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We headed
over to Homestake Dry Camp for the night. The spot we used before was empty and we settled in. After set up, hosing each other off, and chips and guacamole, the sun
was dropping and warm light lit up the early evening.
The Lady and
I went for a walk, our favorite way to relax. We headed over to the top of
Lippincott Road. The Lady had asked if we could camp there if Homestake was
crowded.
"I
suspect it is legal to disperse camp but that's one place where we'd run the
risk of a "Run" coming through in the middle of the night," I
answered.
"Oh my
god," the Lady said, "You are right."
As we neared
the famous sign right before the drop off, we saw someone was already camped in
the wide spot. A single woman had a small dome tent set up next to her new Ford
Edge. The slim woman wore a form fitting red dress as she set her two burner propane stove on the ground in front of her vehicle, out of the warm breeze funneling up the gap in the mountains. She smiled
and waved when she spotted our approach. In the gorgeous evening light I
thought a production company might be filming a car commercial.
The Lady
introduced us and asked her name, "Somona," she told us.
"Did
you drive your car up Lippincott or are you going to drive down in the
morning?" the Lady asked with a smile. Somona smiled also, "No, I
don't think so. I have friends who have driven it."
From our
conversation it was evident Somona knew Death Valley well and was a frequent
visitor. "I'm meeting friends and we are going to watch the lunar eclipse
on Saturday out on the Racetrack Playa!"
After a
short visit, we headed back to our camp and our own dinner.
Morning came
with an odd haze. It made us think of smoke from a distant fire.
I walked in
the pre dawn as the Lady fussed in the camper and I was greeted with morning
reveille.
We all had
breakfast back at camp as morning light washed over the mountain slopes.
This morning
was for Mom Spider who is fascinated with the flora and fauna of Death Valley National Park. We were
wandering up to the Lippincott Mine and exploring possibilities.
We were in a
great place for an assortment of spring wildflowers and plants.
I enjoyed
the purple stems of the Desert Trumpet.
Mojave Aster
Sticky Poppy
Deep red
Indian Paintbrush
Notch-Leaf Phacelia
Golden
Evening Primrose
Beavertail
Cactus was almost ready to bloom.
A special
treat was the rare endemic Panamint Daisy
We reached
the Lippincott Mine with a bat gate protecting an entrance to an adit.
I found a small rusty spike sized for the small ore cart rail.
The ruins of
a large ore bin is heading toward collapse.
Racetrack
Playa
Although we
had been close on another trip, this was the Spider's opportunity to see the
Racetrack and its famous Grandstand and moving rocks. The Lady always has a map
of some kind.
We found
several nice trails that led to their signature rocks
Always a man
of action, Barking Spider took charge. If he thought a rock was moving too
slowly, he got it moving faster.
Action was
also called for if a rock was speeding along too quickly.
The Spider's
asked us how a place with moving rocks came to be called the Racetrack. The
Lady and I filled them in.
The famous moving rock quickly took the lead.
Me? I was so
happy just to be back on the playa.
Ubehebe Peak was above to the west.
Our next
stop was the Grandstand.
Bigfoot had
been out here when it was wet.
The Lady
beat us all to the top.
She was also last one down. We were spending the night at 360° Camp, a name we gave a spot along White Top Mountain Road because of the view. We knew we would be alone and have the wonderful vistas all to ourselves. We stopped at the famous Teakettle Junction so I could do a self portrait.
The
temperatures had settled down and were perfect.
There is
nothing like a peaceful night in the desert.
And, nothing like a cool desert morning.
Morning
light down Burro Gap.
Across from
us was the road to Lost Burro Mine with its mill high above.
We traveled
back out the Racetrack Road toward Scotty's Castle.
We stopped
once where we found Beavertails in bloom.
Time is
going to kind of stop now in our story. There's a reason for this. We will give
no hints as to the location of our next destination. A day and night will be
missing. We will not reveal one of our campsites. There was a day built into
our trip for me. The others were equally excited. This could just be the
highlight of this trip, maybe even a highlight of all our travels. I had been
researching a place off and on for a year. A secret place. A very special
place. A place filled with magic and mystery.
Continued in Part Four - please Click Here
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