Day 11 - Phoenix to Twentynine Palms: The Real Desert Drive

Mileage = ? Forgot to start the odometer

Elevation = 1900 ft

Song of the Day = "Peaceful Easy Feeling" by The Eagles

For starters, I’d like to thank J and Raegan for letting me muss their sheets and towels, swim in their pool, do loads of laundry, love on their dogs and cats, and track dirt all over their house. Thanks guys… you rock!

I have a hole in the schedule today, and lots of options. They are: 1) Head down to Sonoran Park for a visit. Pros: More cacti. It’s relatively close. Cons: It’s over 100F and I’m less thrilled about that. 2) Head northeast to Payson and the Mogollon Rim. Pros: Quiet forests, cool, relatively unvisited. Cons: It’s east, in the wrong direction. 3) Head back north to Jerome and Woodchute Mountain. Pros: In the semi-right direction. Cons: If Sedona can be used for comparison, it’s likely full of jerks. 4) Head southeast to “The Thing!” (Travis Nick, I am so excited about this!). Pros: I love tacky road-side attractions! Cons: It’s in the opposite direction of where I need to go, ways out of the way, and will likely be closed by the time I get there. 5) Head to Lake Havasu on the AZ-CA border, chill for the night, head early to Joshua Tree tomorrow.

I mull this over while sitting in the parking lot of Los Favoritos (came back for the chorizo breakfast burrito… YUM! If you are ever in Scottsdale, go there. It’s in a strip mall next to the vacant Auto Parts store off McDonald Ave.) I decide on option 5, and roll west on Rt 60 out of town through the never-ending suburban sprawl of Phoenix. At the tiny town of Wickenburg, the road makes a jog to the left and continues on across true Sonoran desert.

Desert outside of Wickenburg

Not really sure what kind of cactus this is... but it looks cool.

I stop frequently to check out some of the plants (which may or may not have been dangerous), and coast through the tiny towns of Aquila and Wenden (The sign reads: Wenden AZ, population 295 friendly people and 3 (here the 3 is crossed out) 5 grumps). The landscape is even more desolate and stark. The number of plants slowly dwindles as I head northwest on Rt 72, then Rt 95 towards the tiny town of Parker.

Ah iz Saguaro

This one's for you, JD.

Parker is located in the Colorado River Indian Reservation (cheap gas and booze – no taxes here!), and I can head north to Lake Havasu from here. However, one look at the long line of trucks hitched with cigarette boats convinces me not to, so I decide to head to the tiny town of Twentynine Palms on the outskirts of Joshua Tree.

Route 62 takes me across uninhabited desert. Real desert. There isn’t a soul around, and the road undulates over the sands. In most places, the road builders would have blasted through or filled in the dunes to make a level path, but in this heat, I’m sure they just said “Ah, screw it” and built the road to follow the natural landscape. A sign reads “DIPS – next 10 miles”. “Story of my life”, I cheerfully reply, and let out a loud “WHEEEEEEEE!!!!!!” as I fly over each hill. 

Desert along 62 East - there is NO ONE, no buildings, no nothing in sight!

Once in Twentynine Palms, I carefully choose a motel, El Rancho Dolores. It’s one of those 50’s era places, with individual ranchettes built around a central courtyard (largest swimming pool in 29 Palms!) and doors opening directly onto your parking spot. The bathrooms have the original tile – it’s perfect! The nice manager recommends a good Mexican restaurant within walking distance, Edchada’s. It’s Friday night, and the bar is filled with Marines from the base just north of town. I enjoy margaritas, chimichangas, and somewhat stilted conversation with a very shy recruit named Zuke (Huh? Going to assume this is a nickname) from Atlanta. The walk back to the motel is quiet and the stars are amazing.