We escaped the rainy, cool weather of the northern California coast for two weeks of sun and slightly warmer temps in Las Vegas and southern California for the Christmas season. I spent the beginning of the two weeks working with the BLM Las Vegas wild horse and burrow crew.
Over Christmas itself, we spent a lot of time with Susanna's parents. We explored many interesting areas of the surrounding desert. One day was spent hiking in a wild and forgotten canyon in Lake Mead NRA searching for and finding countless petroglyphs. Another day was spent exploring a remote corner of Death Valley NP and Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. At Ash Meadows, we hiked along a crystal clear, spring-fed stream and marvelled at the endangered pupfish that were living in the stream. One final day was spent hiking to the top of Lone Mountain, a steep and rugged mountain at the edge of the city.
While Susanna stayed with her parents over the New Year, I drove down to El Centro, CA to work at Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area, a set of beautiful dunes administered by the BLM. Over New Years weekend, over 100,000 people visited the dunes.Now, we are once again back in the cozy northern coast!
Santa sure has one wicked looking grin on his face.
ReplyDeleteWow, 100,000 people in one place at one time! What better reason to go elsewhere, where perhaps there's one other person part of the time.