{"id":11621,"date":"2020-01-29T15:13:33","date_gmt":"2020-01-29T15:13:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/usnomadstudio.com\/usnomads\/blog\/?page_id=11621"},"modified":"2020-02-03T21:18:32","modified_gmt":"2020-02-03T21:18:32","slug":"notes-from-the-road-1-7-january-2020","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/usnomadstudio.com\/usnomads\/blog\/?page_id=11621","title":{"rendered":"Notes From the Road — 1 – 14 January 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"
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NOTES FROM THE ROAD<\/h2>\n
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< more recent<\/a> | 1 – 14 January 2020 | older ><\/a><\/p>\n

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Goodbye to the Red Rock …<\/h5>\n


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A last loop around the desert…<\/strong><\/h6>\n


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4 January 2020:<\/strong> Took the afternoon to just wander a bit in some favorite desert spots not far from the city before a late night departure back to the colder climates of the northeast for a few weeks. But will be back here in the desert again very soon (check out the Roadtrip Southwest daily field notes<\/a> for more details) …
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Around the Strip …<\/h5>\n


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Las Vegas ambiance…<\/strong><\/h6>\n


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3 January 2020:<\/strong> Got outside in the urban space and did some “people-watching” on the streets of Las Vegas and generally enjoyed some of the comforts of being back in a big city, even as it was a bit hard to re-adjust so quickly (check out the Roadtrip Southwest daily field notes<\/a> for more details) …
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Viva Las Vegas …<\/h5>\n


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Back to “civilization”…<\/strong><\/h6>\n


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2 January 2020:<\/strong> Returned to the city and began the re-adjustment to “civilization” and the urban life in the very surreal ambiance of Las Vegas (check out the Roadtrip Southwest daily field notes<\/a> for more details) …
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Starting the Year Off Right …<\/h5>\n


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Exploring the Pinto Valley Wilderness…<\/strong><\/h6>\n


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1 January 2020:<\/strong> Celebrated under the stars last night and today set off to “wander” around the Pinto Valley Wilderness area and explore some trails and washes on the way between Lake Meade NRA and Valley of Fire (check out the Roadtrip Southwest daily field notes<\/a> for more details) …
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PREVIOUS NOTES FROM THE ROAD<\/a> ><\/a><\/h6>\n<\/div>\n
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THIS MONTH:<\/strong>
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\nIts almost holiday roadtrip time and there is plenty of planning for what’s next. Perhaps a surprise or two as we head into the new year…
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COMING UP SOON:<\/strong>
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\nAdvanced sand dune training with Barlow Adventures<\/a> at the Imperial Sand Dunes in southern California. This three day driving and navigation program focuses on moving safely and effectively through large dunefields. Skills-building exercises are intended to improve pace, line choice and vehicle control, as well as developing precision map and compass navigation technique…

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\nMore southwest exploration with the original USnomads team taking some time to just appreciate the journey…

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\nTierra del Sol’s 58th annual Desert Safari<\/a> at Ocotillo Wells from February 28th to March 1st. The event is one of the biggest Jeep events of its kind and the proceeds go towards the fight to keep Public Lands open. …
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MAP NAMES<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Looking at topo maps from the southwest of the U.S.A. there are plenty of “odd” place names to be seen, leading us to wonder how and why these places are called what they are. Apparently there is a governmental body that decides what names appear on maps. According to the National Geographic Society<\/a>, it is the U.S. Board on Geographic Names (BGN) that has been standardizing place names on government maps for over 125 years. The board was created after the Civil War, when the U.S. was expanding westward and place-name inconsistencies and contradictions were making maps of the new territories confusing for surveyors, cartographers, and scientists. In 1890, President Benjamin Harrison, tasked the BGN with clearing up all “unsettled questions concerning geographic names.” The BGN comprises members from six federal departments and the Central Intelligence Agency, the Government Publishing Office, the Library of Congress, and the U.S. Postal Service. It rules on hundreds of naming decisions each year and maintains geographical databases (available at geonames.usgs.gov) containing more than two million domestic records and over 11 million records for foreign names. The BGN doesn\u2019t decide what a place is called. It responds to proposals from federal agencies; state, local, and tribal governments; and the public. But its essential purpose is always the same: clarity and consistency. …
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