Day 66 10/21/09 Joshua Tree
We awoke to another beautiful morning in Malibu. We were given a late breakfast time so that the group could sleep in after a long day at LACOSS. ECOEE left there and was on the road by 10 am. After driving by some very expensive beach horses and apartments we were in the heart of L.A. We got to see from the freeway such sights as the Staple Center and the Hollywood sign. At about 1pm we stopped just outside the city for lunch and a break from sitting in the vans. After a sandwich and a brief call to grandma we were back on the road. Our objective for driving today was Joshua Tree National Park. We stopped again for a brief grocery run and at a visitor center once we got into the town of Joshua Tree. After some purchases and a brief drive we are here in Joshua Tree. It is something a lot of the group has been waiting for a long time. We arrive in the early afternoon, and once the tents are put up we were free to go while the cooks got supper ready. Jeff, Sean and Phete quickly scaled he boulders that were connected to our camp in site. This motivated several others in the group to try out some of the those climbs and eventually we became bold enough to venture out into the rest of the area. Ronny, Christine and I went to a hill on the other side of the road. This was quite an adventure and had several scrapes and stories by the time we raced back. At the chow circle I realized that I didn’t have a quote so I’ve decided to put it in here. “Better to live in a desert then with a quarrelsome wife and ill tempered wife.” I have no idea about the wife part but after spending a few hours out here I would say that living in this desert is quite fun even though there are mojave rattlesnakes, tarantulas, scorpions and several creatures that would be hazardous to encounter. As we go to bed it feels very strange because just a few days ago we were at times knee deep in snow. Tomorrow we are going on a hike that is splitting ECOEE in half. This will be very fun and challenging at the same time but as Calvin says “be prepared”. After everything we have gone through there is no doubt in my mind that we will. Time for bed.
Nathan Asaph Barr
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