Relaxing in the Chaos

If you happen to visit Nevada’s least populated county, you might think, “ There can’t be much to do here.” Drawing that conclusion could put you in danger of missing one of the coolest public hot springs I’ve ever visited! Fish Lake Valley Hot Well is located off Nevada State Road 264 on an unsigned dirt road. There is a sign at the turn off (where the springs is located) but it’s for a gold mining operation further down the road. The water temperature of the spring is approximately 105° and the soaking pool offers panoramic views of the White Mountains.

We had the springs all to ourselves, but I’m sure that would be unheard of during ordinary times. I can’t adequately describe the tranquility and beauty of this place, but I wanted to post a few pictures and document this rare relaxing experience during these stressful uncertain times.

The View 

Wonderful Unknown

We worried that perhaps we’d left the campground, outside Las Vegas, too early, in regards to other people’s concerns about the pandemic. After spending 45 days in one place, we weren’t sure how welcoming rural Nevada would be to a couple of displaced travelers. We left a city of 2,600,000 people and by mid afternoon, found ourselves in a small town of 260. Thankfully, Linda, the owner of the campground and market, where we ended up, put us right at ease, providing a shady campsite and information about local attractions that weren’t closed and could be visited without fear of reprisal.

The first place we ventured to, after we settled in, is called “The Sump”; locals refer to it as a petrified swamp. It is a place that is unmarked and unsigned and doesn’t show up on any maps. Despite it’s lack luster name, it turned out to be a wonderland with stumps of petrified wood, beautiful eroded cliffs and unusual clay spires. We were glad to have a 4 wheel drive vehicle as we searched for this obscure place, but after hiking and climbing through the bizarre formations, we felt like explorers seeing a landscape for the first time. What an incredible place!

Beat the Heat

We had every intention of staying in Vegas, until the end of the month, hoping that restrictions in the states surrounding us might lighten a bit by May 1st, but things are heating up here; literally. Temps in Vegas are supposed to reach 99° this week. So, today we headed north weaving along the border of CA/NV, searching for cooler temps. We decided we should stay in Nevada until their “stay at home” order has been lifted. At this point, Nevada feels like home. We found a private park 250 miles away in the tiny town of Dyer, Nevada that is accepting campers. All the state/national parks in every state that surrounds us are still closed to camping, so it just doesn’t seem to be the right time to turn East and head home. It was strange packing up and moving but at this point almost any change is welcome change.

We broke up the days drive by stopping for lunch at a ghost town called Rhyolite. It was born during a gold rush when two men struck gold in 1904. Rhyolite had three train lines, three newspapers, three swimming pools, three hospitals, two undertakers, an opera, symphony and 53 saloons. By 1914, Rhyolite was in decline and by 1919, it was a deserted ghost town. Its last resident died in 1924. In addition to the ruins, of the more permanent structures like the bank and school, there is a bottle house, built by Tom Kelly in 1906. That was before the railroad reached Rhyolite and building materials were scarce. Instead of looking for wood which is nearly impossible to find, Kelly used adobe mud to hold together over 50,000 glass whiskey and medicine bottles to make up his one of a kind home.

We ended the day at Esmeralda RV Park, thankful for a place to stay and with a beautiful view of the White Mountains of California.

Bank Building

Tom Kelly's Bottle House

National Parks: America’s Best Idea

We have never stayed in one place for more than two weeks at a time on our camping adventures. Never in a thousand years would I have believed that I would voluntarily choose to camp on the outskirts of Las Vegas for two months! Like everyone, everywhere we are making the best of the situation we find ourselves in and are looking for positives; not negatives. We had planned to visit three new (for us) National Parks, on this trip (Joshua Tree,  Death Valley and Sequoia). Of course, we have put those plans on hold,  indefinitely, but I thought I’d share some posters I stumbled across, in reference to those parks.

For a while now, people have noticed that the ratings for some National Parks on Yelp are not always positive with many receiving only a one star rating. Reviews range from, “the parks are too crowded,   they’re boring or all the good stuff is way too far from the car.” An artist combed thru the “best of the one star rating” quotes and created posters in the style of the old WPA (Works Progress Administration) posters of the 1930’s. They made me smile!