Contrails decorate the sunrise sky
I’m not strictly chronological in my tales of the desert. There is an advantage to being able to tell the tale of a month past, being able to group common themes together like my tourism bits in my last post.
This time I was meeting with some new friends who had started the nomad life about the same time as me. We both have had our trials and tribulations with snow.
Isolation from below, but not seen above
I arrived at the agreed upon spot – it is a gorgeous area right up against some of the more interesting Bouse hills. The hills were full of mysterious holes and cracks, with large boulders strewn underneath, all painted in red. I know, I know, yet more Bouse spots! But the Bouse area is truly quite varied. I was only a couple of klicks as the crow flies from my old camp and it felt like I was in a new world!
Morning RV shadow at camp
The area was crossed by several cart tracks, which was good for hiking and motorcycling, but not so good for solitude. While our spot looked isolated, we were in fact just a ridge top away from the cluster of campers near the main road. With a cart path coming over the ridge going right by our camp, we quickly found out that a lot of those people come over to explore the hills we were camped under, coming by foot or vehicle. So the views were great, but the solitude was broken by the occasional ATV, and outright shattered whenever a caravan of these things went by. It was the price paid to be nestled under these beautiful hills.
Being as t
here were hills right by our camp, a hike was in order. The hills look rugged, and they are! But you can climb all but the steepest slopes thanks to the grippy aggregates fused together in the solid rocks of the area. You just have to be very careful of the gravel bits – that can be slippery at any time! We all followed a trail into a box canyon, rising up out of it onto a ridge with a spectacular view.
Ridge top view looking to north
We all marveled at the desert laid out in front of us. It was one of those times when pictures don’t do it justice. It was nice to share it with friends for a change.
I decided this road was beyond my motorcycle skills
With all the tracks around the area, I definitely got in some good rides with the Grom motorcycle. There was a variety of tracks, one of which I decided I was not up to. A steep rise out of a wash with a tilt to the left. Had I needed to put a foot down to the left, I would have gone over thanks to the steep tilt of the road turning left. I went back just as a hike going down that road, but not as far as I would have gone with the Grom!
Orange peel will just get blown around like tumble weeds
While people are pretty good about picking up their garbage out here, some people do not realize that things do not break down out here in the desert. Discarded orange peels will just dry up and get blown about. The lack of moisture means that things don’t rot. You do not want to leave anything behind, pack it all out.
I’m amazed that cattle were ever in here at all, but you do see the occasional old cow patty. There is some pretty new ranching infrastructure around too. Although who know how old this stuff is – the dry air preserves things for a long time in a pristine state, as long as you are not in an area subject to sandstorms. Most of the structures relate to water, the most precious resource out here. I see little grass around, which is why I was surprised to see any evidence of cows. Perhaps in years past there was more for a cow to forage on out here.
Self portrait at the top of the hill
As usual, I collected a pound of rocks. I managed to restrain myself to only one rock out of the TWO collection piles I had amassed by the time I left.
I leave rock collections behind in the desert
The Bouse B seen from the rest stop
All in all it was another interesting week at Bouse, but I’m sure you readers have had enough of the area. So onto a new spot, no more Bouse for a while, I promise!
Join me next time when I explore the north end of Kofa Wildlife Refuge!
