Day 5 Oatman, AZ

We spent our morning wandering around the old mining town of Oatman, AZ. It is still home to about 100 people and a few dozen burros. On our way back to Las Vegas, we'll make a stop near Hoover Dam and Lake Mead, before we return to the Luxor Hotel and say good bye to our new friends. It has been a great trip. We had 5 returning guest and folks from as far away as Florida, Vancouver,BC, Minnesota and Maryland.  Thanks all for a great trip!

Day 4 Joshua Tree National Park

After breaking camp, we hiked a shorter trail near our campground, Black Rock before heading into the main section of the park. First we hiked a short but beautiful trail called Hidden Valley, and then we split up into two groups. Some folks hiked Ryan's Peak for a stunning bird's eye view of the park, while others hiked to Barker Dam and Skull rock.  We saw lots of wild flowers, desert hares, and lizards. We'll head over to camp in Needles, CA tonight along RT 66.

Day 3 Mojave National Preserve

We departed Tecopa Hot Springs this morning, refreshed from our lovely soaks in the hot spring fed baths. Our first stop in Mojave Preserve was  the historic Kelso Depot and then on to the Kelso Dunes.  We then continued our journey to the Hole in the Wall area of the Preserve where we hiked a short but very fun trail, saw some petroglyphs and ate a delicious dinner. We'll drive to Joshua Tree tonight along Rt 66, and sleep under the Joshua Trees! 

Day 2 Death Valley

Before heading out on the trail, we stopped in at the Furnace Creek Visitor Center to check on trail conditions. Everything looked good so we headed out for a quick stop at the Harmony Borax Works for a bit of a history lesson on why people ever chose to live and work in such inhospitable environment. The answer: Borax!  We then hiked from beautiful Zabreiski's Point, through Golden Canyon and over to Red Cathedral. The views and the many colors of the rock were stunning! From Zabriskie's Point, you can view the Panamint Mts, which are over 11,000 ft high, and the bottom of the valley, 200+ feet below sea level. It is quite a sight.  After our hike we headed back to Furnace Creek for a nice picnic lunch in the shade of the palm trees (thankfully!) and for a quick ice cream break at the resort store. Our route out of the park took us to Badwater Salt Flats, at 282 ft below sea level and past some beautiful road side wildflowers. Tonight, it's chili for dinner and a nice soak in the Tecopa Hot Springs. 

Day 1 Red Rock NCA!

Today we hiked in the Calico Basin area of Red Rocks National Conservation Area. After meeting our guests at 9AM at the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas, we drove out to the park approximate 45 minutes outside of the city. After filling our packs with water, we hiked along the Calico Hills trail, packed up a lunch and headed up to Calico Tanks.  The trail took us through this beautiful little valley surrounded by red rock sandstone. Plenty of yucca, aloe, manzanita, and lizards were spotted on the trail.  And at the very top, we stopped for lunch at a look out where you could see the Las Vegas Strip. It almost looked peaceful from that distance.  After the hike we continued on the one way scenic drive through the rest of the park. It is a bit baron these days, as a fire went through the area 4-5 years ago and you can still see the effects.  The cliff walls in the distance were very beautiful though. We'll continue on to camp at Furnace Creek in Death Valley tonight. I'm sure we'll hear coyote!