REDEMPTION, PT #2~Superstition Mountains-AZ

December 17th, 2024: Today is the 2nd part of yesterday's road trip, where the wild donkeys of Oatman-AZ, the historic Route #66 through Cool Springs-AZ … and a delightful visit with Holland's Aunt Gaye in Kingman-AZ, was on the docket; and we managed all of it before sundown ;-)

December 29th is my Birthday, and we don't know how long we'll be in AZ - so, Holland is trying to cram as much of our combined Bucket Lists into our days as time and finances allow.

Despite our uphill marital battle due to his seriously faulty idea of marriage, he really is a good guy: a complicated guy that makes our 23-month-Life Together, a complicated quagmire - but he is really a good guy underneath all the bluster.

He doesn't know how to be a Husband because he has never had good husband models around him; all he has ever seen exampled was caveman mentality from male relatives, and subservient submission - or aggressive rebellious behaviors, from female relatives. He has never, ever, been exposed to a healthy, thriving marital relationship.

I am a confusing, and often irritating, eye-opening experience: I am agreeable to be a Biblically submissive Wife to Holland … however, I will never, e.v.e.r., be a subservient Redmill woman.

This concept is new to my new husband; in his mind, submission means being a bullied doormat - I disagree. The confusion generated, is creating chaos in our relationship.

Even so, he is still willing … and is going out of his way, to make this year's Christmas, Birthday, and incoming New Year memorable in good ways. I am thankful.

Life with Mr. Complication is never boring; and tossing the duffel into Betsy in the wee early morning hours, so we could reach our next destination point by noon … I had every reason to believe that today's happenings would be informative, fun, and enjoyable.

On our way to Wickenburg-AZ from Kingman-AZ, we traveled over desert terrain that changed significantly every 50 miles along the route: first, we drove over a Pass that was all rocky boulder piles (reminded me of the Joshua Tree National Forest boulder piles); then, the landscaped morphed into some kind of funky cactus block … that went on for miles into the distance; next, came miles and miles of sage brush, creosote trees, and giant prickly pear cactuses dotting the desertscape - I've never seen so many prickly pear cactuses since we've been traveling the State of Arizona! They were everywhere you looked, and the majority of them looked to be as tall, and as round, as I am - I'm a little over 5 feet tall … and I'm taking the 5th on my girth & weight ;-) Last, but not least, the landscape became barren again, with nothing but loose grit getting blown gently about. Every 50 miles the texture of desert terrain changes. It's nigh impossible to get bored with Arizona's Nature offerings.

I love Arizona, and I'm really going to miss it when we pull stakes.

Wickenburg-AZ from Kingman-AZ; 2 hr 3 m

Beautiful  Sunrise on the road.

The moon was still visible …

There's no place like AZ

Wickenburg-AZ temperatures; AM

These are SO cool! Giant Black Metal Spurs; Wickenburg-AZ

Downtown Historic Wickenburg-AZ

Wickenburg-AZ History: 

(https://outwickenburgway.com/about-wickenburg/history/wickenburgs-history/)

More Christmas in the desert ;-)

Looking for 'The Tree' … this part of today's adventurous explorations, was on Holland Bucket List.

The 200-year-old 'Jail Tree': 

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jail_tree)

Jail Tree Recording …

Jail Tree Recording (cont.)

Jail Tree Recording (cont.)

Jail Tree Recording (End)

Old West Mural, across from Jail Tree.

Passing through Phoenix, we drove through a very long tunnel. The Dean Lindsey Memorial Tunnel, better known to Phoenix residents as the Deck Park Tunnel, is a vehicular underpass built underneath Downtown Phoenix. It was built as part of Interstate 10 in Phoenix-AZ

Above the freeway tunnel, the "green space" Margaret T. Hance Park, was designed, and implemented, to sit on top of the Deck Park Tunnel.

Phoenix-AZ

Phoenix-AZ from Wickenburg-AZ; 1 hr 15 m

Deck Park Tunnel; Phoenix-AZ: 

(https://azdot.gov/tags/deck-park-tunnel-i-10-interstate-10)

Phoenix roadways are never boring …

We were both congratulating each other on how well the roadtrip was unfolding … when two things happened simultaneously (1) a car on the right decided to change lanes at the same exact time Holland turned Betsy to the left for the same spot - we had had our turn signal on beforehand, no way the driver should have missed that blinking warning: it was a near hit before both vehicles swerved away from each other (2) a crazy woman aimed her car right at us, and stepped on the accelerator: her eyes locked on mine, and she wasn't slowing down - she didn't appear to be concerned in the least that she was going to T-bone us!

WTH!!

I'm beginning to think Betsy's cherry red color in traffic, is like waving a red cloth in the bull pen :-(

Woman drove straight at us!

Holland's eyes were darting all over the place (all mirrors, out each of the 3 windows he could see clearly out of, and up & down the freeway to see if any more lunatics were going to be showing up); I was screaming and grabbing the cab's side handles … poor Holland, his eardrums were probably on the verge of bleeding before he found an opening to calmly and fluidly move over, out of the crazy woman's kamikaze moment.

I'm glad Holland has a calm and patient attitude in dicey traffic situations.

I hate city driving - but I have to admit that Phoenix-AZ (which includes the annexed regions of Chandler, Mesa, Gilbert, Tempe, Sun City, Peoria, Apache Junction …) has one of the most beautiful freeway layouts I've ever been on - very colorful with the pink overpasses, and the overpass artwork keeps tedious freeway boredom at bay.

This peak in the heart of Chandler-AZ is near Firebird Lake, along I-10

Lizard & Turtle freeway wall art - Expressway #303; Mesa-AZ

Kachina figure, Rattlesnake, & Jackrabbit freeway wall art - Expressway #303; Mesa-AZ

Toltec symbolism freeway wall art - Expressway #303; Mesa-AZ

As we drove into Apache Junction-AZ, I told Holland that Geronimo was my favorite Apache - and laughingly said that every time my siblings & I played Cowboys & Indians (I sliced my right knee open to the bone on a hidden broken beer bottle, doing this in the sand dunes of Longbeach-WA, in the summer of 1966; my family's 1st year in WA) … I was always Geronimo; and I gave him my "Geronimo!" war whoop. Holland asked if I ever lost a {war}, and I smiled smugly, saying, "Of course not, I was Geronimo; I never lost a war. I was always a winner no matter what I set my mind to" :-D

He grunted as he stared straight ahead … but, I saw a secret smile tickling his lips. He knows I'm a Winner; and despite his flustered egotistical Redmill macho banter, he knows I'm worth keeping.

Geronimo; Arizona Apache Warrior.

Geronimo: 

(https://www.nps.gov/chir/learn/historyculture/apache-wars-geronimo.htm & https://truewestmagazine.com/article/was-geronimo-a-terrorist/)

Geronimo was a mighty - and pretty much unbeatable warrior - from Arizona's Gila River region: my eyes are looking out on the same landscape, my feet was walking over land he may have walked over; my lungs are breathing the same air, and my skin is enjoying the same heat of the sun. Though my American Indian DNA is the Blackfoot strain, the native portion of my heart beat a happy note thinking about living in, and enjoying, this portion of Geronimo's Arizona ;-)

I finally got to the mountains I have dreamed of … it is beautiful to see, but I couldn't explore them! My feet could not walk up the steep mountain trails. My eyes could not view the landscape from lofty heights - my ears could not feel, or hear the wind's kiss as it blew past my body. My lungs could not feel the exciting burn of a strenuous climb up his mountain. My skin could not feel the hot sun's rays from a higher elevation. 

My heart's Native tempo let out a sorrowful sigh.

There are houses literally built as close to the base of the mountain as they could be (no joke; if a piece of the mountain crumbled and broke off … it would fall on their roof) - and to add injury to encroachment assault, ALL ACCESS was cut off by private ownership :-(

Apache Junction-AZ from Phoenix-AZ; 49 min (37.0 mi) via AZ-202

Entering Apache Junction-AZ

Apache Indians: 

(https://mescaleroapachetribe.com/our-culture/)

The Superstition Mountains!

FINALLY HERE! New memory for me - old memories, for Holland.

I'm so grateful to be here, today.

Neither of us were happy to see homes built right up to the mountain baseline …

The Superstition Mountains-AZ from Apache Junction-AZ

Superstition Mountain Legend: The most well-known superstition surrounding the mountain is that of the “Lost Dutchman Gold Mine.” Named after Jacob Waltz, a German miner in search of gold in Arizona, the immigrant claims he discovered a vast surplus of gold in the Superstition Mountains.

Lust For Gold 1949 Glenn Ford & Ida Lupino:  (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_axXS28dPRI)

Fortunes have been made and lost in the search for the Dutchman's Lost Mine, however the mine has never been found. Some claim the majestic beauty and tranquility of the region is the only treasure man will find in the Superstition Wilderness Area.

The Origin of the Lost Dutchman Mine Story: (https://azstateparks.com/lost-dutchman/explore/the-dutchman, https://unsolved.com/gallery/arizonas-lost-dutchman-mine/ & https://www.ajpl.org/the-origin-of-the-lost-dutchman-mine-story/)

The Superstition Mountain Curse: Even today, four or five people go missing every year, according to George Johnston of the Superstition Mountain Museum. It's not surprising that some locals have come to believe that the mountain is curse — that anyone who tries to take its gold will anger the Thunder God and suffer his revenge.

A few years ago, I was alarmed to see private homes being built in National Forest:, that used to be prohibited - and now I am justifiably angered to see that more and more greedy land developers are diligently paving the way to more restrictions to more scenic routes. I understand that homeowners do not want people tearing through their back yards (I have owned many homes, myself, and personally halted people from taking shortcuts through my backend properties) … BUT I do not understand how homeowners can get away with completely cutting off any and all access to scenic routes: there needs to be a Law drafted and passed, that stops the filthy rich from hogging natural scenic venues for themselves.

Access to the mountain was inaccessible; all roads led to a private dead end ;-(

A DIY earthen rock wall on private property.

There should be a Law passed …

It figures a LaBarge would be a culprit - the LaBarge's were always sanctimonious trouble >:-(

I have waited most of my adult life to get here: I am not happy that some retired self-centered CEO (or a rich man's gluttonous child) grabbed land and built their home up to the baseline of the Superstition Mountains & promptly gated road routes off: denying me an up close & personal exploration of one of Yeshua's beauteous creations.

I will just have to siphon a pseudo experience from my Native American husband's cached memories of his Superstition Mountain memories ;-)

Holland sharing memories … Holland used to hunt those peaks, in 1988.

Lucky Dog!

He has a picture of him and his friend gloating over their kill.

Holland, 27 yrs.; he hunted in the Superstition Mountains, with a friend - this is my half of the actual black-tail buck kill picture: the whole picture shows his friend holding the buck's head by the horns ;-)

Monument on our way out of town; Apache Junction-AZ

For as long as we've been road gypsying, Apache Junction-AZ is the only place we've passed through that actually advertises what people come here to experience: Old West History … "Superstition Boulevard, Lost Dutchman Boulevard, Geronimo Road, Tomahawk Road, Goldfield Road, Apache Trail, Old West Highway". When you come here, you feel connected to History. The other 20+ frontier counties we traveled through these past 23 months, did not advertise their History, at all - it was almost as if they were ashamed to say that their spot on American Maps were by and large founded (and sheltered) by outlaws (male & female), gunslingers (male & female), madams & their soiled doves, war connections (civil, ethnic, territorial), carpetbaggers, gamblers, ect. I was shocked when we passed through Jackson Hole-WY that there was no mention at all of the notorious Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch! The County could be making $$$$$ hand-over-fist by cashing in on historical county tidbits like Davey Jackson, the mountain man namesake who trapped in the area during the late 1800s; Jim Bridger - mountain man trapper,  knowledgeable frontiersman & friendly with Indian tribes, military scout, pathfinder guide; & the outlaw bandits who periodically holed up there … instead, the elite sector of democrat liberals decided to grab as much land as they could, erase that important information, and cater to the Hollywood refugee's and yuppie ski-lodge sector of society. Jackson Hole-WY is a carbon copy of CA's ridiculousness. It's nutty thinking, and a national shame.

American History is important.

No one has the right to erase it.

That's why I want to see and experience as much of it as possible, before the arrogant anti-Americans ignorantly erase it, forever.

Superstition Boulevard; pink overpass freeway-AZ

A bit further down the freeway, Holland pointed upward and told me that "right above our heads is the roadway that took us into Apache Junction-AZ": we had completed a full loop drive, at this point ;-)

A redemptive 'Redemption' Road Trip ;-)

While waiting for our Carl Jrs. burgers in Casa Grande-AZ, we watched a cotton picking machine; a perpetual dust-induced haze hangs over AZ's landscape.

Crossing over "Telegraph Pass," which dropped us into the Fortuna Foothills located near the base of the Gila Mountains … and about 10 minutes from where Independence was parked, I reflected on Holland's redemptive Holiday Gifting to me:

Yesterday was great.

Today was great.

Tomorrow is laced with hope.

Happiness cannot be traded, bought, or traveled to … happiness is an inside job that can only be attained by entering into a love relationship with Yeshua; and it must diligently be honed by harmony in a 3-cord-marriage.

Trusting in Elohim's Plan is essential.

Telegraph Pass above Fortuna Foothills-AZ; similar to the KM Pass-WA

Telegraph Pass-AZ: 

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telegraph_Pass_(Arizona))

It's a short Pass; not even a 5 minute drive.

There is a hiking loop trail, here, too; the Telegraph Pass Hiking Trail, is a 5.7-mile loop trail that begins near Wellton-AZ, looping back from the Telegraph Pass that drops down into the Fortuna Foothills.

Fortuna-AZ from Apache Junction-AZ; 3 hr 30 min (201.3 mi) via I-8 W

*REDEMPTION, PT #1~Oatman-AZ:    https://roadgypsiesvalandholland.blogspot.com/2024/12/redemption-pt-1oatman-az.html

SALTON SEA, SALVATION MOUNTAIN, & SONO BONO WILDLIFE REFUGE~CA Daytrip

Salton Sea-CA from Yuma-AZ; 1 hr. 49 secs. (112.8 mi) via 1-8 W

November 22nd: We were up bright and early (4:30 AM for me - 6 AM for Holland) yesterday morning, to be on the road for what we thought would be "a day-long sight-seeing blitz".

We have decided set aside 1 day a month to "go large" - yesterday was The Day. It was too early in the morning to get dolled up. A duffel bag had been packed with overnight stuff ("just in case"), and we stopped at a Wal*Mart up the street to grab picnic foods, and a bag of dog food for Bleu; before heading into 'hostile territory' ;-)

Sunrise; Wal-Mart parking lot~Yuma-AZ

Holland.

Since we started our America RV Touring, Holland has gone above and beyond in making sure my Bucket List Wants get checked off … so, I wanted yesterday to be HIS Day :-)

Since the day we decided to sell the Heron Pointe house and hit the road, Holland has been wanting to visit two places: the Salton Sea, and Salvation Mountain in Slab City. Both places are in calimexarabia. Holland avoids CA as much as possible, and considers it hostile territory; but these places he wants to see are in CA.

So, CA is where we spent several hours yesterday. There is a 1-hour difference between AZ and CA: AZ is 1-hour ahead of CA time.

Our route; we had passed from AZ to CA very quickly after entering the freeway.

Passing through the Agricultural Inspection site, and back onto the I-8-freeway, we saw a white church on a hilltop (looks like a catholic church; Holland thought maybe a movie set prop, left behind), surrounded by more curiosities: a pink pyramid, a spiral stairway winding its way nowhere, and an elongated peaked slab.

We didn't pull over to check it out, but I did do research on it when we got back home ;-)

Winterhaven-CA Inspection Border Station: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/PE/ExteriorExclusion/links/winterhaven.html

Roadside Attraction @ Felicity-CA: https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2036

The area we mostly traveled through since leaving home was flat and scrubby … then, we drove through a stretch that was mile-high (and higher in spots) sand dunes: nothing growing there (no scrub, no scraggy trees, no weeds), just miles of mile-high sand dunes.

Holland said people come from all over America to play in these sand dunes - kinda like Florence-OR dunes. I teased Holland about his surfer-boy days in CA … but he said he'd not visited these dunes (Florence, yes - these, no).

Sand dunes; CA.

Imperial Sand Dunes-CA: 

(https://www.blm.gov/visit/imperial-sand-dunes)

I love my sexy man (he says I need my eyes checked; LOL) - but I love everything about him: his soft voice, his infectious laughter, his manly gestures, the relaxed way he drives. He's SO male, and I like that. {THAT} is what makes him sexy to me :-)

The Sierra Madre Occidental Range; AZ-MX-CA border.

Sierra Madre Occidental Mountain Range:

 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sierra_Madre_Occidental#:~:text=The%20Sierra%20Madre%20Occidental%20is,along%20the%20Gulf%20of%20California.)

We also passed by the Brock Research Institute; we didn't investigate because we were pressed for time, but it did look impressive as we passed by.

Brock Research Institute: https://www.iid.com/water/water-transportation-system/colorado-river-facilities/brock-reservoir

98% of the freeway land we traveled through, was industrial business of some sort; pretty barren land with periodic outpost markings past the sand dune region.

Salton Sea in distance.

Holland informing me about the making of the Salton Sea …

The Alamo Canal and the Creation of the Salton Sea:

 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ik_gnwKUWI8)

A power play between mexico and CA began.

CA officials have cut water to this region due to the 30-year drought problem.

Land is cheap … but basically worthless in this region.

There is land for sale around the Salton Sea areas (under $10,000), but it's basically worthless because the Sea is disappearing, and the air is toxic. I don't know where the people and businesses are getting their water from - but the 'sea' water is poisonous.

What Happened To The Salton Sea?: https://www.california.com/what-happened-salton-sea/#:~:text=But%20when%20the%201970s%20came,akin%20to%20a%20ghost%20town.

I feel sorry for the people - they're trapped: subsiding on tourist money, living a life they didn't agree to, and stuck in a situation with no good outcome … wanting to move, and not being able to get moving expense money from their properties: perhaps some are saddled with properties they still have to pay mortgage on - high dollar mortgage on devaluing properties they will never see the upside on.

Access to the Sea is cut off …Salton Sea History:

 (https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/c0a8729307154fdfabb6922271332899)

This is basically a living ghost town.

A bit further up the road, is the Salton Sea Beach sign.

This is where the Yacht Club & Marina, used to be located …

Gang activity … as usually happens in  economically strapped areas.

A living Ghost Town; a decay spiral permeates.

Holland says CA has a host of eco-activists that keep much-needed-help from arriving.

Holland says these people here have been fighting with the State of CA for decades over the water issue; and they are not getting a listening ear.

Salton Sea vs State of CA (just sound like more governmental BS, to me): https://www.watereducation.org/western-water/long-criticized-inaction-salton-sea-california-says-its-all-effort-preserve-states

It's a sad situation.

It should be illegal for governing authorities to do people like this >:-P

We drove around the Salton Sea in a continuous loop to reach the Salvation Mountain monument; there were several county park/RV parking … but they were by and large not well maintained at all, and basically neglected areas that seemed deserted. We did see several campers (no doubt die-hards that have been coming here all their lives with memories of better days, drawing them), and saw one Park Attendant, but for the most part an atmosphere of forlorn hopelessness overhung the whole area.

This is a region that is dying; financially, physically, and spiritually.

Date trees & bagging harvest.

On the opposite side of the Sea; a neglected County Park.

Prickly Pear Cactus fruit.

Prickly Pear Fruit: 

(https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/cacti-succulents/prickly-pear/harvesting-prickly-pear-fruit.htm)

Holland also wanted to visit "the lowest bar in America; 200 and some feet below sea level" - I did a search for it, on my Tablet: that would be the Ski Inn - a bar and restaurant in Bombay Beach, California.

Another point of interest for Holland …

Bombay Beach-CA: 

(https://roadtrippers.com/magazine/bombay-beach-apocalyptic-wasteland-art-hub/ & https://www.california.com/ghost-town-and-artist-haven-heres-the-bombay-beach-rundown/)

The 'Lowest Bar in America'; Ski Inn. We passed on visitation.

We arrived 10 minutes too early for them to be open: so, we snapped off a pic, and kept on truckin' ;-)

I suppose this drive-in set-up could be viewed by some, as 'intellectually artistic' …

The Ski Inn.

The Ski Inn: 

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ski_Inn)

Bombay Beach is another run-down beach town, in the CA desert. I know that sounds contradictory.

It's a barren landscape around the Salton Sea region.

I'm artistically inclined myself; and I think I'm fairly intelligent … but I failed to see a.n.y.t.h.i.n.g. at all resembling "art", or "intellectual stimulation" in Bombay Beach; despite the YouTube and media source hypes.

Nada.

Maybe I'm just not {hip} enough ;-)

Held up by a train for about 25 minutes.

I was laughing as the train whizzed by, and a memory whizzed thru my thoughts ;-)

Another place Holland wanted to visit was Slab City: I've been dragging my feet about going there. I've watched the YouTube videos and nixed it right off the bat … but it's been a bee in Holland's bonnet, so I made it a point to get there - and get back out of there, as quickly as possible.

Salvation Mountain is located in that ify place, and I did agree to go see it.

Another 'Bucket List' check …

Slab City-CA: 

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slab_City,_California)

Entering the Slab City Compound …

Slab City 'amenities'.

Salvation Mountain: 

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salvation_Mountain)

Leonard Knight & His Technicolor Mountain: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gonpqxlLIa0&t=148s)

Holland's father Jerry, was a minister in the southern states, as well as WA State, (he was the original founder and pastor of the Zion Church along I-5 … and he founded the 'Word of Life Shelter/Soup Kitchen' in Longview-WA). Holland was, in his youth, a PK (preacher's kid) and worked in his father's shelter; so this landmark seriously interested my husband.

And I have to admit that Slab City wasn't the ghetto it appeared to be in questionable YouTube videos … but I still did not want to be parked for any length of time, in that desert slum area.

NO!

Folk Art Salvation Mountain Vehicles.

Folk Art Alien Influence …

Folk Art Salvation Mountain Tractor.

Desert Sand Verbena.

'Honey … NO'.

Kinda reminded me of the Heaven's Gate religious cult that taught a warped christian-alien religion.

Heaven's Gate UFO Religion:

 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heaven%27s_Gate_(religious_group))

A filthy Hot Spring.

Most of the dwellings, and nearly all of the people living there were sketchy individuals. I admire - and applaud - those {called} to live with and minister to sketchy people and situations: but I also admit that I am not one of them. I, personally, have never felt "called" to gamble.

I do live a somewhat 'alternate lifestyle' than some people - but I am not {that} alternate.

I don't mix UFO religiosity with Christianity.

I don't play loosie-goosy with my life. Or my husband's life. Or my dog's life.

If … and that is a BIG "IF" … Elohim calls me to gamble with my life, I'll consider it. Prayerfully. It would have to be a lightening rod moment. 

Kinda like when Elohim opened my eyes to remarriage: any consideration of living on the edge, in a place like Slab City, would have to be that illuminating ;-)

Thankfully, after Holland saw it with his own eyes, he was in agreement with me. Slab City, at this point in time, is no longer a boondocking consideration. Hallelujah!

Bleu has learned how to halt his back window going up without his consent ;-)

Held up again by another passing train; time for a 'Dad & Son talk'; Bleu's teenage 'I can't hear you' dazed gaze …

Abandoned 1920 Strip Mall; Niland-CA.

Niland-CA; 1920 Strip Mall:

 (https://beyond.nvexpeditions.com/california/imperial/niland.php)

We saw a sketchy looking "ministries" - Holland said it looked like "some kind of satanic hoodoo" … I was thinking it looked cultish; so I took a picture and did research at home: an internet search said, {a ministry of the Vineyard Community Church}.

It appears that we are both accurate in our assessments ;-)

A store-front 'church' … this looks as questionable as the Slab City religion.

I am not an advocate for vineyard {ministries}. Holland is … and he was not happy (but did not get angry, either) when I said, "I'm not surprised it's vineyard; they've fooled a lot of people for decades - now, they are finally coming out in the open about the devilry they are about."

We agreed to disagree; and continued truckin' on.

We located the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, and we all enjoyed a relieving pit stop.

 

Sonny Bono Wildlife Refuge Plaque; weather-beaten by the intense sun and wind.

Sonny Bono National Wildlife Refuge:

 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonny_Bono_Salton_Sea_National_Wildlife_Refuge & https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonny_Bono)

A Golden Barrel Cactus sprouting in the parched Refuge desert.

Salton Lake Plaque.

Cahuilla History; Salton Lake region.

Bird Highway; Sonny Bono Refuge - Salton Sea~CA

Bird Area Plaque.

The attendants were friendly, but we didn't see many birds (just a very large flock of White Egrets, waaay off in a distant back field). But I did like the way the grounds were set up.

The whole day was very enjoyable.

Backside of the Dunes at the 3-way-junction of CA-MX-AZ; the sand blows in from mexico.

Both our Bucket Lists were checked today ;-)

We drove the loop route from Brawley-around the Sea-back to Brawley … and freeway home.

It was a good start to the Thanksgiving Holiday :-)