Ratsofrass | Ralph's Words on the internet, about the internet, and whatever else I feel like talking about

Kootenay Lake chills

My early return to Canada meant I was likely to be colder than I’d like. I’d come to Kootenay Lake, which tends to be a bit warmer thanks to the water, but it was still cold. I was paying for camping in Kokanee Chalets and RV park. There was still snow on the ground in the park, that did not bode well for going out on the forestry roads to boondock. I was hoping for proper spring to arrive, with warmer temperatures and melting snow so I could move over to a free and better camping spot. Continue reading →

Mad dash to Canada

Snow in the mountains as I head north

I only had a week left of my time allowed in the States, so it was time to really put on some miles and get back to Canada. It was going to be two long days of driving, then a short day to get to the border. It sucks that I am not seeing much of the northern half of the continental USA, but that is the way it works out usually – being chased south by winter and chased north by the six month stay deadline in the spring. In my case, it was only a 5 month stay as I had been in the States previously for a month in the spring. This was putting me back in Canada in late March, a bit early for spring in most parts of the country. But I had a plan to mitigate this somewhat. Continue reading →

Expected and unexpected finds heading north

Kelso station sign

I was heading north on my own again, with a long travel day ahead of me. My goal was to make it back to Mesquite, Nevada where I had previously scouted out some cool potential boondocking spots. I expected to find a good spot, one even had a great view of the Virgin River valley. I did not expect to run across another familiar landmark I had seen only in my internet travels. Read on to see what I found! Continue reading →

The great wall of Palm Springs

Palm Springs has unexpected walls

From the Salton Sea, it was time for me to head north, back to the land of cold white stuff. My allowed time in the States was coming to an end and I needed to be north regardless of what the weather might be. The first stop on the way north was a fairly short hop as I was not in a hurry yet to get back into colder climes. I might as well enjoy the pleasant early spring warmth as much as possible before heading back into early spring snow and chill of late March. Where better to enjoy the weather than Palm Springs? Continue reading →

Slab City frees mind at a cost

Living in Slab City is free, like boondocking, in both senses. But like boondocking, it doesn’t quite fit in with regular society. The normal expectations and rules don’t apply here. Perhaps that is why we nomads all come to visit The Slabs at some point; there is an attraction to a kindred spirit lifestyle. As I mentioned in my last post, while I was at Bombay Beach, I took the Grom motorcycle over to Slab City for a little tour. Actually, I visited The Slabs a second time hitching a ride with friends a couple of days later. So, I have a couple of perspectives to use writing about this much visited “last free place” in America. Read on to to be perspectivized! Continue reading →

Salton Sea follies

The Greyhound is a cutout in an abandoned building

For the first time in my nomad life, I was going to be caravanning with a group to our next destination. Up until now, I had always joined a group in progress, or had people come to a spot I’d picked out. We were thinking of camping at Slab City, which I felt was better in a group of known friends. However on the way there we discovered an intriguing spot we just had to camp at. It even had water (of a sort) nearby. Read on to see what we found!

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Joshua Tree not so treed

Lizzy a little bigger than my hand in Joshua Tree Park

I was camped again among friends near Joshua Tree National Park (Joshua Tree or JT). The plan was to explore the park from our boondocking base camp here. I had seen Joshua Trees before near Searchlight, NV but was informed that JT had much more dramatic hills and rocks as a backdrop for their trees. Having friends meant that I could hitch a ride some days with one of their cars, and use my motorcycle on others. Exploring with others for a change would be fun. Stay tuned to see what we found out here!

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Searching for Water Camping

I had a couple of ideas for my next spot to boondock. My plan was to travel down the Colorado River south of Blythe and see if I could find a spot to dip my kayak in the water for a second time this winter. If that didn’t work out, I’d travel to Joshua Tree National Park to meet up with friends. If I couldn’t have water, I could at least have some trees to look at I figured. Read on to see my difficult choice of spots I ended up having to pick from!

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Kofa North unexpected find

I was on my own again, exploring the north east end of Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. I had explored a bit of the west side previously, but even there I only scratched the surface. Kofa is big. I started out camped on the edge of the park, with the plan being to take the motorcycle into the park and see if there was a better spot I could drive to with the RV. Read on to see what I found!

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Bouse boondocking revisit

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.

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friends

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