< more recent | 16-22 February 2024 | older >
22 February 2024: Final leg of the long journey today, as I turned west from Tucson to go the rest of the way to Yuma. I did take some time to stop at the Saguaro National Park. My favorite section was “closed” for renovation work being done by the park, so I just went for a walk among the giant cactuses not far from the visitor center. I love how these cactus seem almost “human,” especially at dusk and dawn when seen scattered about in the distance and you can’t quite tell…
21 February 2024: Another long drive day, turning southbound once I crossed into Arizona, where I made a few short stops to look for the Salt River wild horses near Coon Bluff. I have seen them here previously and it was the “right” time of day, late afternoon, to see them again. Took a short walk in an area where I had once stumbled on what seemed like hundreds of them grazing between the trees and saguaros, but this time there was no “sign” of recent activity. I didn’t have a lot of daylight left, and I still had about two more hours to drive, so I got back on the road and continued south to the edge of Tucson, only stopping one more time to get a quick photo of saguaros at dusk…
20 February 2024: After the relaxed pace of the first half of the journey, it is time to pick it up a bit and make some mileage. A long day of highway driving from Amarillo TX to Gallup NM, with just a short stop at El Malpais National Monument. It was cold and there was some snow on the ground at El Caledon Lava Cave, so not really conducive to hiking, but I did get out on the Sandstone Bluffs as the sun approached the horizon, turning them golden…
19 February 2024: This morning I headed to the Stockyards early to make photos of the activity as the cattle were moved from the yard to the auction hall. It was an interesting choreography as hundreds of cows were moved through a series of corrals by just a handful of real cowboys who looked as if they’d stepped out of a western film. It was a fascinating scene, and more so because it was happening right on the edge of a modern urban city. I had the opportunity to get an official “tour” of the stockyards and attend the auction and learn how the process works. This is apparently the only Stockyard in the country that does this kind of sale on a regular basis. I was glad to get to observe it. From the Oklahoma City National Stockyards I turned west towards Texas. I had crossed the 100th Meridian and was now officially in the “west.” I made it to Amarillo in time to catch the last bit of sunlight hitting the half buried cars at Cadillac Ranch, and then went for another great steak dinner at The Big Texan Steakhouse…
18 February 2024: In the morning I made a quick scouting at the Stockyards before heading off to the Witchita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge to spend some time with the buffalo and look for prairie dogs. The last time I had been there the prairie dogs were just beginning to re-establish a new city after having almost all been killed off by plague. I was glad to see a lot more of the little guys this time, though they were still more skittish than usual. Didn’t see a lot of buffalo, but did catch a few of them and many longhorn cattle. I also discovered a cool spot in the landscape where there is a dam and some really cool rock cliffs that I hadn’t seen before. Every time I come to this location I uncover a little bit more. It would be good to camp here again and spend a couple of days, I think it has a lot of hidden interesting places. But today I had to head back towards Oklahoma City, where I stopped for lunch at the Cattleman’s Steakhouse in the area of town called “Stockyard City,” then back to photograph the activity in the Stockyards as they prepared for the auction tomorrow …
17 February 2024: The landscape gradually began the transition from the rolling hills of the Ozarks to the flat wide open terrain of Oklahoma as the day wore on. We started off exploring the ghost town of Rush, along the Buffalo National River. Rush was an old mining town, and the remaining structures are preserved and protected with some interesting ruins along a well designed interpretive hike. The weather was nice for exploring and after finishing the hike, we followed a random dirt road to the river bank. Then it was time to push westward into Oklahoma, with a little detour outside of Tulsa to try to find an intriguing location I had found while looking at Google Maps — it was marked “Wild Mustang Observation Lot” though I could find no real information about it online. We went to the coordinates and the road ended at a fenced off area of ranch land where there were indeed hundreds of horses grazing in the distance. There was really no way to get close enough to make a useful photo, though we could clearly see them from the road (it was impossible to pull off the road as there was no shoulder and a lot of traffic). Eventually I made a few quick images, and continued on the road to Oklahoma City, where we will pause for a couple of days to check out the Oklahoma City National Stockyards, a massive cattle market that harks back to old cowboy times…
16 February 2024: Left Missouri and headed into Arkansas and the Ozarks, enjoying the winding country backroads. The weather and windchill seemed colder than before when we stopped for a short hike at the Mammoth Spring State Park, where I could check out a historical dam that had an interesting history. But it was too cold to linger long with the sharp biting wind, and we continued on towards Calico Rock where I took some time out to explore the ghost town known as Pepper Sauce, which is actually an abandoned section of the larger town of Calico Rock. I crossed a small one lane bridge on foot and found the train trestle that still stands (sort of) behind what was once some kind of warehouse or general store. There were weeds and debris here and there, and what was really cool was that the “ghost town” was not yet “preserved” and so it had a real sense of discovery, as I wandered among the shuttered buildings and abandoned vehicles. There were some kind of turnips growing wild in a forsaken field, and I could hear the work of someone salvaging metal from one of the structures. When I finished there, I headed off in search of another location I had plotted on the map, where I thought I might be able to see the “bluffs” along the White River. It turned out that I followed a dirt road to City Rock Bluff, and instead of being able to see the bluffs, I was on top of them, at one of the heights just as the late afternoon light transformed the landscape. After just enjoying the moment on the edge of the bluffs, it was time to continue on to the town of Mountain Home, where we stopped for the night…
THIS MONTH:
It’s roadtrip time again, heading southwest for some adventures and some events, as well as a little bit of “just exploring”…
COMING UP SOON:
Joining the crew from Barlow Adventures as they present an intensive sand dune training at the Imperial Sand Dunes in southern California. This is a seven-day driving and navigation program that focuses on moving safely and effectively through large dunefields with skills-building exercises intended to improve pace, line choice and vehicle control. There is a full classroom day of navigation instruction focused on mapping and understanding the basics of plotting and route planning on paper maps, as well as increasingly challenging in-the-field practice to develop precision map and compass navigation skills. It all culminates in a final day of “chasing checkpoints” out in the big dunes…
Trail Guiding for the California 4-Wheel Drive Association’s fourth annual Death Valley Experience fundraiser event running in March. Each day will feature a choice of runs to some famous, some infamous and some secretive points of interest within Death Valley National Park. Some of the points of interest we may visit during Death Valley Experience 2024 include Zabriskie Point (famous), Barker Ranch (infamous) and the Racetrack (learn the secret of the moving rocks). Other points of interest include Dante’s View, 20 Mule Team Canyon, Artists’ Drive, Chloride Cliffs, Aguereberry Point, Skidoo, Titus Canyon, and Darwin Falls. All of the trail runs are suitable for novice drivers and SUVs with high clearance and 4-wheel drive…
USnomads.org is very proud to be presenting the third edition of the Nomad Overland Virtual Adventure Rally in 2024. This is a unique kind of rally experience — a ten week event that participants can do from anywhere within the continental U.S.A. Competitors design their own routes as part of the rally, then drive it in a points-based online competition that includes optional activity tasks, quests and weekly challenges. The 2024 rally will run from 3 June – 11 August and is open to any driver within the United States who has an off-road capable vehicle — stock or modified. Registration for 2024 is currently open. For more information see the Rally website …
ABOUT THE RED RIVER GORGE
The Red River Gorge is a unique, scenic natural area that attracts thousands of visitors each year. Spectacular rock features, including sandstone arches and towering cliffs, are just part of the attraction. Outdoor enthusiasts come to the gorge year-round to enjoy hiking, camping, canoeing, wildlife viewing and other recreation opportunities. Nestled in the lush Daniel Boone National Forest, the Red River Gorge has amazed visitors ever since Boone himself first set foot here in the late 1700s. Today, “The Red” consistently ranks among the top climbing and rappelling destinations in the world, with rock formations ranging from rugged cliffs to natural bridges to the largest collection of sandstone arches east of the Rockies. And you don’t have to be a climber to appreciate the natural beauty of Red River Gorge, you can explore the otherworldly terrain on hiking trails or by canoe or kayak. This intricate canyon system features an abundance of high sandstone cliffs, rock shelters, waterfalls, and natural bridges. There are more than 100 natural sandstone arches in the Red River Gorge Geological Area. The multitude of sandstone and cliff-lines helped this area become one of the world’s top rock climbing destinations. Rock shelters and other sites in the Red River Gorge Geological Area contain artifacts of prehistoric occupancy by indigenous people, beginning with the Paleoindian period. Rock shelters are particularly valuable as archeological sites because they are protected from weathering related to precipitation. Plant materials and other relics, such as woven mats and leather moccasins that would decompose in more typical sites are well-preserved in the dry, nitrate-rich soils found in rock shelters. Sites in the area yielded some of the earliest evidence of the domestication of plants found in the eastern United States. Within the Gorge, a scenic drive includes the Nada Tunnel, a 900-foot-long, 12-foot-wide, and 13-foot-high logging tunnel built between 1910 and 1912. The Red River Gorge is a federally-designated National Geological Area, National Natural Landmark, National Archaeological District and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places….
Nesconset | Paris | Belgrade | Cumberland | West Liberty | Pine Ridge | Cave City | Jackson | Calico Rock | Yellville | Oklahoma City | Lawton | Amarillo | Yuma | Phoenix | Sedona | Las Vegas | Death Valley
MORE NOTES FROM THE ROAD:
1-15 February – Roadtrip SW
January – Paris
22-31 December – Holiday Roadtrip
15-21 December – Holiday Roadtrip
1-14 December – Holiday Roadtrip
8-30 November – New Jersey
1-7 November – Cape Cod
27-31 October – Cape Cod
16-26 October – Long Island
1-15 October – Roadtrip East
23-30 September – Roadtrip East
16-22 September – Colorado
8-15 September – Moab LONCON
1-7 September – Roadtrip West
August – Long Island
July – Roadtrip North
June – Nomad Rally Start
23-31 May – Nomad Prep
16-22 May – Nomad Prep
8-15 May – Long Island
1-7 May – Long Island
16-30 April – East Coast
8-15 April – Long Island
1-7 April – Roadtrip Home
1-7 April – Roadtrip Home
22-31 March – DVE
15-21 March – Arizona
8-14 March – Joshua Tree
1-7 March – Glamis
20-28 February – Southwest Roadtrip
1-19 February – Woman and Machine
Archive
ROADTRIP
An epic journey crisscrossing the USA from east to west and back again, exploring some of the beautiful wild spaces that make up our “public lands.” The roadtrip covered almost 15,000 miles, much of it off-grid and off-pavement, focusing on the deserts of the American southwest. Some locations were truly “iconic” while others were little known, and the segments of independent exploration where punctuated with some fun events across the region… [read]
SPECIAL REPORT
All about exploring ghost towns and abandoned places in the USA and beyond, with tips, and information on the many different types of sites to be found across the globe, including detailed guides for eight specific sites… [read]
REFLECTIONS
EGYPT: CAIRO REFLECTIONS
A quick overview of impressions from a stop in Cairo during our recent scouting mission in Egypt and Sudan … [read]
SPECIAL REPORT
A look into south-eastern Algeria on the border with Libya and Niger: overlanding with the Tuareg in one of the most remote corners of the Sahara … [read]
LOCATION
This installment of a series that focuses on locations around the USA takes a look at some favorite places near our home base in NY. We share a few places we like to explore, where you can experience something of the raw natural beauty of coastal beaches, pine barrens and a little bit of obscure military history… [read]
