Day 34 - September 8 Desert to Red Rocks

Thirty minutes prior to our 7am start time we were on the bikes and ready to go.  The mornings provide the most comfortable riding as the desert hasn't yet stored up the day's heat.  It was already 73 degrees out there.  There were a few quick minutes on I-10 before we turned to CA-62, aka Twenty-nine Palms Highway, towards Yucca Valley.  When we stopped for fuel in Morongo Valley temps had dropped to 64. It felt cold.  As we continued on, we ran alongside the Joshua Tree National Park.  

Just beyond that we found Amboy Road and ourselves in the "Heart of the Mojave". There were mixed feelings about whether this was a cool place or a desolate waste land.  As one might expect, this road took us to Amboy, CA which is on a portion of Route 66 (National Trails Hwy).  We took a brief break at the iconic Roy's gas station.  For being out in the middle of the desert, it was a hopping place while we were there.  We met 3 guys traveling from the mid-west to Santa Monica, CA in a 1940's classic car, 4 bikers from Germany riding BMW's on a cross country tour of their own, and a family in a suburban.

 

Six miles east of Amboy, we turned left onto Kellbaker Rd and remained on that as it passed the I-40 turn off to Needles and took us into the Mojave National Preserve.

This brought us out to I-15 near Primm, NV where we stopped for lunch and fuel. Just before the exit off the left side of the road was an enormous field of solar panels with 3 power towers that looked like giant lights.

Next, we had to pass by Las Vegas.  Wouldn't you know it, traffic came to a screeching halt.  Turned out to be a vehicle fire on the side of the road. 

Once we cleared the congestion in that area, it was fairly quick roll to the Arizona state line. Of course, this meant removing the helmets.  Shortly beyond that was the red rocks of UT.  Alan took us on a scenic back way into Ivins where we stayed with him for the night.

It was a relaxing evening in Ivins. Alan's neighbors, Don and Kris, graciously offered their hot tub to us. Alan and Yoli were exceptional with their hospitality.  We had a delicious home cooked meal of chicken, baked potatoes, salad and rolls. We watched football in the man cave and enjoyed the down time before retiring for the night. 

Total miles traveled today: 394.8;
Time to travel that distance: 9 hours
Total Cumulative miles: 12,598.6
Tomorrow: Poky, Sweet, Poky!