Ubehebe crater is located towards the north end of the Park

In the valley of Death Valley National Park

Dedicated as a National Park in 1994, Death Valley is one of the hottest and driest places on earth. Badwater Basin is the lowest place in North America at 282 feet below sea level. Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes make for an interesting climb in the morning or late afternoon. 

Desert night skies

 

Camping in the wide -open spaces away from the lights.

The boom and bust town of Rhyolite, Nevada

 

Rhyolite leaped to life as a mining camp in 1905 after prospecting discovered gold. By 1908, the town had nearly 5,000 residents. After the richest ore was mined, the town quickly began to decline and was non-existent by 1920. The first photo is the old Porter Brother's Mercantile Store building. The second photo is the Cook Bank Building, one of the most photographed ruins in Nevada. The third photo is the Tom Kelly Bottle House, one of the few remaining examples of bottle house architecture in the U.S. When wood was scare, miners sometimes built houses with glass bottles. In this example, over 50,000 bottles were used in this house built in 1906.

Western Nevada's Walker Lake

Located in western Nevada's Great Basin near Hawthorne, Walker Lake is a natural lake fed from the north by the Walker River. The lake has no natural outlet. The name in the Northern Paiute language is Agai Pah, or "trout lake".  Unfortunately, after more than a century of irrigation diversions from the Walker River, the lake is in a state of ecological collapse due to inflow reduction and resulting higher salt concentration, and no longer supports fish life. Since the 1850s, Walker Lake has declined 90% in volume and 50% in surface area. Hopefully, focus on restoration and conservation efforts beginning in 2002 to acquire Walker River water rights may provide some benefit to protecting and replenishing the lake. 

The Forty Mile Desert, the dreaded section of the California Emigrant Trail

The Forty Mile Desert was the California Gold Rush name given to Nevada's Lahontan Valley region east of Fernley. In 1843, the Walker-Chilles party became the first wagon train to use this settlement route, with the heaviest use occurring between 1849-1869. Regardless of the desert's known dangers, this became the accepted trail to the two main routes to California - the Carson River and Truckee River trails. 

Starvation and thirst preyed upon people and animals every mile of this trail. A survey made in 1850 illustrated appalling statistics - 1,061 dead mules, 5,000 dead horses, 3,750 dead cattle, and 950 graves.

Nevada's Basin and Range Region

Waking up to our first morning view in the spectacular Nevada Basin and Range Region. Dodged an incoming snowstorm in the mountain passes by a few hours. Looks like we will be dodging those snowstorms still for the next couple days. Challenging west coast weather this season!

In Winnemucca, noticed this interesting welcome sign marking the entry point for the historic Winnemucca to the Sea Highway. This marker includes a piece of the largest Redwood driftwood ever collected (gathered on the coast near Crescent City, CA). The tree was 1,477 years old.

First stop iconic Multnomah Falls

First stop iconic Multnomah Falls, Oregon's tallest waterfall. It is nearly impossible to resist setting aside time to absorb the views of this spectacular 620 ft., two drop waterfall, whenever in the area. A true Pacific Northwest "must-see".

The Heceta Head Lighthouse is Oregon's most powerful beam

The Heceta Head Lighthouse on the central Oregon coast. I took a 30 second night exposure looking south to capture the beam from the Lighthouse, Milkyway and the moon. The lighthouse stands 205 feet above the Pacific Ocean on a bluff carved out of the west side of 1,000-foot-high Heceta Head, twelve miles north of Florence. The light shining from the 56-foot-high tower flashes a white beam for eight seconds every minute. Visible for twenty-one miles, it remains Oregon’s most powerful lighthouse beam. 

The U.S. Congress appropriated $80,000 in 1889 to build a first-class light station here, and it was mostly completed by August 1893. However, the first-order Fresnel lens, built by the Chance Brothers of Birmingham, England, did not arrive aboard the tender Manzanita until the fall 1893. Chance Brothers had packed the lens in a container of molasses so that it would survive the arduous journey. Though the lens and its clockwork mechanism arrived at the station in October, it could only be partially installed because the lighthouse lamps, shipped from Staten Island, New York, were still in transit. They finally arrived in February 1894, and the light was first lit in March 1894.

Traversing the Olympic Mountains to Buckhorn Pass

The east side of the Olympic Mountains are amazing. Entry at the Tubal Cain trail, winding through the rhododendron jungle, and finally exiting the forest and accessing high alpine country. At the pass enjoy the view of Iron Mountain and Buckhorn Mountain at 8,000 ft. 

Let's get this blog going with Lake Tahoe

Lake Tahoe. So much is so great about this area. Spectacularly clear water completely framed by the incredible Sierra Mountains up to 11,000 ft. The largest alpine lake in North America at elevation 6,225 ft., and the second deepest lake (1,645 ft) in the U.S. behind only Crater Lake (1,949 ft). A very special place indeed. My opinion of the best way to enjoy the summer at Lake Tahoe: Day 1 - Kayak/paddleboard, Day 2 - Hike, and then repeat. Winter: ski, ski, and repeat.