We drove the Jeep up to the Cottonwood Mountains from Joshua Tree to take a geology tour.The 1st photo is looking back and 2nd photo is where we are headed to go through the lower mountain range and loop around to the road in the first photo. Terri made a great picnic lunch to go along with a very interesting day of exploring. 4X4 is necessary on part of the trip.

[Bob Harris]

Love that second shot Bob, I can relate to some rough roads for sure but not quite as isolated - I envy your adventures my friend they seem never ending, hope to be at stage at some point myself.

Thanks Dave, we said we would travel until we ran out of money to buy fuel, so we have a few miles to go. Still haven't made it to Costa Rica, so I will live vicariously through your threads.

[Bob Harris]

Amazing scenes... could not be more opposite of what I see every day in terms of environment and weather ... funny thing is, your remoteness seems far more scary. What does happen if you get stuck or break down? I can't imagine you'd get cell phone reception out there.... But, Bob, these are great images that tell your story wonderfully. You are lucky to have each other to share such exciting and interesting adventures.

Tess, Terri made up an emergency ration bag that could last us for several days in an emergency. We have gotten into a couple of problems, like breaking a half shaft on the Jeep, but luckily we had cell service so they could rescue us. The engine computer failed while we were on a mountain road in Washington and we had no cell service and in a remote location. Lucky again, someone just happened to be headed down the mountain and took us into town to have the Jeep towed in. Anymore when we are in a park, we notify the rangers of our travel plans and check back in when we leave.

[Bob Harris]

Talk about middle of nowhere! Any history on the road itself - why was it built, who built it? Anyway, neat shots, Bob.

Jer

The trail which eventually turned into a road went to several gold mines in the mountains. Gold was discovered here in the 1880's. Thanks for looking Jer.

[Bob Harris]

Looks like a great place not t6o break down. You always brighten up my day showing off your latest travels Bob. Cheers JIM

thanks for the kind words Jim, we are wintering down here in the Palm Springs area, but there are many places to visit here. We are going out to Anza Borrego in a few days, lots to see out there.

[Bob Harris]

Hey Jer - You might be being a little generous with the terms "road" and "built".

How the heck do you find these places Bob - Must have been a BIG roadside sign saying "Turn Here!".....

Tim

Bob --In both shots how far away are the mountains and how high are they?--charliezap

Thanks Tim and Charlie, here is a video about the area, we use Desert Magazine for a lot of our travel information.
Take a look and you can see several of the areas that we traveled through.

Geology Tour Road at Joshua Tree National Park - Video DesertUSA

[slowpez]

Bob, I had to get down on two knees and beg Ray to take me to Joshua Tree and he finally did it on our way back from Alaska. That is now one of our top 1 national parks. We have so many that rank number 1 that we have a whole category of number 1's. Have you been to Death Valley? I'll bet you have, It is also a number 1.
I love the second shot especially. It really makes you want to take that road.

[Bob Harris]

Bob, I had to get down on two knees and beg Ray to take me to Joshua Tree and he finally did it on our way back from Alaska. That is now one of our top 1 national parks. We have so many that rank number 1 that we have a whole category of number 1's. Have you been to Death Valley? I'll bet you have, It is also a number 1.
I love the second shot especially. It really makes you want to take that road.

Susan, when I first read you had visited Joshua Tree, my thought was "What"?. You leave Virginia headed to Alaska and you just swing by Southern California on your way back home. Now that is the long way home I would say. We do stuff like that all of the time though. We have a membership campground in Pahrump, NV., and it is only 50 miles from DV, so we try to swing by there each year since it is so close. I know what you mean about #1, we have so many of them also.

[RioRico]

The Geology Tour route was always one of my favorites when I lived there. Not exactly the middle of nowhere -- plenty of traffic, and an easy track for my old Plymouth station wagon. But there are many remote corners in JTNP where it's easy to slough-off civilization. And don't forget Music Valley...

As for elevations: the Morongo Basin on the north side of JTNP (say between Joshua Tree town and 29 Palms) is at roughly 750-1000m, and the Geology Tour (I think that's in Pleasant Valley) is roughly 1500m IIRC. There are some fairly easy hikes up to over 2000m that are just splendid.

Bob, your shots take me right back there. Too bad I was only shooting B&W back then.

[Bob Harris]

The Geology Tour route was always one of my favorites when I lived there. Not exactly the middle of nowhere -- plenty of traffic, and an easy track for my old Plymouth station wagon. But there are many remote corners in JTNP where it's easy to slough-off civilization. And don't forget Music Valley...

As for elevations: the Morongo Basin on the north side of JTNP (say between Joshua Tree town and 29 Palms) is at roughly 750-1000m, and the Geology Tour (I think that's in Pleasant Valley) is roughly 1500m IIRC. There are some fairly easy hikes up to over 2000m that are just splendid.

Bob, your shots take me right back there. Too bad I was only shooting B&W back then.

\

Rico, thanks for the added information, beautiful country you lived in. I remember you saying you lived in 29 Palms. I thought about you when we visited Prescott AZ, where I believe your sister lives. The lst time I was there was in 1958 to visit my grandparents. Wow what a change. I took some pics of the old section up near the courthouse. It has been updated of course and now seems to be much prettier than I remember. I will post them later, but talking about you can't go home again. That place has changed for sure.

[RioRico]

Rico, thanks for the added information, beautiful country you lived in. I remember you saying you lived in 29 Palms. I thought about you when we visited Prescott AZ, where I believe your sister lives. The lst time I was there was in 1958 to visit my grandparents. Wow what a change. I took some pics of the old section up near the courthouse. It has been updated of course and now seems to be much prettier than I remember. I will post them later, but talking about you can't go home again. That place has changed for sure.

I very very occasionally regress to my original haunts between Hollyweird and San Boogaloo. Some neighborhoods never change, some are beyond recognition. Nope, can't go back. Further east, 29 Palms & Joshua Tree & Yucca Valley have burgeoned over the decades -- except around my old house in 29P cat-corner from the JTNP HQ. It's still a cinderblock shack surrounded by a cactus garden surrounded by open desert. (I just checked Google Maps.) Looks the same as when I flew over it in 1977, but very different that 20 years before then.

I first saw Press-kit (local pronunciation) just a few years before sister Barbi moved there, so the changes aren't as startling, but I see that Prescott Valley is a suburban tumor. Sedona sprawls. Jerome doesn't, but it's vertical. Tucson is almost incomprehensible. (I've another sister there.) Phoenix is beyond hope. But not all the changes are negative. Flagstaff is MUCH nicer now than 50 years ago. And Bisbee just keeps getting weirder.

Speaking of which -- We'd planned to head for our old adobe in Bisbee a couple weeks ago, to spend a few months away from impending blizzards. But I've been sick. But I'm getting better. We may take off in a couple weeks. (Right after a Blue Oyster Cult concert, heh heh.) I need a few desert-mountain months, and strolls across the Mexican border, and manaical photography. I have several stretches of 20 MILES OF BAD ROAD to revisit in Geronimo country.

[Bob Harris]

I very very occasionally regress to my original haunts between Hollyweird and San Boogaloo. Some neighborhoods never change, some are beyond recognition. Nope, can't go back. Further east, 29 Palms & Joshua Tree & Yucca Valley have burgeoned over the decades -- except around my old house in 29P cat-corner from the JTNP HQ. It's still a cinderblock shack surrounded by a cactus garden surrounded by open desert. (I just checked Google Maps.) Looks the same as when I flew over it in 1977, but very different that 20 years before then.

I first saw Press-kit (local pronunciation) just a few years before sister Barbi moved there, so the changes aren't as startling, but I see that Prescott Valley is a suburban tumor. Sedona sprawls. Jerome doesn't, but it's vertical. Tucson is almost incomprehensible. (I've another sister there.) Phoenix is beyond hope. But not all the changes are negative. Flagstaff is MUCH nicer now than 50 years ago. And Bisbee just keeps getting weirder.

Speaking of which -- We'd planned to head for our old adobe in Bisbee a couple weeks ago, to spend a few months away from impending blizzards. But I've been sick. But I'm getting better. We may take off in a couple weeks. (Right after a Blue Oyster Cult concert, heh heh.) I need a few desert-mountain months, and strolls across the Mexican border, and manaical photography. I have several stretches of 20 MILES OF BAD ROAD to revisit in Geronimo country.

You may have been sick because your body is telling you to get out of the cold and return to the hot/dry climates that you lived in over the years. I will have to find my old Texas John Slaughter photos from his ranch on the Mexican border, not too far from Bisbee if my memory serves me right.

[captainbert]

Those are stellar shots Bob... what an astounding location! Vast empty immense barren spaces... just love that! The one on the right particularly floats my boat... great stuff my friend! Two more reasons why i need to get the 43mm asap

[RioRico]

You may have been sick because your body is telling you to get out of the cold and return to the hot/dry climates that you lived in over the years.

No, I blame infectious relatives.

I will have to find my old Texas John Slaughter photos from his ranch on the Mexican border, not too far from Bisbee if my memory serves me right.

Your memory serves you right. The southeast corner of Arizona is Cochise County, and the Slaughter Ranch is right down there just 40 miles from Bisbee, with a New Mexico phone number and a Border Patrol outpost. Yeah, this is this land of Cochise and Geronimo and John Slaughter and Wyatt Earp and Rex Allen and JA Jance -- and cross-dressing bar-hoppers and Army interrogators and rattlesnake ranchers and High Lonesome Road. Tombstone, Ft Huachuca, Ft Bowie, Bisbee, Douglas, the Chiricahua Mtns, the Lavender Pit (huge copper mine), Coronado's trail, a big country of sky islands and broad valleys, not much in the way of Stinking Desert. Beats the hell out of Phoenix.

[Bob Harris]

Those are stellar shots Bob... what an astounding location! Vast empty immense barren spaces... just love that! The one on the right particularly floats my boat... great stuff my friend! Two more reasons why i need to get the 43mm asap

thank you Garbhan for the kind words, a little different than Ireland I would think, yes this is wide open country for sure and I love the 43 ltd, very versatile and a sharp lens. take care friend.

[Bob Harris]

No, I blame infectious relatives.


Your memory serves you right. The southeast corner of Arizona is Cochise County, and the Slaughter Ranch is right down there just 40 miles from Bisbee, with a New Mexico phone number and a Border Patrol outpost. Yeah, this is this land of Cochise and Geronimo and John Slaughter and Wyatt Earp and Rex Allen and JA Jance -- and cross-dressing bar-hoppers and Army interrogators and rattlesnake ranchers and High Lonesome Road. Tombstone, Ft Huachuca, Ft Bowie, Bisbee, Douglas, the Chiricahua Mtns, the Lavender Pit (huge copper mine), Coronado's trail, a big country of sky islands and broad valleys, not much in the way of Stinking Desert. Beats the hell out of Phoenix.

You should work for the Chamber of Commerce and for some reason I don't think you care much of Phoenix. We were pulled over by the Border Patrol as we were on the long dirt road to Slaughters Ranch and then stopped as we were leaving to check the car for illegals. Take care and thanks again for viewing the thread.