Hoover Dam and Sequoia National Park

Hoover Dam 2007

Hoover Dam 2014

Day 35 - Friday, June 13 – Hurricane, Utah to Boulder City, Nevada

My Virginia friends have had quite a bit of rain over the past month. When Sheri told me that, I realized that we haven’t had rain in a month. We haven’t even had a cloudy day in a month. I stopped to think about our recent route and realized that we’ve been in the desert for about three weeks (since Big Bend, Texas). None of the campgrounds have grass. It’s all sand and gravel. We arrived in Boulder City, Nevada, quickly unhooked the van, and drove to Hoover Dam. Hoover Dam was an engineering marvel at the time it was built (1935). If you enjoy heights, hydroelectric generators, and lots of concrete, Hoover Dam is an interesting place.

Day 36 - Saturday, June 14 – Boulder City, Nevada to Barstow, California

I can see how someone might fall sleep on the stretch of interstate we traveled today. The scenery offers little variety and consists of sand and rocks. We saw several solar energy stations because the sun shines nearly every day in these arid parts of California. After arriving in Barstow, we dropped the trailer and headed to San Bernadino to meet Sheri’s cousin, Mike Tanner, and his family for dinner. We had a great time catching up on events over the last four years.

Day 37 - Sunday, June 15 – Barstow, California to Visalia, California

The desert landscape transitioned to farming landscape today. If you have ever looked at a label on fruit from the grocery store and read “Product of the USA, Made in California”, there is a good chance we drove very close to the farm it came from. Imagine driving for 2 hours and seeing orchards line the highway the entire time. We saw orange trees, lemon trees, grape vines, and other trees that we guessed were nuts and other fruits. Most people think of California as Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco. However, there are huge plots of land dedicated to farming with humble homes and small communities that look nothing like the urban coastal regions.

Day 38 - Monday, June 16 – Sequoia National Park

If you are prone to motion sickness, avoid the road that enters the southern edge of Sequoia National Park. We drove for about one hour on the most twisted road I have ever been on and climbed from 250 feet above sea level to 6,000 feet above sea level. The curves were so tight, we could only drive 10 miles per hour on most of the curves. The landscape changed from small brush and trees to larger trees as we climbed. If you do make the drive, you will be rewarded with an amazing awe inspiring view as you round a turn at about 6,000 feet. All of sudden huge sequoia trees line the highway. I’ve seen these trees in 2007, but I was once again blown away at their width and height. The tall ones are between 2,000 and 3,000 years old and reach a height of 200 to 300 feet and a width of 20 to 40 feet. The amazing thing about the sequoia trees is that people have tried to transplant them to other locations and they simply don’t grow the same in other climates. They thrive in about 6,000 to 7,000 foot elevations with just the right amount of rain and temperature variance. We also saw a black bear and drove through tunnel log. If you are one of those folks that gets motion sickness, you can still see these amazing trees by entering the park from the north. The road climbs at a much slower pace, but it’s about 2 hours from the main highway.